Research raises the need to overcome the export backlog
Santo Domingo. The analysis of the indicators of the country's performance in international trade during the last decade raises the need to close the gap between imports and exports and raises doubts about the sustainability of external accounts, according to a presentation by the International Trade Observatory (ODCI) ), presented at the Association of Industries of the Dominican Republic (AIRD).
"The international crisis surprises the country with one of the highest current account and trade balance deficits in recent history," said Pável Isa Contreras in the results presentation of the first research of ODCI, entitled "Selected Indicators of Foreign Trade in the Dominican Republic: Evaluation of a Decade "and sponsored by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
In 2011 imports of goods exceeded exports by almost US $ 9 billion, and although exports of services, especially tourism, exceeded imports by some US $ 3 billion, to which family remittances are added, the deficit of current account was close to US $ 4,500 million. "The set of indicators analyzed reveals a significant relative erosion of the capacity of the Dominican economy to generate foreign currency through exports of goods and services, and an import impetus that is not sustainable."
Throughout the past decade and up to 2011, imports have shown great dynamism. Last year, the value of real imports per capita was 68% higher than in 2000, which makes the 8 look thin% increase in real exports per capita.
For each dollar in which real goods exports increased between 2000 and 2011, imports increased by US $ 2.5. Both economic growth and trade liberalization explain this phenomenon, according to the executive summary.
The results of the observatory investigation were commented by Roberto Despradel and Raúl Hernández, specialists in international trade, before representatives of the partner institutions in the ODCI: the Foreign Trade Directorate (DICOEX), the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, the General Directorate Customs (DGA), the Instituto Tecnológico de Santo Domingo (INTEC), the National Council of Private Enterprise (CONEP), the Association of Industries of the Dominican Republic (AIRD), the American Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAMDR) and the Dominican Association of Exporters (ADOEXPO).
The ODCI, which operates in INTEC, is the first national instance that manages information and updated statistics on international trade in a single center, so that interested sectors, public and private, national and international agencies, make decisions based on analysis and data from reliable sources.