Economy - trade

Greece has always had an outward-looking economy. The total value of Greek trade stood at €72,670 million in 2007, registering an increase of 8.1% in comparison with 2006. This increase mainly reflects the considerably high growth rate of imports and also a moderate increase in exports, thus resulting in a sizeable trade deficit that is growing continuously.

Data on our country's foreign trade are shown in the following table:

Greece’s foreign trade, 2007

(in million €)

Source: National Statistical Service of Greece

* Provisional data

Ι.  Development of Greek foreign trade by geographical region and country

Α.  Exports

According to provisional data by the NSSG, the value of Greek exports stood at €17,1483 million in 2007, up by 4%. Calculated on the basis of the depreciation of the U.S. dollar, this increase reaches €23,469 million, or 13.5%.

The following findings emerge from an analysis of exports by geographical region:

 
- Our exports to OECD member states reached €9,694 million, marginally down by 1% in comparison with the same period in 2006, representing 2/3 of our total exports. Specifically, our exports to EU-25 countries rose by 3.5%, while our exports to EU-15 countries recorded a marginal drop of 0.2%. Our exports to North America also fell slightly by 2.5%, but our exports to other developed countries (Japan, Australia, New Zealand) increased by 44.8%.

-  Exports to African countries presented strong growth of 53.6%, but still represent just 0.9% of the total value of Greek exports, while our exports to the countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States increased by 19.8%, but absolute figures are relatively low. They are followed by our exports to the Balkans, which rose by 16.0%.

- By contrast, our exports to countries in North Africa and the Middle East fell by 29.8%, to Southeast Asian countries by 18.1%, and to Latin American countries by 11.8%.
  

Greek exports by geographical region

(in million €)

Source: National Statistical Service of Greece

Data for both years are provisional.

More particularly:

According to NSSG data in the 11 months from January to November 2007, the most significant increases in Greek exports to CIS countries were recorded for Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan (108.8% and 102.6%, respectively), but Russia is still the largest importer of Greek products in absolute terms.

With regard to North African and Middle Eastern countries, the greatest increase in exports was recorded in the case of Yemen (up by 567.7%), Bahrain (155.7%) and Oman (up by 127.8%), while the United Arab Emirates are in first place in absolute terms.

As far as the Balkan countries are concerned, the fastest growth was registered by Greek exports to Bosnia-Herzegovina (up by 45.2%), Croatia (up by 42.0%) and Romania (up by 33.3%), with the latter remaining, along with Bulgaria, the top importing countries of Greek products.

Regarding our exports to the EU-25, the strongest growth was reported in exports for Slovakia by 53.5%, Latvia by 37.6%, Hungary by 36.0%, and Cyprus by 31.7%; but Germany is the top importer of Greek products in absolute terms, followed by Italy and Cyprus in second and third place, respectively.

This chart shows the 15 principal importers of Greek products in 2007, followed by a table on the changes that occurred in these countries in 2005, compared with 2001.

The 15 top importing countries of Greek products in 2001, 2005 and 2007

(in million €)

Source: National Statistical Service of Greece

Β. Imports

The growth rate for our country's imports was almost double than that of exports, reaching €55,521.8 million, up by 9.4%. As a result, the trade deficit widened by 13.3%.

The following findings emerge from an analysis of imports by geographical region:

- Our imports from North America and our EU partners grew considerably, by 43.4% and 10.3% respectively.

- The value of our imports from Balkan, Latin American and African countries also increased considerably, by 11.8%, 64.8% and 37.7% respectively, but their contribution to our total imports is still very small.

- Furthermore, our country’s imports from North African and Middle Eastern countries declined by 8.4% and 3.1%, respectively.

Greek exports by geographical region

(in million €)

Source: National Statistical Service of Greece

Data for both years are provisional.

More specifically, according to the provisional data by the NSSG, in the 11 months from January to November 2007, Greek exports to Estonia and Poland showed the most significant increase (by 85.8% and 43.7 respectively) among our EU partners. In absolute terms, Germany was our biggest supplier, followed by Italy.

The fastest growth rate in imports from North America was notched up by imports from the United States. Moreover, our imports from Australia rose spectacularly, despite remaining at very low levels in absolute terms.

With regard to the Balkans, our imports from Albania rose considerably, while Bulgaria is still our country's main supplier in the region.

As regards countries belonging to the Commonwealth of Independent States, the fastest growth was recorded by our imports from Armenia (by 323.2%), while Russia is still by far our country’s most significant supplier in the region in absolute terms.

Our top supplier in the Middle East is Iran, while our imports from Iraq and Bahrain grew at a spectacular pace, despite accounting for a particularly small part of our total imports.

Finally, our country’s main suppliers in Southeast Asia are China and South Korea, with Chinese imports increasing by 50.6% in 2007.

The following table presents Greece’s 15 main suppliers in 2007.

Greece’s 15 top exporters

January - November 2007*

(in million €)

Source: National Statistical Service of Greece

* Provisional data

ΙΙ. Development of Greek foreign trade by main product categories

Α. Exports

Greek exports grew by 4.0% in 2007, chiefly thanks to the 7.1% rise in exports of industrial goods, compared with the previous year. Commodities and transactions not classified according to kind increased considerably by 27.6%, although they account for a very small percentage – in absolute terms – of the total value of exports. In addition, agricultural produce accounting for 1/5 of our total exports grew marginally by 1.2%.

Greek exports by category, 2007

(in million €)

Source: National Statistical Service of Greece

* Provisional data

Β. Imports

Greek imports in 2007 grew in almost every category of goods, excluding fuel. Imports of raw materials increased considerably, by 28.8%, followed by industrial goods imports (up by 14.1%) and agricultural produce (up by 11.9%).

Greek imports by category, 2007

(in million €)

Source: National Statistical Service of Greece

* Provisional data

Last modified: December 2008