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Belarus’ trade surplus at $1.9bn in 2020

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MINSK, 25 February (BelTA) – Belarus’ trade surplus made up $1.9 billion in 2020, Belarus’ Minister of Foreign Affairs Vladimir Makei said as he spoke at the board meeting of the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 25 February to review the diplomatic service in 2020, BelTA has learned.

“The introduction of severe restrictive measures by most partner countries in connection with the pandemic, the departure from the usual format of dialogue, the widespread strengthening of protectionism have led to a decrease in economic activity on a global scale. According to the WTO and IMF estimates, world trade decreased by 9.6% in 2020,” the minister said.

Vladimir Makei stressed: “Despite the decrease in the number of contacts, including the impossibility of conducting high-level and top-level visits, industry and business exchanges, we managed to maintain a strong presence in foreign markets and used new formats of remote interaction to maintain extensive cooperation with key partners.

“It is important to note that the key parameter of the efficient foreign economic activity, which is the balance of foreign trade in goods and services, was fulfilled. The country’s trade surplus amounted to $1.9 billion ($403 million in 2019), or 3.2% of GDP against the forecast of 1%,” the minister cited the figures.

The meeting was attended by Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko.

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