Tanzania exports in East Africa fall

Tanzania’s export of manufactured goods to neighbouring countries declined slightly by 6 per cent in the year ending November 2011, according to a report.

The Bank of Tanzania’s Monthly Economic Review (MER) for December 2011 shows that East Africa’s second largest economy exported manufactured goods worth US $868.8 million down from $917.2 million recorded in the preceding year.

The report explains that the decline resulted from decreased performance in the sector coupled with low demand of the goods from the neighbouring countries.

The major exports of manufactured goods include cement, textile apparels (including mosquito nets), edible oil, plastic items, iron and steel products as well as wheat flour.

During a similar period, the value of exported goods and services, however, generally rose to $7 billion compared to $6 billion recorded in the year ending November 2010.

“The improvement was largely on account of increases in gold prices in the world market; traditional exports and travel receipts,” the report indicates. The country’s travel exports value increased by 8.3 per cent to $1.3 billion from travel from $1.2 billion posted in the previous year.

Available data show the increase in tourism earnings was due to the rise in the number of international visitors, the average length of stay and average expenditure per person per night, adding that Italy, the United Kingdom and United States of America were the major tourist source markets for Tanzania. At the same time, service receipts grew to $2.4 billion compared to $2 billion recorded in the preceding year.

Much of the increase emanated from travel and transportation receipts that accounted for about 80 per cent of total receipts. The good performance in transportation receipts is mainly attributed to the increase in volumes of transit goods to and from neighbouring countries by 9.4 per cent to 892,043 tonnes.

The country’s businesses were on record as having imported goods worth $12 billion compared to goods worth $9 billion recorded during the year ending November 2010 while the value of oil imports increased by 49.7 per cent to $3 billion.

Source: the Citizen,www.thecitizen.co.tz, reported by Victor Karega

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