Exports from the industrial sector increased from 10,684.8 MD in the first five months of 2016 to 12,009.4 MD during the same period of 2017, posting an increase of 12.4 per cent. The industrial sector imported for 16,030.9 MD in the first five months of 2017 against 13,786.5 MD during the same period 2016, i.e. up 16.3 per cent.
Thus, the commercial balance of the industrial sector stood at -4,021.5 MD against -3,101.7 MD during the first five months 2016. This was revealed by the Agency for the Promotion of Industry and Innovation (APII). The increase in exports was mainly due to the mechanical and electrical industries, whose exports reached 6,203.7 MD, compared to 5,158.3 MD in the first five months of 2016, up 20.3 per cent. Similarly, exports from the agri-food sector grew by 5.5 per cent from 852.3 MD to 899.6 MD during the first five months of 2017.
The textile and clothing industries sector was not the exception with exports of the order 2,496.4 MD against 2,248.7 MD during the first five months 2016, up 11 per cent. The same applies to the leather and footwear industries, whose exports increased by 8.2 per cent to 507.3 MD compared to 469.0 MD in the first five months of 2016. Similarly, exports from the miscellaneous industries sector grew by 13.1 per cent to 882.3 MD compared to 780.2 MD in the first five months of 2016. Industrial imports increased for all sectors. These increases range from 7.7 per cent for the leather and footwear industries to 63.2 per cent for the agri-food industry.
