WINDHOEK, April 10– Namibia recorded a trade deficit of 5.2 billion Namibia dollars (about 316 million U.S. dollars) in February, according to the latest trade bulletin released by the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA) on Thursday.
The figure marked a sharp deterioration from the previous month, when the country recorded a trade surplus. On a year-on-year basis, it also compared with a deficit of 2.1 billion Namibian dollars recorded in February 2025.
According to the NSA, South Africa remained Namibia‘s largest export destination in February, accounting for 37.8 percent of total exports, followed by Zambia at 15.2 percent.
China, Spain, and the United Arab Emirates also ranked among the country’s top export markets. Namibia‘s leading exports during the month were dominated by mining products, including non-monetary gold, diamonds, petroleum oils, and ores and concentrates of base metals.
Fish was the only non-mineral product among the top five export items. On the import side, South Africa remained Namibia‘s largest source market, contributing 36.7 percent of total imports, followed by China at 10.9 percent. Zambia, Bahrain, and Oman were also among the top five import sources.
Petroleum oils topped the list of imports, accounting for 17.6 percent of total imports. Nickel ores and concentrates ranked second with a share of 6.2 percent, followed by commercial motor vehicles at 4.1 percent.
Motor vehicles for the transportation of persons and civil engineering and contractors’ equipment ranked fourth and fifth, accounting for 2.9 percent and 2.5 percent of total imports, respectively.
The NSA also named fish as the commodity of the month, highlighting the sector’s continued contribution to export earnings despite the overall trade deficit.
According to the agency, Namibia exported fish worth 1.3 billion Namibia dollars during the month, mainly to Zambia, Spain, and Italy, while fish imports amounted to 36 million Namibia dollars, mainly from South Africa, Argentina, and Chile. (Namibia Daily News / Xinhua)
