The trade deficit of Cyprus in January-August 2020 fell by 11.5% – the reason analysts of the Cyprus Statistical Service believe the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. This indicator illustrates the excess of imports over exports, i.e. the country consumes more foreign goods than it exports.

In monetary terms, the trade deficit for the reporting period was 2875.1 million euros, compared to 3248.2 million in 2019.

Total imports of goods (from all countries) amounted to 4828.8 million euros, compared to 5 438.4 million in January-August 2019 (-11.2 percent). Total exports showed a decline of 10.8 percent, reaching 1,953.7 million euros (a year earlier – 2,190.2 million).

Such dynamics may indicate a change in trade behavior of both enterprises and the population due to restrictions associated with the coronavirus pandemic. In particular, due to the difficulty of international transportation, goods remain in the country of origin, and consumers whose purchasing power has decreased, switch to locally produced products.