Colombia Trade Deficit Narrows Sharply in March

Colombia’s trade deficit narrowed to $0.84 billion in March 2026 from $1.20 billion in the same month a year earlier, as export growth outpaced imports. Exports rose 20.9% year-on-year to $5.32 billion, mainly driven by a 149.2% surge in “other sectors,” largely reflecting stronger non-monetary gold shipments. Exports of fuels and extractive industries increased 24.8%, supported by a 107.7% jump in coal, coke, and briquettes. Manufacturing exports also rose 6.9%, led by machinery, transport equipment, and chemicals. In contrast, exports of agricultural products, food, and beverages fell 6.8%, while crude oil shipments declined 17.7%. Meanwhile, imports increased 11.1% to $6.16 billion, mainly driven by a 16.7% rise in manufacturing imports. Imports of agricultural products, food, and beverages rose 4.4%, while imports of fuels and extractive industry products fell 17%.

Colombia's trade deficit narrowed to $1.53 billion in February 2026 from a deficit of $1.55 billion a year earlier. Imports rose 7.8% year-on-year to $5.74 billion, driven by a 3.2% increase in manufactured goods, particularly machinery and transport equipment, which surged 28.6%. In contrast, imports of fuels and extractive products fell by 10.8%, while agriculture, food, and beverage imports declined by 2.4%. China remains the leading source of imports, accounting for 30.5%, followed by the US at 22%. In turn, exports rose 11.4% to $4.21 billion, largely supported by a sharp 140.8% increase in non-monetary gold shipments, alongside an 11.3% increase in agriculture, food, and beverages. However, exports of fuels and extractive products declined by 6.4%, while manufactured goods fell by 6.8%. The United States continued to be the main export destination, representing 31.2% of total exports.

Colombia’s trade deficit widened to $1.65 billion in January 2026 from $1.60 billion a year earlier. Imports rose 9.7% to $5.90 billion, led by manufactured goods (14.1%). Also, agricultural, food, and beverage imports jumped 13.2%. Meanwhile, fuel and extractive product imports fell 24.6%. China accounted for 31.0% of imports, followed by the US, Mexico, and Brazil. Exports surged 12.6% to $4.25 billion, the strongest gain since April 2024, driven by a 108.4% leap in “Other Sectors,” mainly non-monetary gold, and a 23.0% rise in agricultural, food, and beverage exports, led by unroasted coffee and bananas. Manufactured goods exports fell 4.4%, and combustibles and extractive products declined 7.2%. The US remained the top export destination (31.9%), followed by Panama, India, Canada, Italy, Brazil, and Ecuador.