Chamwe Kaira
August recorded a trade deficit of N$5.3 billion, the highest on record, statistician general and Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA) chief executive officer Alex Shimuafeni said on Thursday.
The figure shows a sharp decline from July, when the deficit stood at only N$13 million. This, he said, is a worse off-trade balance when compared to a deficit of N$13 million recorded in the previous month.
“Between August 2024 and August 2025, the country experienced persistent trade deficits, with a consecutive trade surplus occurring in May and June 2025. Over this period, the trade balance averaged a deficit of N$2.7 billion, indicating the country’s continued reliance on foreign goods to meet domestic demand,” Shimuafeni said.
He added that the same month in 2024 saw a deficit of N$3.4 billion.
Mining products, such as non-monetary gold, uranium, ores and concentrates of base metals, and copper, dominated exports in August 2025.
Fish was the only non-mineral product in the top five exports. South Africa remained Namibia’s largest trading partner for both imports and exports.
Re-exports declined by 24.4% month-on-month and 8.8% year-on-year. These mainly included copper, petroleum oils, diamonds, ores and concentrates of base metals, and nickel ores.
Imports were led by petroleum oils, motor vehicles, nickel ores, and civil engineering equipment.
On food, Namibia exported more than it imported, recording a surplus of N$489 million. Beverages, however, registered a deficit of N$267 million.
The report highlighted liquefied petroleum gases (LPG) as the commodity of the month.
Namibia imported LPG worth N$42.5 million, mainly from South Africa and Congo Brazzaville, but did not export any during the period.
Trade surpluses were recorded with Spain (N$657 million), Zambia (N$598 million), and Botswana (N$458 million).
Deficits were recorded with South Africa (N$2.8 billion), China (N$907 million), and Oman (N$600 million).
Caption
Fish exports are among Namibia’s top five exports.
– Photo: Contributed
