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International comparison:
Eurostat
For more information on this release:
E-mail: Trade@cso.ie Damian Malone (+353) 1 498 4206 Ita O'Farrell (+353) 1 498 4042
For general information on CSO statistics:
information@cso.ie (+353) 21 453 5000 On-line ISSN 2009-5155
CSO statistical release, , 11am

Goods Exports and Imports

June 2018

Seasonally adjusted
€ million
 ExportsImportsSurplus
January 201812,4796,8955,585
February 201811,0007,1063,894
March 201810,3766,3024,074
April 201811,1136,7534,359
May 201811,7146,4925,222
June 201811,8117,7574,054

Seasonally adjusted goods imports increase in June

Figure 1
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Seasonally adjusted goods exports increased by €97 million (+1%) to €11,811 million in June 2018, according to preliminary figures.

Seasonally adjusted goods imports increased by €1,265 million (20%) to €7,757 million leading to a decrease of €1,169 million (-22%) in the seasonally adjusted trade surplus to €4,054 million in June 2018 (see Table 2).

Exports of Medical and pharmaceutical products increase in June

The (unadjusted) value of goods exports for June 2018 was €12,780 million representing an increase of €2,162 million (+20%) when compared with June 2017. The value of goods exports for the period January to June 2018 was  €69,200 million, an increase of €6,018 million (+10%), when compared with the first six months of 2017.

Exports of Medical and pharmaceutical products increased by €455 million (+14%) to €3,822 million in June 2018 when compared with June 2017.

Exports of Organic chemicals increased by €1,164 million (+76%) to €2,688 million.

Exports of Food & live animals decreased by €85 million (-8%) to €991 million in June 2018, when compared with June 2017.

Import of Medical and pharmaceutical products increase in June

The (unadjusted) value of goods imports for June 2018 was €7,791 million representing an increase of €713 million (10%), when compared with the June 2017. The value of goods imports for the period January to June 2018 was €41,169 million, an increase of €815 million (+2%), when compared with the first six months of 2017.

Imports of Medical and pharmaceutical products increased by €133 million (+12%) to €1,241 million compared with June 2017.

Imports of Food & live animals increased by €28 million (+5%) to €619 million.

Imports of Organic chemicals were valued at €399 million in June 2018, an increase of €121 (+44%) over the same comparative period.

The value of goods imports for June 2018 excluding SITC 79 (Other transport equipment, including aircraft) was €6,035 million, an increase of €580 million (+11%) when compared with the corresponding June 2017.

Exports to Great Britain decrease in June

Exports to Great Britain decreased by €20 million (-2%) to €1,201 million in June 2018, when compared  with June 2017.

Exports to Great Britain for the period January to June 2018 were €6,744 million, representing a decrease of €512 million (-7%) when compared with the first six months of 2017.  This was largely due to a decrease in exports of Chemicals and related products with a smaller decrease in exports of Machinery and transport equipment

Imports from Great Britain increased by €51 million (+4%) to €1,440 million in June 2018, when compared with June 2017.

Imports from Great Britain for the period January to June 2018 were €8,691 million, an increase of €252 million (+3%) when compared with the first six months of 2017.  There was a decrease in the imports of Chemicals and related products, with an increase in the imports of Mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials and a smaller increase in imports of Machinery and transport equipment (see Table 5).

Geographic breakdown of goods exports and imports

The EU accounted for €6,477 million (51%) of total exports in June 2018, of which €1,580 million went to Belgium and €1,032 million went to Germany. Exports to EU countries increased by €1,090 million (+20%) compared with June 2017.

Imports from the EU were valued €5,079 (65%) of total imports in June 2018, which is an increase of €1,270 million (+33%) compared with June 2017.

The USA was the main non-EU destination accounting for €3,292 million (26%) of total exports in June 2018.

The USA with €1,033 million (13%) and China with €354 million (5%) were the main non-EU sources of imports.

