Ecuador's trade deficit narrowed to USD 20.9 million in April 2019 from USD 80.0 million in the same month of the previous year. It was the smallest trade gap since January 2017, as exports increased 9.6 percent year-on-year to USD 1989.1 million boosted by higher sales of commodity goods (15.5 percent), namely crude oil (39.1 percent), shrimps (4.6 percent), and fish (5.6 percent). Imports advanced 6.1 percent to USD 2010.0 million, driven by higher purchases of capital goods (7.7 percent), of which industrial (5.8 percent) and transport equipment (17.1 percent); consumption (9.1 percent), mostly non-durable (33.3 percent); and fuels & lubricants (23.8 percent). Meanwhile, purchases of commodities dropped (-6.4 percent), in particular agricultural (-10.4 percent) and industrial (-7.6 percent). Balance of Trade in Ecuador averaged -26011.95 USD Thousand from 1985 until 2019, reaching an all time high of 619602 USD Thousand in May of 2008 and a record low of -729014 USD Thousand in December of 2014.
Balance of Trade in Ecuador is expected to be -110000.00 USD Thousand by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. Looking forward, we estimate Balance of Trade in Ecuador to stand at -1804000.00 in 12 months time. In the long-term, the Ecuador Balance of Trade is projected to trend around -420000.00 USD Thousand in 2020, according to our econometric models.