ZIMBABWE’S trade deficit widened to US$169,6 million in April 2026 as exports fell by 15% to US$792,3 million from US$932,1 million recorded in March, the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZimStat) has revealed.
ZimStat also reported that imports declined by 10,8% to US$962 million from US$1,078 billion over the same period.
The widening gap between imports and exports reflects the country’s continued reliance on foreign goods — particularly fuel, machinery and food — even as export earnings remain heavily concentrated in a few commodities such as gold and tobacco.
According to the latest external trade statistics released by ZimStat yesterday, the April deficit represents a 15,9% increase from the US$146,4 million trade gap recorded in March, indicating a sharper decline in export earnings compared to imports.
Advertisements
The data showed that manufacturing represented the largest portions of imports and exports.
“Manufacturing represented the largest portion of exports in both periods, with an increase from 81% in March 2026 to 91% in April 2026.
“The mining and quarrying sector contributed 3,8% in April 2026 from 4% in March 2026, a slight drop by 0,2 percentage points. The agriculture, forestry and fishing sector dropped by 10,1 percentage points from 15% in March 2026 to 4,9% in April 2026,” ZimStat said.
The statistical agency said manufacturing represented the largest portion of imports in both periods, with an increase from 89% in March 2026 to 91% in April 2026.
“The agriculture, forestry and fishing sector declined by two percentage points from 9% in March 2026 to 7% in April 2026, while mining and quarrying maintained 0,5% in both months,” ZimStat said.
The agency further indicated that among the top 10 products exported in April this year were semi-manufactured gold (49,7%), nickel mattes (24,3%) and tobacco (3,9%).
“Among the top 10 products exported to Sadc in April 2026 were nickel ores (57,4%), iron or steel products (8,5%) and coke and semi-coke (6,8%). The three products accounted for around 73% of the total export value of US$335,6 million,” it said.
ZimStat further noted that Zimbabwe’s exports to the European Union (EU) in April 2026 were dominated by ferro-chromium (43,5%), tobacco (32,8%) and industrial diamonds (18,1%), which together accounted for about 95% of the total export value of US$6,3 million.
Meanwhile, major exports to the African Continental Free Trade Area in April 2026 included nickel mattes (56,3%), iron or steel products (8,3%), coke and semi-coke (6,7%) and nickel ores (4,4%), accounting for around 76% of the total export value of US$341,9 million.
Within the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa, key exports included coke and semi-coke of coal (21,1%), cigarettes (13,4%) and iron/steel products (11,9%), which made up about 46,4% of the total export value of US$20,2 million.
The United Arab Emirates remained Zimbabwe’s largest export destination in April, accounting for 50% of total export earnings. South Africa followed with 37,1%, while China contributed 3,7%, Mozambique 2% and Zambia 1,7%.
Collectively, these markets accounted for about 94% of total exports worth US$792,3 million. Other notable destinations included Indonesia (1%), Botswana (0,7%) and Nigeria (0,7%).
On imports, South Africa remained the largest source, supplying 36,5% of Zimbabwe’s total import bill. China followed with 16,1%, Bahrain at 11,7%, Mozambique at 5,2%, Zambia at 3,6% and Hong Kong at 3,4%. -newsday
