The Republic of Moldova exported goods worth more than $1 billion in the first 3 months of this year. Where most of our products end up
The Republic of Moldova exported goods worth more than $1 billion in the first three months of this year, data from the National Bureau of Statistics show. The largest share of Moldovan products was shipped to European Union countries and amounted to $670 million. The authorities and experts in the field note that Moldovan exports have changed destinations in recent years. At the same time, they say that farmers in our country need to make more efforts to make domestic products competitive on foreign markets.
In the first three months of this year, statistics show that exports of domestic goods fell by more than 15%, while re-exports increased by 1.7 times. The majority of exports - more than 80% - are carried out by road and about 14% by sea. About 62% of Moldovan exports were to the European Union market, while goods shipped to CIS countries account for about 25% of the total.
At the same time, Vasile Sarban, state secretary at the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry, told Radio Moldova's Spațiul Public programme that since the war in Ukraine practically all trade routes have been destroyed and domestic producers have had to change their markets.
"The fruit was directed directly to the Russian Federation. 95-98% of all fruit exports went to the Russian Federation, which is a disadvantage for Moldova. These exports have been reduced to around 70%. And now they have already banned the transit of Moldovan fruit through the Russian Federation, in addition to the embargo of 15 August 2022", said Vasile Sarban.
In order to make progress in exporting Moldovan products to the EU market, we need to do our homework. Thus, we need to increase the quality and competitiveness of agri-food products, says agricultural business expert Andrei Zbanca.
"There should have been one, two, three embargoes to make us think. We need to work on market diversification. It's clear that the market in the Russian Federation is quite interesting, but also dangerous. Because it is a politically influenced market. The European Union market is much safer, it is a market with quite pronounced competition, it is a market where people's purchasing power is high and people consume healthy products", said Andrei Zbancă.
According to the National Bureau of Statistics, Romania remains the main destination for Moldovan exports, with a share of over 33% of the total. They are followed by Ukraine, Germany and Italy. In January-March 2023, compared to the same period in 2022, exports of oil and oil products increased 14 times, thanks to re-exports to Ukraine. At the same time, exports of beverages, machinery and electrical appliances, fats and vegetable oils increased. In contrast, exports of oilseeds and oil fruits decreased by about 70%, and cereals and cereal preparations by 35%.
