It is the export of olives and oil that drives the European Union agri-food trade, with a greater increase compared to 2023 (+615 million euros, +51%) due to higher prices, despite a slight decline in volumes. This is stated in the monthly report on agri-food trade published by the European Commission, according to which, in general, exports increased by 4% to 20.1 billion euros. The higher prices of these products determined the cause.
The imports general sales remained stable, reaching 13.5 billion euros, but down 10% compared to March 2023 mainly – according to the European Commission – due to the reduction in imported volumes. Brazil, the United Kingdom and Ukraine are the main import destinations in 2024, but still declining compared to 2023, due to reduced volumes and lower prices of cereal imports.
These data are a breath of fresh air for the EU agri-food balance which in March this year recorded a trade surplus equal to 6.7 billion euros, 8% more than the previous month and 3% compared to March 2023.
The United Kingdom it remained the main destination of EU agri-food exports (for a share of 22%). In the first quarter of 2024, the United States (US) recorded the largest increase in EU exports with an increase of 6% (372 million euros), while China, despite a 12% reduction in value, remained the third destination.