 

NOTE: From the October 2017 External trade release, the CSO have expanded the range of detailed trade data available on CSO’s StatBank.  The extra detail includes further breakdown of trade at SITC2 level by country and area.  The countries and area for which this detail is available are those included in Table 4 of the release.  The data is available on a month by month basis for the periods January 2015 to the latest month of release and on an annual basis from 2010 to 2017.  Links to these data are contained within the body of the release.  The latest month's data should be treated as provisional.  For queries on trade with countries not included in the list, please contact trade@cso.ie.
This map is © Ordnance Survey Ireland. All rights reserved. License number 01/05/001.
This map is © Ordnance Survey Ireland. All rights reserved. License number 01/05/001.
Table 1 Goods Exports and Imports summary analysis
PeriodValue1Volume index2Unit value index2 
ExportsImportsTrade surplusBase year 2010=100
€m€m€mExportsImportsExportsImportsTerms of trade3
2010 90,92448,69542,229 100.0  100.0  100.0  100.0  100.0
201193,19153,03540,155 106.1  110.4  96.6  98.7  97.9
2012 93,50756,17937,328 100.6  120.2  102.2  96.0  106.5
201389,18255,78733,394 101.1  123.5  97.0  92.8  104.6
201492,61662,15830,458 103.8  130.1  98.2  98.1  100.1
2015112,40770,11142,296 115.5  143.6  106.8  100.3  106.5
2016119,29274,13145,162 125.6  158.2  102.7  93.3  110.2
2017122,55179,06343,488 135.8  168.9  99.3  96.1  103.3
         
2015Quarter 126,04316,8649,179 110.0  138.6  104.0  99.9  104.2
 Quarter 228,70516,98311,721 114.7  134.9  110.1  103.6  106.4
 Quarter 327,47716,73810,739 114.5  134.9  105.5  102.1  103.5
 Quarter 430,18319,52610,657 123.6  168.1  107.4  95.4  112.5
2016Quarter 127,81317,60010,214 119.5  158.0  100.7  89.4  112.6
 Quarter 230,30718,91911,388 129.0  159.5  102.0  94.8  107.6
 Quarter 330,36118,10612,254 126.5  152.5  103.6  94.2  110.1
 Quarter 430,81219,50611,306 127.6  162.8  104.6  94.7  110.5
2017Quarter 132,14119,19612,945 137.0  160.2  103.3  98.4  104.9
 Quarter 231,04121,1589,883 134.2  182.1  101.9  95.6  106.7
 Quarter 328,98317,83011,153 129.1  152.0  98.1  94.9  103.4
 Quarter 430,38620,8789,508 141.0  176.8  93.8  95.4  98.2
2018Quarter 133,70420,06113,643 158.1  174.8  93.8  94.3  99.5
 Quarter 235,49621,10914,387 167.8  179.6  92.9  96.6  96.4
  
2015January8,2905,3682,922 106.3  131.7  102.9  100.5  102.4
 February8,3485,1363,212 106.9  129.5  103.0  97.8  105.4
 March9,4056,3603,045 116.8  154.6  106.2  101.4  104.8
 April9,6145,6373,977 115.0  131.8  110.3  105.4  104.6
 May9,1805,5353,645 109.5  127.7  110.6  106.8  103.6
 June9,9115,8114,099 119.5  145.3  109.4  98.5  111.0
 July9,4135,7653,648 115.1  138.3  107.9  102.7  105.0
 August8,6265,2093,416 112.1  122.5  101.6  104.8  97.0
 September9,4385,7633,675 116.3  143.8  107.1  98.7  108.5
 October10,7546,3364,418 128.0  164.7  110.9  94.8  116.9
 November10,1796,1963,983 128.2  158.0  104.8  96.6  108.4
 December9,2516,9942,256 114.5  181.6  106.6  94.9  112.3
         
2016January8,8935,1363,757 120.9  142.6  95.6  87.0  110.0
 February8,5665,4733,093 105.0  144.4  106.0  91.6  115.8
 March10,3546,9913,364 132.6  187.0  100.6  89.7  112.1
 April10,0535,5854,468 125.8  144.6  104.1  93.4  111.5
 May9,3856,4042,982 123.6  164.7  99.0  94.2  105.0
 June10,8686,9303,938 137.7  169.3  102.8  96.7  106.4
 July9,4115,7313,680 120.4  144.2  101.9  96.2  106.0
 August10,4645,7154,750 130.8  146.1  103.4  93.1  111.1
 September10,4866,6613,824 128.2  167.1  105.6  93.4  113.1
 October10,1995,7004,499 129.3  142.6  103.1  95.9  107.5
 November11,2017,2363,965 140.6  183.9  104.1  94.4  110.3
 December9,4126,5702,842 113.0  162.0  106.6  93.7  113.8
         
