Preliminary figures from the Finnish Customs on Thursday showed that Finland’s foreign trade deficit widened notably in August from a year ago, as imports grew faster than exports. The trade deficit rose to €1.250 billion ($1.24 billion) in August from €590 million in the same month in 2021.
Exports climbed 28.8 per cent year-over-year in August, while imports rose at a much faster pace of 37.3 per cent. Shipments to the EU countries increased by 31.1 per cent in July, and imports from them grew by 29.1 per cent. Exports to countries outside the EU rose to 25.7 per cent in August, and imports from those countries surged by 48.1 per cent. On a monthly basis, exports and imports fell a seasonally adjusted 5.4 per cent and 3.0 per cent, respectively.