Ljubljana, 10 May (STA) - Slovenia exported EUR 7.5bn worth of goods in the first quarter of 2018, which is a 9.3% rise compared to the same period in 2017. Imports reached EUR 7.3bn or 9% more than a year ago. Trade surplus topped EUR 155m and the exports-to-imports ratio was 102%, the Statistics Office said on Thursday.
In March, Slovenia exported EUR 2.7bn worth of goods or 5.4% more than a year ago, while importing EUR 2.6bn or 4.6% more than in March 2017.
The March figures exceeded last year's monthly average figures by 16.5% and 13.6%, respectively.
The exports-to-imports ratio in March reached 105%. The external trade surplus was the highest this year, reaching EUR 130.6m.
This was mostly due to the surplus recorded in trading with non-EU member states (EUR 98.6m).
Slovenia generated 76.5% of its total exports and 78.7% of total imports with EU member states.
The value of goods exported to EU countries topped EUR 2.1bn in March, which is 5.7% more than a year ago. Imports from EU countries were up 1.5% year-on-year to EUR 2.1bn.
Slovenia's exports to non-EU countries reached EUR 642.6m in March, up 4.4% year-on-year, while imports from these countries totalled EUR 554.8m, a 17.9% increase over March 2017.