Malawi registered a yawning trade deficit—the difference between the value of exports and imports— of -$1.9 billion (about K3.3 trillion) between January and October 2024, merchandise trade statistics from National Statistical Office (NSO) show.
This represents a 13 percent jump when compared to the -$1.6 billion (about K2.8 billion) recorded in the first 10 months of 2023.
During the period under review, total exports were recorded at $733.39 million (about K1.3 trillion) against imports at $2.6 billion (about K4.5 trillion. It further highlights a 10.2 percent increase in imports when compared to the $2.39 billion worth of goods Malawi bought from the rest of the world between January and October 2023.
However, Malawi’s exports grew by a marginal 3.6 percent when compared to $707.9 million worth goods exported in the first 10 months of 2023.
Economist Marvin Banda said the country should move towards import substitution.
“There already exist strategies such as the second National Export Strategy NES and others of its kind,” Banda said.
In a recent interview, Minister of Industry and Trade Sosten Gwengwe attributed such trends to the weak local currency that is financing high value import products such as fertilisers, petroleum products and electronics.
He admitted that the production base was small against the supply pressure, coupled with the appetite for imported goods against locally produced goods.
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