20174January9,9045,8074,097 122.8  144.7  106.4  98.9  107.6
 February10,2006,3323,867 135.1  158.7  99.6  98.3  101.3
March12,0377,0574,980 153.0  177.2  103.9  98.1  105.8
April9,8636,6493,213 122.6  167.2  106.2  98.0  108.4
May10,5617,4313,131 139.3  193.4  100.0  94.7  105.7
June10,6187,0783,539 140.6  185.6  99.6  94.0  106.0
July9,1785,4063,773 117.4  140.2  103.2  95.1  108.5
August9,6176,0923,525 126.1  153.9  98.2  93.6  104.9
September10,1886,3323,856 143.8  161.8  93.0  96.1  96.8
October9,6456,8102,835 143.2  180.8  88.3  92.5  95.5
November10,9097,2463,663 151.6  187.0  95.0  96.0  98.9
December9,8336,8233,010 128.3  162.7  98.0  97.7  100.3
        
20184January12,0696,5025,567 166.1  170.9  95.9  93.7  102.3
 February10,3886,5263,862 144.0  169.9  95.2  94.7  100.6
 March11,2477,0334,215 164.3  183.5  90.3  94.5  95.6
 April10,9646,4764,487 161.6  162.1  89.5  98.4  91.0
 May11,7536,8424,911 165.4  181.8  93.8  92.8  101.1
 June12,7807,7914,989 176.5  194.8  95.5  98.5  97.0
1 Trade statistics revised since 2000, see background notes.
2 Monthly data have been rescaled to make their average equal to the annual.
3 Export unit value index divided by Import unit value index.
4 Revised. June 2018 is based on current Intrastat response levels. See background notes.
Table 2 Goods Exports and Imports seasonally adjusted1 series
PeriodValueVolume index
ExportsImportsTrade surplusBase year 2010=100
€m€m€mExportsImports
2015Quarter 126,28616,06210,224 112.0  130.9
 Quarter 228,46017,27111,189 112.9  134.8
 Quarter 327,21117,6129,599 113.7  143.5
 Quarter 430,82319,20511,618 125.8  167.6
2016Quarter 127,86616,66011,206 119.7  149.6
 Quarter 229,75919,07510,684 126.5  161.3
 Quarter 330,22119,04211,178 125.7  161.2
 Quarter 431,01019,26211,749 129.0  159.6
2017Quarter 132,94118,67814,263 137.6  154.3
 Quarter 230,23821,4518,786 131.1  186.1
 Quarter 329,33218,74010,593 131.4  162.1
 Quarter 430,36420,4239,941 142.2  170.7
2018Quarter 133,85620,30213,553 156.6  173.0
 Quarter 234,63721,00313,635 164.8  179.4
       
2015January8,6415,0073,633 110.1  126.5
 February8,9665,3163,650 115.2  130.5
 March8,6795,7392,941 110.6  135.6
 April9,7405,6784,061 117.7  129.0
 May9,3765,8873,489 107.8  133.7
 June9,3455,7063,639 113.3  141.7
 July9,0766,1022,974 113.6  147.5
 August9,1505,7253,425 117.8  137.4
 September8,9865,7863,200 109.6  145.7
 October10,8206,2504,570 128.0  165.5
 November9,5216,1083,413 120.4  158.1
 December10,4826,8463,635 129.0  179.1
       
2016January9,4495,0844,365 127.0  145.3
 February8,9445,5203,424 108.7  143.8
 March9,4736,0563,417 123.3  159.6
 April9,8755,7124,163 125.3  148.7
 May9,6436,5033,140 124.8  167.8
 June10,2416,8603,381 129.4  167.4
 July9,2026,1883,014 118.3  156.8
 August 10,6985,9784,720 132.1  155.2
 September10,3216,8763,444 126.7  171.6
 October10,3565,7914,565 130.1  144.4
 November10,4206,8483,572 130.0  171.3
 December10,2346,6233,612 127.0  163.1
       
