Brunei Trade Surplus Hits 5-Month High
2026-05-26 03:17
By
Farida Husna
1 min. read
Brunei’s trade surplus widened to BND 597.0 million in March 2026 from BND 491.7 million in the same month a year earlier, marking the largest amount since last October.
Exports surged 32.7% yoy to BND 1.66 billion, the highest level in over three years, boosted by strong gains in mineral fuels (34.1%) and chemicals (30.5%).
Australia remained the largest export destination, accounting for 31.2% of total shipments, followed by China (14.2%), Singapore (14.2%), Japan (6.4%), and India (6.2%).
Meanwhile, imports climbed 40.0% to BND 1.06 billion, mainly driven by a sharp rise in mineral fuel purchases (57.4%).
Singapore was the top source of imports, supplying 52.4% of total inbound shipments, ahead of Australia (14.3%), Malaysia (11.2%), Vietnam (4.3%), China (3.2%), and the U.S.
(1.8%).
For the first quarter of 2026, trade surplus edged higher to BND 1.57 billion from BND 1.46 billion in the same period last year, as exports increased 4.9% while imports rose at a slower rate of 3.1%.