MINSK, 29 July (BelTA) – The Belarusian economy has retained an external development vector amid sanctions. Dmitry Murin, member of the Board, Head of the Central Office for Monetary Policy and Economic Analysis of the National Bank of the Republic of Belarus (NBRB), mentioned it at an expanded-participation session of the central bank’s board, BelTA has learned.
According to Dmitry Murin, despite the pressure of sanctions the Belarusian economy continues developing outwards. In January-May 2023 Belarus’ foreign trade rose by 15.4% as against January-May 2022. The export of services rises steadily – by more than 10%. Most of the increase in export went to Russia as Belarus redirected export to Russia due to sanctions and thanks to an uptick in economic activity in Russia. Falling global prices for the main exports after their increase during the pandemic are having a restraining effect on the growth of Belarus’ export in cost terms.
The import of merchandise and services went up by 21.3%. The low volume of import in January-May 2022 ($2.9 billion per month on the average) is one of the reasons. An increase in transportation costs due to forced changes in logistics is another one. At the same time the volume of import rapidly increased to the average monthly figure of about $3.8 billion, which had been registered in the previous years, thanks to the restoration of economic activity and consumer activity in the country. As a result, the balance of the foreign trade in merchandise and services now steadily decreases although it remained at a positive level in H1 2023. In January-May 2023 the surplus of foreign trade in merchandise and services totaled $165 million, Dmitry Murin noted.