Export and import data point to recession

Exports and imports posted drops in May, according to data released on Wednesday by the Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT), another indicator that the country’s economy is sliding back into recession.

The shrinking trade deficit represents one side of the figures, while the other is the decline in the country’s gross domestic product. Exporters make no secret of their worries about the slowdown in the growth rate of exports, which recent developments are likely to aggravate further.

The ELSTAT data showed that the total value of exports declined marginally by 0.02 from May 2014 to 2.28 billion euros in May 2015, partly due to the planned shutdown of Greek refineries that month, as oil product exports posted a 7.9 percent drop year-on-year. In the year to end-May, exports posted total growth of just 0.02 percent on an annual basis, reaching 10.73 billion euros.

Imports recorded a 10.4 percent annual contraction in May, amounting to 3.58 billion euros against 4 billion a year earlier. In total, imports registered a 5.2 percent decline in the first five months of 2015 compared with the January-May 2014 period, adding up to 18.44 billion euros.