Peru: Exports to Saudi Arabia grow 24% in the last year, what is the reason for this trend?
The Middle East region is presented as an opportunity for Peruvian exports, particularly highlighting Saudi Arabia, which is positioned as the third most relevant destination for our shipments in said geographical area.
According to Sunat, in the last 15 years, our exports to this country have experienced an impressive annual growth of 7.5%, going from US$ 4.5 million in 2008 to US$ 12.5 million in 2022. In this last year, exports showed a notable increase of 23.9% compared to 2021, adding an additional US$ 2.4 million in shipments.
non-traditional exports
According to the Foreign Trade Society of Peru (Comex), of the Peruvian products that were exported to Saudi Arabia in 2022, 92.7% were non-traditional products, that is, they are not raw materials such as copper or gold. These products totaled US$11.5 million, which represents an increase of 22.4% compared to 2021.
Among non-traditional products, the agricultural sector was the main one, representing 60% of exports, with a value of US$ 6.9 million. However, this sector registered a drop of 16.4% compared to 2021.
Exports to the third quarter of 2023
From January to September 2023, Peruvian exports to Saudi Arabia increased by 15% compared to the same period in 2022, reaching a value of US$ 9.5 million.
Zinc alloys were the main exported product, with a value of US$ 2.2 million, which represents an increase of 10.3%. Other important products were pomegranates (US$ 1.6 million, +17%), mandarins (US$ 965,862), blueberries (US$ 812,313, +159%) and grapes (US$ 735,051, +9.8%). This increase is due to the increase in the exported volume of all the mentioned products.
Although the growth of Peruvian exports to Saudi Arabia is lower than that of the main destinations of our exports, this destination has a significant demand for non-traditional Peruvian products, which represents an opportunity that we must take advantage of.