Total exports from the Dominican Republic from January to May 2023 amounted to US$5,116.44 million, presenting a drop of -1.66 %, in relation to the same period of the year 2022.
According to the Commerce Magazine May 2023 published by the General Directorate of Customs (DGA), for January – May 2023, 63.94 % of exports belong to the free zone regime, 33.26 % to the national regime, 2.52 % to temporary admission and the remaining 0.28 % to re-export.
Likewise, 44.48 % of exports belong to consumer goods, 34.82 % to raw materials, and the remaining 20.71 % to capital goods.
Panorama
The drop in total Dominican exports is due to the decrease in the entry of raw materials, which went from 1,956.16 million dollars between January-May 2022 to 1,781.32 million dollars in the same period of 2023, representing an absolute variation of -174.83 million dollars, for -8.94 %.
In addition, exports of capital goods also show a decrease from US$1,085.20 million in January-May 2022 to US$1,059.39 million in the same period of 2023. An absolute variation of -25.80 million for -2.38 %.
Domestic exports
According to data published by Customs, exports of the national regime, for the period January – May 2023, amounted to US$1,701.68 million, presenting a growth of -7.73 % with respect to the same period of 2022.
Dominican exports reach US$1,167.6 million in May
Customs highlights that 52.72 % of the exports of the national regime belong to non-metal goods, while the remaining 47.28 % are metal goods, among these 29.49 % belong to gold and silver.
Metals
The Commerce Magazine details that metal exports registered a negative variation of 150.94 million dollars. This is because it dropped from 958.53 million dollars in 2022 to 804.58 million dollars up to May 2023, for a -16.06 %.
The same happened with gold and silver exports. According to official data, between January and May 2023, products valued at 501.90 million dollars were sent to international markets, some -54.86 million dollars less than in 2022 when, up to May, gold and silver valued at 556.72 million dollars were exported. In 2023 they fell by -9.85%.
On the other hand, 74.38 % of the exports of the national regime belong to raw materials, 23.35 % to consumer goods, and the remaining 2.27 % to capital goods.
Exports of raw materials decreased by 10.59 % as of May 2023 compared to the same period in 2022, going from 1,415.63 million dollars to 1,265.67 million dollars.
In general terms, national exports by economic destination fell by -7.73 %. Between January and May 2022 they stood at 1,844.26 million dollars, these fell to 1,701.68 million dollars in the first five months of 2023.
Products
Commerce Magazine details that 76.79 % of national exports are concentrated in 10 tariff chapters:
Fine or cultured pearls, and precious stones (29.67 %).
Foundry, iron, and steel (15.86 %)
Plastics and articles thereof (6.88 %)
Sugars and sugar confectionery (6.48 %)
Edible fruits, citrus peel (4.27 %)
Cocoa and cocoa preparations (3.31 %)
Salt, sulfur, earth and stones, gypsum, and lime (2.89 %)
Mill products, malt, and starch (2.72 %)
Ores, slag, and ashes (2.38 %)
Preparations of cereals, flour (2.34 %)
The remaining chapters represent 23.21 %.
International markets
Official data indicate that, of the total exported by the national regime, the top 10 countries concentrate 83.91 % of the total.
It is worth noting that 50.33 % is directed to three markets: Switzerland (19.93%), Haiti (15.54%), and the United States (14.87%). They are followed by South Korea, Puerto Rico, China, the Netherlands, Jamaica, and Italy.
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