Global exports of intermediate products continued to increase in the third quarter of 2021

International trade statistics

Although they have done so at a slower pace than the previous quarter, according to a WTO report published on February 4.

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Increases in traded inputs for medical products and metal products and increases in all regions helped drive export growth.

 

global GI exports They grew 27% year-on-year in the third quarter of 2021, compared to the 47% increase recorded in the second quarter. Trade in GIs, which are inputs used to produce a final product, is an indicator of the strength of global supply chains.

 

Product category "Other industrial supplies", which accounted for nearly half of total GI exports in the third quarter, grew the fastest among all GI categories, rising 38 percent year-on-year and reaching US$1,225 billion. It includes GI such as vaccine products, medical spare parts and accessories, diagnostic or laboratory reagents and other intermediate medical products. The category also includes raw or semi-manufactured metals such as copper cathodes, iron or steel articles, and aluminum. The category's high growth rate follows a 52 percent increase recorded in the second quarter.

 

China's GI exports grew by 36 percent and the country continues to obtain the largest share of global GI exports

 

However, Global exports of spare parts and accessories for transportation equipment grew more slowly to 8 percent year-on-year in the third quarter compared to 69 percent in the second quarter. The growth of GI exports of minerals and minerals also slowed to 16 percent compared to an average growth of 47 percent during the first half of the year. This was partly due to the drop in iron ore prices in September 2021.

 

Belgium, which counts vaccine products as its most traded GI, recorded the highest growth, recording a 46 percent increase in GI exports in the third quarter after a 64 percent increase in the second quarter. GI exports China grew by 36 percent and the country continues to obtain the majority of global GI exports. For the third consecutive quarter, India had the highest growth in IG imports (65 percent), mainly due to the upward momentum in non-monetary gold imports (161 percent growth).

 

All regions recorded increases and exceeded 2019 GI export levels before the COVID-XNUMX pandemic occurred. COVID-19. Africa and South and Central America continued to experience the highest growth in GI exports.

 

In the third quarter, Africa saw its GI exports increase by 42 percent, as several economies in the region intensified their supply of metals and primary products to international production chains. South Africa, for example, saw increases of 226% and 195%, respectively, in its rhodium and iron ore exports, while cocoa bean exports in Ghana reached 1600 billion USD. GI exports South and Central America rose 45 percent, driven by increases in exports of iron and copper ores (73 percent) and soybeans (41 percent). Intra-regional GI trade in South and Central America was the one that increased the most among all regions (56%).