2017January10,7745,6845,091 129.5  140.8
 February11,1236,8074,316 141.8  168.3
 March11,0446,1884,857 141.4  153.9
 April9,8607,1872,673 124.0  181.5
 May10,5597,2703,289 136.6  192.1
 June9,8196,9942,824 132.7  184.7
 July9,7295,7503,979 124.5  151.1
 August9,6906,4143,276 126.4  163.3
 September9,9146,5763,338 143.3  172.0
 October9,8396,5603,279 141.9  172.4
 November10,0176,8123,205 140.5  172.9
 December10,5087,0513,457 144.3  166.7
       
2018January12,4796,8955,585 168.8  175.0
 February11,0007,1063,894 149.7  182.3
 March10,3766,3024,074 151.2  161.7
 April11,1136,7534,359 167.6  171.7
 May11,7146,4925,222 162.3  176.0
 June11,8117,7574,054 164.4  190.5
1 Based on seasonal patterns up to June 2018. Accordingly all values in this table may have been revised.
Table 3 Goods Exports and Imports classified by commodity1
€million
SITC (Rev 4)ExportsImports
JunJunJan-JunJan-JunJunJunJan-JunJan-Jun
20172018201720182017201820172018
0Food and live animals1,0769915,5215,4145916193,4863,693
0Live animals other than animals of Division 03353416013510117461
1Meat and meat preparations3353461,8331,9278688476507
2Dairy products and birds' eggs2692711,1031,2127283392440
3Fish, crustaceans, molluscs and preparations thereof61483083032723145135
4Cereals and cereal preparations323020519410198535571
5Vegetables and fruit2926154169109120636657
6Sugars, sugar preparations and honey141481743128186183
7Coffee, tea, cocoa, spices and manufactures thereof26271831844441280280
8Feeding stuff for animals (excluding unmilled cereals)25291531685666402473
9Miscellaneous edible products and preparations2491671,3411,0485660360387
1Beverages and tobacco77975985977476404379
11Beverages 76975955966972370367
12Tobacco and tobacco manufactures0021543413
2Crude materials, inedible, except fuels1401758869827378461459
21Hides, skins and furskins, raw13969550000
22Oil seeds and oleaginous fruits 1153221616
23Crude rubber (including synthetic and reclaimed) 00101165
24Cork and wood1415778614157981
25Pulp and waste paper753831442825
26Textile fibres and their wastes111066661177
27Crude fertilisers and minerals (excluding coal, petroleum and precious stones)1312657113128377
28Metalliferous ores and metal scrap721115026001922122125
29Crude animal and vegetable materials nes101165701820120123
3Mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials922004785583314872,2622,758
32Coal, coke and briquettes775662310113115
33Petroleum, petroleum products and related materials761683693922753851,7752,072
34Gas, natural and manufactured029105076355495
35Electric current92344943151976
4Animal and vegetable oils, fats and waxes7553362121138132
41Animal oils and fats64473111108
42Fixed vegetable fats and oils11651818117115
43Animal or vegetable fats and oils, processed; waxes0001211110
5Chemicals and related products6,0977,78435,45343,2881,8072,0579,21810,154
51Organic chemicals1,5242,68810,20113,4972773991,7941,714
52Inorganic chemicals913681073218169158
53Dyeing, tanning and colouring materials3212185692220126110
54Medical and pharmaceutical products3,3673,82218,50823,2011,1081,2414,9115,919
55Essential oils; perfume materials; toilet and cleansing preparations7357884,1773,951125114706658
56Fertilisers (other than those of Division 27)11471938236268
57Plastics in primary forms29371802219292488512
58Plastics in non-primary forms44422602545557315331
59Chemical materials and products nes3563811,8711,9827776472483
6Manufactured goods classified chiefly by material2111971,1501,1594324352,4732,636
61Leather; leather manufactures nes; dressed furskins321813211010
62Rubber manufactures nes8740452528151166
63Cork and wood manufactures (excluding furniture)28261431592724142141
64Paper, paperboard and articles thereof151378787475427443
65Textile yarn, fabrics, made-up articles and related products131278824142232247
66Non-metallic mineral manufactures nes45412462364749270278
67Iron and steel171585936265362411
68Non-ferrous metals81151594545271301
69Manufactures of metals nes7568410393109106609640
7Machinery and transport equipment1,5801,86811,0328,9202,8863,14816,87815,884
71Power generating machinery and equipment70673534539373524446
72Machinery specialised for particular industries9361368363104146690859
73Metalworking machinery4216149116469
74General industrial machinery and equipment nes and parts nes158183949950133157804874
75Office machines and automatic data processing machines (including computers)2563621,6462,0032743531,6951,793
76Telecommunications and sound equipment88122494597123133747845
77Electrical machinery, apparatus and appliances nes and parts4104313,8932,4272142201,2841,333
78Road vehicles (including air-cushion vehicles)29341681753142982,0202,011
79Other transport equipment (including aircraft)4726063,1441,9381,6231,7569,0507,653
8Miscellaneous manufactured articles1,2321,3237,5517,6996636953,9443,978
81Prefab buildings; plumbing and electrical fixtures and fittings121171732020128136
82Furniture and parts thereof; bedding, cushions etc1514100923947237260
83Travel goods, handbags and similar containers32141014137170
84Articles of apparel; clothing accessories191413694143139846833
85Footwear3320203434193198
87Professional, scientific and controlling apparatus nes5115363,0993,029137155840887
88Photographic apparatus; optical goods; watches and clocks1181116786833542220202
89Miscellaneous manufactured articles nes5516313,4323,6972412441,4091,393
9Commodities and transactions not classified elsewhere52711701823741205241
Unclassified estimates25370292364164135884855
           
