Greece’s Trade Gap Shrinks 20.4% in Jan-May

Greece’s trade deficit shrank by 20.4% in the first five months of the year on the back of oil product exports,the Athens News Agency-Macedonian Press Agency reported, quoting official statistics.

In May alone trade deficit decreased by 18.6%, the news agency said, quoting data of the Hellenic Statistical Authority.

The value of import-arrivals totaled 3.826 billion euro in May, compared to 4.054 billion euro in the same month last year, a decline by 5.6%. Excluding oil products, the value of imports fell by an annual 16.8% in May. The value of export-deliveries totaled 2.406 billion euro in May, up by 4.2 % from May 2012. Excluding oil products, the value of exports fell by 10%.

In the fivemonths through May, the value of imports fell 5.9% to 19.515 billion euro, or by 7.6% excluding oil products. The value of exports totaled 11.491 billion euro, up 7.9%, or down by 1.2 pct excluding oil products.

The trade deficit totaled 8.024 billion euro in the January-May period, down 20.4% from last year, or down 14.8% excluding oil products.