According to new data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics, between July and September last year, Kenya exported goods worth 37.96 billion Kenyan Shillings to the EU, compared to 38.34 billion Kenyan Shillings in the previous quarter.
Kenya’s exports to the EU in the third quarter of 2023 were 38.85 billion Kenyan Shillings, a -2.3% change.
In contrast, the value of goods exported from the EU decreased from 56.79 billion Ksh in the second quarter of 2024 to 54.64 billion Ksh in the current quarter.
Kenya’s total exports in the third quarter of 2024 are expected to increase by 2.4% to 282.41 billion Ksh, compared to 275.74 billion Ksh in the second quarter of 2024.
Agricultural exports are important to Kenya’s economic activities, accounting for 44.1% of the country’s export earnings. In the third quarter of 2024, income from these products fell by 3.9% compared to the same period in 2023.
According to KNBS, the decline was largely due to lower domestic remittances for the main food and beverage items consumed by households, which fell by 3.5% and 11.7% respectively.
Imports from the Far East, a major source of Kenya’s exports, rose from 278.5 billion Ksh in Q2 to 328.3 billion Ksh in Q3. The increase in shipments in Q3 2024 was driven by demand for industrial machinery, which increased from 70.8 billion Kenyan Shillings in Q3 2023 to 86.2 billion Kenyan Shillings in the review period.
According to the KNBS report, other products that saw spending increase in the third quarter include primary materials and non-material textile yarns (21.2% textile yarns, fabrics and related products) (85.1%) and butane (62.0%).
In contrast, lower demand for natural gas products in the third quarter of 2024 led to lower prices. Its exports fell from Ksh142 billion in the second quarter to Ksh134 billion in the third quarter.
