Azerbaijan remains Georgia’s 2nd largest trade partner
By Jamila Babayeva
Azerbaijan retains the second position among the largest foreign trade partners of Georgia, the Georgian National Statistics Office reported.
The trade turnover between Georgia and Azerbaijan stood at about $188 million in January-February 2014.
Georgia exported to Azerbaijan goods worth more than $74.5 million, while it imported over $113.1 million worth of Azerbaijani goods and services.
Georgia's major partners are Turkey ($ 226 million), Azerbaijan (about $188 million) and Russia ($122 million).
Azerbaijan mainly exports to Georgia petroleum, petroleum oils and gases, gypsum, anhydrite, plaster and other products, while the motor cars, live bovine animals, bars and rods of iron, cement are the most imported goods from Georgia to Azerbaijan.
Furthermore, Georgia's foreign trade turnover with the countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in January-February, 2014 stood at $549 million.
This figure is 23 percent more than in January-February, 2013.
Some $233 million of this amount accounted for exports (30 percent more than in January-February, 2013) and $316 million accounted for imports (18 percent more in the same period).
The CIS countries' share in Georgia's total foreign trade turnover is 35 percent, with exports standing at 53 percent and imports at 28 percent.
In January-February, 2013, these figures were 33 percent, 50 percent and 27 percent respectively. Some 12 percent of the trade deficit accounted for CIS countries during this period.
The trade deficit in January-February, 2013, was 14 percent.
Georgia's foreign trade turnover in January-February 2014 (excluding non-organized trade) exceeded $1.56 billion, which is by 17 percent more than the figure for the same period of last year.
The exports in the first two months of 2014 amounted to $440 million or 23 percent more than in the same period of 2013, while imports stood at $1.127 million or 15 percent more than in January-February 2013.
The negative trade balance amounted to $687 million, or 44 percent of the total foreign trade turnover.