El Salvador Trade Deficit Widens in November

El Salvador’s trade deficit widened to USD 1.11 billion in December 2025 from USD 945.68 million a year earlier. Imports rose 14.62% to USD 1.58 billion, driven by a 1.26% increase in manufacturing goods, with purchases from outside Central America up 15.5% and those from the region up 12.21%. Exports rose 8.33% to USD 465.8 million, as traditional goods sales surged 58.8% and non traditional exports rose 7.7%. Sales to markets outside Central America surged 17.4%, while exports to the region rose 1.4%.

El Salvador’s trade deficit widened to USD 989.9 million in November 2025 from USD 837.4 million a year earlier. Imports rose 8.75% to USD 1.51 billion, driven by a 13.16% increase in manufacturing goods, with purchases from outside Central America up 9.28% and those from the region up 5.76%. Exports fell 5.53% to USD 524.7 million, as coffee shipments plunged 50.29% and sugar exports dropped 56.94%. Sales to markets outside Central America declined 13.83%, while exports to the region edged down 0.41%.

El Salvador’s trade deficit increased to $857.23 million in September 2025 from $718.9 million in the same month of previous year, as imports surged while exports contracted. Imports increased 18.96% year-on-year to $1,498.4 million, while exports slightly decreased by 0.75% to $536.7 million, not enough to offset the sharp rise in foreign purchases. Export contraction was driven by a 22.29% drop in traditional goods, while non-traditional goods edged up 0.46%.