Total10,61712,78063,18269,2007,0787,79140,35441,169
1 Trade statistics revised since 2000. June 2018 is based on current Intrastat response levels. See background notes.
2 Estimates for which a commodity classification is not available.
Table 4 Goods Exports and Imports classified by country1
€million
CountryExportsImports
JunJunJan-JunJan-JunJunJunJan-JunJan-Jun
20172018201720182017201820172018
Austria27491882212727152166
Belgium1,0541,5806,8288,893110161735846
Bulgaria794449121115
Croatia4619232145
Cyprus21121300220
Czech Republic35501962824039204291
Denmark49513013583746215268
Estonia2110111168
Finland272317316512109071
France4415562,5452,7547491,3085,4044,747
Germany9231,0325,2485,0406621,2263,5845,398
Great Britain1,2211,2017,2566,7441,3891,4408,4398,691
Greece2947146210973529
Hungary 3934144159106960203
Italy 2652711,3181,66616799907892
Latvia362232332922
Lithuania221216464356
Luxembourg10144979371535
Malta33161050044
Netherlands4677762,9003,6581812331,1771,487
Northern Ireland170169952967110116630657
Poland120995915025054305291
Portugal45392452202015132101
Romania28351561761275341
Slovakia482738442125
Slovenia833838221614
Spain2402861,3981,298117121697861
Sweden71843874374160254401
EU country not specified29042398124481413084
Total EU5,3876,47731,61934,2773,8105,07923,35425,731
  of which United Kingdom1,3911,3708,2077,7111,4981,5559,0699,348
Euro-Zone33,5514,69921,16424,4572,0673,23013,00514,782
         
Australia7674414425664052
Brazil14228818415189297
Canada811605627168443323296
China44444752,9882,4743423542,0922,308
India17301711684241331317
Japan1662751,1021,75187136645708
Malaysia1414911003128160173
Mexico1291327767171831158174
Norway26262061985166630413
Russia36692462751235196260
Saudi Arabia60564112901144
Singapore5953355339187798244
South Africa231611613811125455
South Korea446029831510861526330
Switzerland7586993,1413,8244371306297
Taiwan18221141842624134144
Thailand151388733233203194
Turkey37662783534251305279
USA2,8093,29217,88519,4771,9221,0338,9916,777
Other countries3763712,0342,1052472081,1881,371
Country unknown527378199818131385523943
Total Non-EU5,2316,30331,56334,9233,2682,71117,00015,439
         
