Finnish trade deficit widened to EUR 435 million in July 2019 from EUR 384 in the same month a year earlier, a preliminary data showed. Year-on-year, imports advanced 1.5 percent to EUR 5.47 billion in July, amid higher purchases of machinery and equipment, ores and concentrates. In contrast, imports fell for crude oil, petroleum products, and metals. Imports rose from both EU-countries rose (2.2. percent) and outside EU (0.6 percent). Meanwhile, exports grew at a softer 0.6 percent to EUR 5.04 billion. Sales went up for machinery and equipment, chemical products, transport vehicles, and forest industry. On the other hand, exports declined for petroleum products and machinery, electrical and metal equipment. Overseas sales rose to Germany, Russia, and the US, but fell from EU countries (-3.5 percent). Considering the first seven months 2019, the trade gap narrowed to EUR 290 million from EUR 1.6 billion in the corresponding period the prior year. Balance of Trade in Finland averaged 209.94 EUR Million from 1975 until 2019, reaching an all time high of 1750 EUR Million in November of 2002 and a record low of -795 EUR Million in December of 2012.
Balance of Trade in Finland is expected to be -10.00 EUR Million by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. Looking forward, we estimate Balance of Trade in Finland to stand at -170.00 in 12 months time. In the long-term, the Finland Balance of Trade is projected to trend around -380.00 EUR Million in 2020, according to our econometric models.