Estonia's foreign trade picked up in April
Estonia's exports of goods rose by 13 percent and imports by 12 percent on year to April 2026, Statistics Estonia reported.
Exports of goods amounted to almost €1.8 billion and imports to nearly €2.2 billion euros at current prices and over the same time frame.
Meanwhile the trade deficit in April was €365 million, which is €18 million more than in April 2025.
Commenting on the results, Jane Leppmets, foreign trade statistics analyst at Statistics Estonia, said that the year-on-year increase in total exports was influenced the most by the 19 percent rise in re-exports, i.e. the exports of previously imported goods. "Re-exports of fuels showed the biggest growth. The top commodities in re-exports were transport equipment and mineral products," Leppmets said.
In April, the biggest increase occurred in exports of mineral products
Exports of goods of Estonian origin rose by 10 percent on year to April 2026, accounting for 61 percent of total exports in April. Electrical equipment and wood and articles of wood were the main exports.
April's main export commodities were electrical equipment (14 percent of exports), agricultural products and food preparations (11 percent), and transport equipment (11 percent).
Year-on-year, mineral product exports rose by €78 million (a rise of 76 percent), electrical equipment €29 million (up by 13 percent), and mechanical appliances €28 million (up 21 percent), while agricultural products and food preparations fell by €12 million (a fall of 6 percent).
Finland was Estonia's top export partner in April (and as a destination made up 15 percent of total exports), followed by Latvia (12 percent of the total) and Lithuania (10 percent). The primary exports were electrical equipment to Finland and transport equipment to Latvia and Lithuania.
The largest increases by country were exports to Argentina, which rose by €50 million (94-fold) and to Latvia, by €48 million (a more modest rise of 1 percent). These were driven by mineral products, including various spirits and natural gas.
Finland, Latvia and Lithuania were top partner countries for imports
The main import commodities in April were transport equipment (14 percent of total imports), electrical equipment (13 percent of the total), and mineral products and agricultural products and food preparations (12 percent each). Compared with April 2025, imports of mineral products, including diesel fuel, rose by €107 million (up 69 percent), electrical equipment by €34 million (14 percent), and mechanical appliances by €25 million (also 14 percent). Imports of paper and paper products meanwhile fell by €11 million (down 29 percent).
Finland, Latvia and Lithuania each accounted for 11 percent of Estonia's imports. Main imports were mineral products from Finland and Lithuania and food products from Latvia. Imports rose most from Finland (up €38 million or 19 percent on year) and the Netherlands (a rise also of €38 million, or 36 percent), driven by mineral products, and fell most from Turkey (down by €27 million, or 60 percent) due to lower arrivals of transport equipment.
More detailed information is available from Statistics Estonia here, here and here.
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Editor: Andrew Whyte