Total10,61712,78063,18269,2007,0787,79140,35441,169
1 Trade statistics revised since 2000. June 2018 is based on current Intrastat response levels. See background notes.
2 Includes estimates for traders below the Intrastat threshold and transactions where the EU country was not specified.
3 Euro-zone members from January 2015: Austria, Belgium, Germany, Spain, Finland, France, Luxembourg, Greece, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia, Malta, Cyprus, Slovakia, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
4 China includes Hong Kong and Macao.
5 Trade for which the country of origin or country of final destination is unknown.
Table 5 Goods Exports and Imports classified by commodity and principal countries1
€million
  ExportsImports
Country by Section level of SITCJunJunJan-JunJan-JunJunJunJan-JunJan-Jun
20172018201720182017201820172018
Great Britain1,2211,2017,2566,7441,3891,4408,4398,691
0Food and live animals3453561,8681,9342402471,4011,485
1Beverages and tobacco181899942628130129
2Crude materials, inedible, except fuels3236201227162096103
3Mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials23942001991802431,1821,498
4Animal and vegetable oils, fats and waxes1169442523
5Chemicals and related products3962962,5642,0492432241,6731,332
6Manufactured goods classified chiefly by material9489488503158161900956
7Machinery and transport equipment1851791,1019732512511,4881,612
8Miscellaneous manufactured articles100995745841741831,0301,051
9Commodities and transactions not classified elsewhere28331561729678516501
Other EU24,1665,27624,36327,5342,4213,64014,91517,040
0Food and live animals4254152,0342,1372542701,5111,587
1Beverages and tobacco26281781803537197180
2Crude materials, inedible, except fuels75984745262825165151
3Mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials21201261411460135448
4Animal and vegetable oils, fats and waxes64452612138782
5Chemicals and related products2,3973,42214,61017,9434951,1703,0045,537
6Manufactured goods classified chiefly by material8080444468156156884945
7Machinery and transport equipment6726723,5743,0771,1881,6867,6096,786
8Miscellaneous manufactured articles4294872,6822,772158151878869
9Commodities and transactions not classified elsewhere36501972648174445455
USA2,8093,29217,88519,4771,9221,0338,9916,777
0Food and live animals48262561341319100118
1Beverages and tobacco22392422451297
2Crude materials, inedible, except fuels322420342623
3Mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials38306877196713492
4Animal and vegetable oils, fats and waxes0-000001
5Chemicals and related products1,9232,42211,11814,3678393053,1981,756
6Manufactured goods classified chiefly by material2014129823333201206
7Machinery and transport equipment2982583,1701,6799024864,6683,916
8Miscellaneous manufactured articles4544942,8472,848103106601593
9Commodities and transactions not classified elsewhere46302510115467
China34444752,9882,4743423542,0922,308
0Food and live animals10056493375341920
1Beverages and tobacco00310000
2Crude materials, inedible, except fuels744026322221
3Mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials0290500000
4Animal and vegetable oils, fats and waxes00100000
5Chemicals and related products941854847751721147173
6Manufactured goods classified chiefly by material2313264037227227
7Machinery and transport equipment1981561,6989191741831,0441,215
8Miscellaneous manufactured articles4342255302100102598622
9Commodities and transactions not classified elsewhere0000653431
Rest of World1,9782,53610,69012,9711,0041,3255,9176,353
0Food and live animals1601388688348179455483
1Beverages and tobacco1112767712106864
2Crude materials, inedible, except fuels24341481832327152162
3Mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials10268590118117811719
4Animal and vegetable oils, fats and waxes0011452526
5Chemicals and related products1,2881,4616,6788,1552143371,1961,357
6Manufactured goods classified chiefly by material151175814548261302
7Machinery and transport equipment2266031,4902,2723715422,0692,356
8Miscellaneous manufactured articles2072001,1921,193128152837842
9Commodities and transactions not classified elsewhere37517885874242
         
Total10,61712,78063,18269,2007,0787,79140,35441,169
1 Trade statistics revised since 2000. June 2018 is based on current Intrastat response levels. See background notes.
2 Includes estimates for traders below the Intrastat threshold and transactions where the EU country was not specified.
3 China includes Hong Kong and Macao.

Background Notes

Introduction

Goods Exports and Imports statistics provide data on the movement of goods between countries. The statistics are a combination of Customs-based non-EU trade statistics and data from the Intrastat Survey of Irish traders involved in trade with other EU member states. The collection of trade data is the responsibility of VIMA (a branch of Revenue). The CSO is responsible for processing and disseminating the data.

Revisions to the Trade in Goods statistics

Since May 2015, significant revisions were incorporated into International Trade in Goods statistics.  While the most significant revision is due to recording trade in aircraft on a "transfer of economic ownership" basis, other revisions were incorporated into the Trade data back to 2000. 

