Estonian foreign trade: strong price-driven growth

In the first three quarters of 2022, Estonia exported goods worth EUR 16 bn and imported goods worth EUR 18.5 bn.
In both cases, this represents a marked increase on the first three quarters of 2021, when exports totaled EUR 13.17 bn (+21%) and imports EUR 14.42 bn (+28%).
The trade deficit doubled from EUR 1.25 bn to EUR 2.5 bn (+100%).

The country will export machinery and electronic equipment worth EUR 3.26 billion in 2022, EUR 242 million more than in 2021.
This type of product accounts for the largest share of exports (20.4%), followed by mineral and petroleum products (EUR 3.17 bn, or 19.9% of exports).
Exports of mineral products have risen by 43% compared with 2021 (EUR 2.225 billion in 2021), an increase of EUR 952 million.
Exports of wood products have also risen, from 1.43 billion EUR in 2021 to 1.79 billion EUR in 2022.

Machinery and electronic equipment are also the main import items, accounting for EUR 3.68 bn, or 19.9% of total imports for the year.
Mineral and petroleum products also saw the biggest increase over the year, rising from EUR 2.31 billion in the first three quarters of 2021 to EUR 3.68 billion in 2022.
This 59% increase is mainly due to higher energy and hydrocarbon prices.
Mineral and petroleum products accounted for 16% of Estonia’s imports in the first three quarters of 2021, compared with 19.9% in 2022.
In 3rd and 4th place in 2022, we find metal products (EUR 1.86 bn, +34%) and transport equipment (EUR 1.72 bn, +16%).

Trade is primarily regional and European

Estonian foreign trade is highly integrated at regional level.
Indeed, the main trading partners for goods were neighboring countries in the first three quarters of 2022 (six in the country’s top ten partners).
First and foremost is Finland, by far the most important trading partner, accounting for 15% of the country’s trade, to the tune of EUR 5.2 billion.
In second place, we find Latvia, with trade amounting to 3.95 billion EUR, or 11% of Estonia’s total trade in 2022.

Other neighboring countries in the top ten are Lithuania (3rd with EUR 2.88 bn, 8%), Sweden (4th with EUR 2.78 bn, 9.2%), Russia (6th with EUR 2.11 bn, 6%, as European sanctions had not yet come into force) and Poland (7th with EUR 1.69 bn, 5%).
All in all, more than half of Estonia’s trade is with neighboring countries (54% of trade), up 3 points on the first half of 2021, with Germany (5th; EUR 2.74 bn; 8%), the Netherlands (8th; EUR 1.34 bn; 4%), the USA (9th; EUR 1.18 bn; 3%), and Denmark (10th; EUR 767 m; 2%).

As the top ten illustrates, Estonia is very much part of the European bloc (8 partners in the top 10 are EU members).
In the first three quarters of 2022, total trade between Estonia and the rest of the EU amounted to 26.4 billion EUR, or 77% of Estonia’s total trade.
Exports to the EU reached 11.6 billion EUR in the first half of the year, up 22% on the first three quarters of 2021.
Imports from member states amounted to EUR 14.8 billion, up 30%.
Estonia recorded a trade deficit with the EU of EUR 3.2 bn in the first three quarters of 2022, compared with EUR 1.9 bn in 2021.

Bilateral trade relations with France: balanced, limited trade

Bilateral trade with France grew markedly between 2021 and 2022.
Indeed, trade between Estonia and France reached 569M EUR in the first three quarters of 2022, compared with 513M EUR over the same period in 2021.
This represents an increase of 16% in one year, less than other countries, which drops France to Estonia’s 14th trading partner.

Estonia’s main export to France is timber and timber products, worth 76.8M EUR in the first three quarters of 2022.
These products accounted for 28% of Estonian exports to France.
The other main export sectors to France are machinery and electronic equipment (57.6M EUR; 21% of exports to France), and chemical and industrial products (45.6M EUR; 17%).
Overall, the main sectors of the Estonian economy exported less to France in 2022 than in 2021, with the exception of the wood sector (+26%) and the seeds sector, which rose by a staggering 1827% (from 0.7M EUR, 0% in 2021 to 11.49M EUR, 4% in 2022.

Conversely, Estonia imports from France mainly transport equipment (98.6M EUR; 29% of imports), metal products (65.9M EUR; 19%) and chemical products (55.2M EUR; 16%).
Estonian imports from France rose by 22% compared with the first three quarters of 2021.
This increase was mainly driven by metal products (+99%).