November record month for Finnish exports
Raw materials outstrip high-tech goods
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The value of Finnish exports was higher in November than in any previous month. According to figures released by the Finnish Board of Customs on Tuesday, the EUR 5.6 billion exports recorded in November exceeds the previous record, set in April last year, by about EUR 100 million.
Exports in November last year exceeded those of November 2005 by 12 per cent. Imports also grew considerably, by 11 per cent, reaching a total value of EUR 4.8 billion.
The difference, EUR 840 million, was the balance of trade surplus for the month. The total surplus for the first 11 months of 2006 was EUR 6.2 billion, or a quarter more than in the January-November period in 2005.
Birgitta Bert-Andersson, a researcher at the Research Institute of the Finnish Economy (ETLA), says that the trade surplus this year is expected to be more than five percent of overall production, which would be an unusually high figure even for this largely export-driven economy.
Detailed information on the distribution of exports according to types of goods and target countries will be released in early February. However, it is now clear that the record export figures are attributable to robust sales in traditional heavy goods.
A significant portion of the export growth was from an increase in the value of exports of metals such as iron, steel, nickel, zinc, and copper. Machinery and wood products also sold well, and motor vehicles brought in plenty of export euros.
Electronics, the strong sector of recent years, did not experience much growth at all, nor did oil products from the Neste refinery. Paper exports actually declined from November last year.
This does not mean that Finland is turning away from being a technology exporter into a producer of raw materials; the current trends are explained partly by internal transfers of goods by electronics manufacturers, as well as the sharp rise in prices of raw materials and metals.
Although a detailed itemisation of buying countries will wait until early February, both Berg-Andersson and National Board of Customs expert Matti Heiniemi believe that exports to Russia are doing poorly, as has been the case since the autumn.
The growth in Finnish exports is largely due to sales to other countries of the European Union, which accounted for 61 per cent of exports, both in November, and in the whole January-November period. Growth in exports has been greatest to countries in the euro zone.
The trends are at least partly attributable to changes in exchange rates. The euro has gained strength against several key currencies, which has made exports to areas outside the zone more difficult.
Helsingin Sanomat
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| 10.1.2007 - TODAY |
 November record month for Finnish exports |
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