America News Agency

According to preliminary estimates, G20 services trade continued to expand in Q1 2024, a promising sign of recovery. G20 exports and imports are estimated to have grown by 2.2 percent and 3.5 percent in Q1 2024, respectively. This growth is partly attributed to the resumption of international travel, a positive development in the global economic landscape, according to the latest report by The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Merchandise exports in the United States rose by 1.4 percent in Q1 2024, driven by higher sales of consumer goods and agricultural products, a testament to the diversity of the US export market. In Canada, however, exports fell by 0.6 percent. The main contributors to import growth in both the United States and Canada were capital goods, particularly computers and semiconductors, indicating the importance of these sectors in the global trade landscape. 

Exports increased by 0.9 percent in the European Union, mainly due to stronger sales of chemical products in France and Germany, highlighting the EU's strength in this sector. At the same time, imports declined, albeit less strongly than the previous quarter, due to reduced energy purchases, a trend that warrants further observation. 

In the United Kingdom, exports and imports contracted due to lower machinery and transport equipment trade. Merchandise exports grew strongly in East Asia, with steel and machinery fueling export growth in China (up 6.6 percent) and semiconductors and computers driving Korean exports. Conversely, weak automobile sales weighed on export growth in Japan (down 2.1 percent). Lower sales of primary commodities impacted exports from Australia (down 2.1 percent), Indonesia (down 0.9 percent), and Brazil (down 3.5 percent).

Services exports grew by 1.6 percent in Q1 2024 in the United States, due to higher receipts from travel and financial services, while imports rose sharply (up 4.1 percent), driven by travel, transport, and financial services. In Canada, services exports stagnated while imports rose by 1.3 percent. 

The Group of Twenty (G20) comprises 19 countries (Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Türkiye, United Kingdom and United States) and the European Union.