BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 16. Azerbaijan's food imports have seen a jump of 9.9 percent, amounting to $138.2 million, bringing the total to a whopping $1.5 billion from January through August 2024.
The data obtained by Trend from the country's State Customs Committee shows that during the reporting period, the country imported 35,520 tons of meat (32.94 percent growth) worth $78.8 million (49.49 percent growth), 9,210 tons of milk (10.72 percent growth) worth $15.16 million (11.73 percent reduction), 19,150 tons of dairy products (up 77.06 percent) - for $103.312 million (up 71.43 percent), 242,670 tons of vegetables and fruits (up 17.97 percent) - for $182.2 million (up 30.35 percent), and 9,760 tons of tea (up 12.45 percent) - for $50.4 million (up 10.36 percent).
Azerbaijan also imported more than 691,830 tons of wheat, corn, and rice worth over $198.04 million.
The import of vegetable fats and oils amounted to 110,210 tons worth more than $131.5 million.
To note, Azerbaijan's foreign trade turnover from January through August 2024 decreased by 12.7 percent, or $4.5 billion, compared to the same period of 2023 (from $35.5 billion to $30.9 billion).
The exports accounted for $18.231 billion in the structure of foreign trade turnover, which is $6.1 billion, or 25.14 percent less than the figure for the same period last year. The share of exports in the foreign trade turnover amounted to 58.82 percent against 68.59 percent a year earlier.
Meanwhile, Azerbaijan's imports in the reporting period increased by $1.6 billion, or 14.47 percent year-on-year, from $11.1 billion to about $12.7 billion. The share of imports in foreign trade turnover amounted to 41.18 percent against 31.41 percent a year earlier.
Consequently, the foreign trade balance, while remaining positive during the review period, declined year-on-year by over $7.7 billion, or 58.59 percent, to $5.4 billion compared to $13.2 billion in the 2023 review period.