Along with the aircraft revisions Goods Exports revisions also include upward revisions due to revaluing some products that had previously been recorded on a “transfer of economic ownership” basis, which was not in line with goods statistics methodology.  Also Goods Imports revisions include downward revisions due to a change in the estimation methodology for non-response.

The technical note gives more detail on the revised trade in aircraft methodology and explains the impact the revisions will have on Trade in Goods, National Accounts and Balance of Payments.

Standard Revisions

Trade figures are subject to revision on the incorporation of late Intrastat and VAT returns and corrections made by traders. When the preliminary results for a month are published, the results for months -1 (May 2018 in this publication), -4 (February 2018) and -8 (October 2017) are revised. Following the move to a "transfer of economic ownership" basis for recording exports and imports of aircraft, SITC 79 figures are subject to revision on the incorporation of transactions from quarterly Balance of Payments (BoP) surveys. Such revisions will generally be incorporated into Goods Exports and Imports releases that coincide with quarterly BoP publications, i.e. when initial results are published for January, April, July and October.

Intrastat System

The Intrastat system has two components. Firstly, the Intrastat survey (conducted by the Revenue Commissioners), in which traders, above the Intrastat survey trade thresholds, make detailed monthly returns giving information on the quantity and value of all exports to or imports from EU countries.

The total number of traders required to make a detailed import return is around 5,200 while around 2,200 must make a detailed export return. The response rate in terms of number of traders in June 2018 was 70%, covering an estimated 94% of the total value of intra-EU trade (these response rates will have increased by the next time data for June is published).

The second component of the Intrastat system is the regular VAT return, on which all traders are required to record the total value of goods imported from and exported to other EU countries. This information provides the basis for determining total EU trade for those traders below the Intrastat survey thresholds. It is also used to maintain the register of EU traders.

Extrastat System

The statistics of trade with non-EU countries are compiled from the documents supplied by importers and exporters to the Customs authorities. The document is the Single Administrative Document (SAD) used for Customs clearance purposes.

Estimation

The figures in this release include estimates for traders above the Intrastat thresholds who did not make detailed returns for the period and for traders below the thresholds who did not provide aggregate intra-EU trade figures on their VAT returns.

Estimates for Intrastat non-respondents are apportioned to individual commodities and countries whenever previous Intrastat returns are available. Estimates for traders below the Intrastat thresholds are assigned to partner country where possible, but not to commodity.

More information is now being processed on lower value transactions. Prior to January 2012, transactions below €254 were grouped together, this value has now decreased to €127. Therefore, this has resulted in more detail being available at commodity level in Table 3 and at country level in Tables 4 and 5.

Unit Value Indices

The monthly unit value index measures monthly unit value trends relative to the annual levels in the preceding year using value weights relating to that year’s trade (Laspeyres index).

The annual index is compiled using value weights for both the current and previous year (Fisher index) to allow for change in the structure of trade in goods.

The monthly index series should be regarded as interim measures suitable for month-to-month comparisons within a given year. Previous monthly indices are revised when late returns are received.

When the annual unit value index is compiled, the monthly unit value indices are rescaled to make their average equal to the annual index.

The unit value index series has been rebased to 2010 from 1990. In the course of this rebasing, a detailed examination of the series was undertaken. This exercise has produced a number of modifications enabling production of a more robust series.

Seasonally Adjusted Series

Monthly exports, imports, trade surplus and the volume series for exports and imports have been seasonally adjusted using the US Bureau of the Census X-11 Variant of the Census Method 11 Seasonal Adjustment Program. In the main, monthly projections are based on series recalculated at the end of the previous year.

Methodology

There are methodological differences between the measurement of exports and imports in this release compared with Industrial Production, National Accounts and Balance of Payments statistics. This release records the movement of all goods over the frontier at the valuation placed on the goods at the time of crossing  the frontier. Industrial Production, National Accounts and Balance of Payments statistics take account of additional aspects of cross-frontier activities such as goods sent abroad for processing where goods cross the frontier without change of ownership. The CSO releases for those statistics provide more information on their methodology.

Services Exports and Imports

The quarterly Balance of Payments (BoP) statistics provide detail on Services exports and imports.

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