Portuguese exports to Luanda fell 15% in 2018

Exports of Portuguese goods to Angola fell 15.2% last year compared to 2017 to €1.5Bn.
However, imports from Portugal’s former African colony more than tripled (233%) to €928 million. However, despite falling exports and rising imports, the trade balance between the two Portuguese-speaking nations is still in Portugal’s favour by €586 million.
In 2008 Angola was the 8th client and 12th supplier to Lisbon, while Portugal was the 12th client and second supplier for Luanda.
According to available data, in 2017 there were 5,513 companies exporting to Angola, a slight increase on the 5,513 exporting in 2016 but a far cry from the 9,431 registered five years ago.
Among the main products exported to Angola last year were machinery and electronic and domestic devices (24%) of total sales to Luanda, followed by agricultural products (14.3%) and chemicals (12%).
Angola’s economy which is over reliant on oil sales saw its economy crash in 2015 and 2016 registering a GDP of -2.6%. Last year the Angolan economy, still reliant on oil revenues, recovered slightly to -0.1%.
In 2018, sales of machinery and devices to Luanda fell 14.2% compared to the previous year, to €375 million, while sales in agricultural products shrank by 23.2% to €217 million, with chemicals following the same trend, falling 11.9%, to €181.8 million.
Regarding purchases, oil represents practically all Portuguese imports (97.9%), totalling €905.5 million. This amount compares with €90.8 million in 2017.
As to exports of services to Angola, these fell 14.7% in 2018 to €844.5 million, while imports increased 13.5% to €174.6 million, representing a positive balance of payments for Portugal of €669 million.
In total, exports of goods and services to Luanda fell 14.7% to €2.3 Bn, while imports climbed 140% to €1.3 Bn.