Camarões: Contexto político-econômico
Cameroon is open to international trade. It is a member of the Commonwealth, the CEMAC (Central African Economic and Monetary Community), the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), and has signed the African Continental Free Trade Agreement. The ratio of trade to GDP is around 37% (World Bank, 2021).
Its main export commodities are fuel (oil, gas), minerals (coal, aluminium), wood, cocoa, cotton, and rubber. Cameroon mainly imports mineral fuels and oil, food (rice, wheat, fish, etc.), medicines, and manufactured products (vehicles, machinery, electrical and electronic equipment). Cameroon’s main export partners are China, Italy, the Netherlands, France, Spain and India. Its main import suppliers are China, France, Nigeria, the Netherlands, Thailand, the United States and Togo. Cameroon signed a free trade agreement with the European Union in August 2016. For some years now, Eastern Asian countries (especially China, Japan, India, and Thailand) have been reinforcing their trade ties with Cameroon.
Cameroon's trade balance is structurally negative. According to WTO data, in 2021 Cameroon recorded a trade deficit of USD 2 billion. The same source reported that the country imported USD 6.1 billion worth of goods against USD 4.1 billion for exports. Service exports generated 1.55 billion USD while service imports amounted to 2.24 billion USD in 2020 (WTO, latest available data). In 2021 imports of goods and services increased by 13.8% compared to 2020, much faster than exports (3.4%) (World Bank).
Foreign Trade Values | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 |
Imports of Goods (million USD) | 5,656 | 6,583 | 5,521 | 6,981 | 7,800 |
Exports of Goods (million USD) | 3,803 | 4,084 | 3,132 | 4,317 | 5,900 |
Imports of Services (million USD) | 2,705 | 2,823 | 2,117 | 2,497 | 2,701 |
Exports of Services (million USD) | 2,117 | 2,205 | 1,709 | 1,443 | 1,836 |
Source: World Trade Organisation (WTO) ; Latest available data
Foreign Trade Indicators | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 |
Foreign Trade (in % of GDP) | 40.6 | 43.4 | 33.7 | 37.1 | 39.9 |
Trade Balance (million USD) | -533 | -737 | -679 | -524 | n/a |
Trade Balance (Including Service) (million USD) | -1,121 | -1,355 | -1,088 | -1,579 | n/a |
Imports of Goods and Services (Annual % Change) | 8.5 | 11.4 | -17.1 | 13.8 | -3.7 |
Exports of Goods and Services (Annual % Change) | 2.1 | 11.2 | -14.4 | 3.4 | 3.0 |
Imports of Goods and Services (in % of GDP) | 21.9 | 23.5 | 18.5 | 20.4 | 20.5 |
Exports of Goods and Services (in % of GDP) | 18.7 | 19.9 | 15.2 | 16.7 | 19.4 |
Source: World Bank ; Latest available data
Foreign Trade Forecasts | 2023 (e) | 2024 (e) | 2025 (e) | 2026 (e) | 2027 (e) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Volume of exports of goods and services (Annual % change) | 12.2 | 5.5 | 7.2 | 8.8 | 9.2 |
Volume of imports of goods and services (Annual % change) | 11.7 | 5.4 | 5.8 | 4.9 | 4.5 |
Source: IMF, World Economic Outlook ; Latest available data
Note: (e) Estimated Data
It should also be noted that Cameroon also has trade agreements with countries such as Tunisia, Nigeria and China.
Main Customers (% of Exports) |
2018 |
China | 24.8% |
Italy | 13.7% |
Netherlands | 9.7% |
France | 7.0% |
Spain | 5.9% |
See More Countries | 38.9% |
Main Suppliers (% of Imports) |
2018 |
China | 18.5% |
France | 8.3% |
Nigeria | 5.6% |
Netherlands | 4.8% |
Thailand | 4.2% |
See More Countries | 58.6% |
Source: Comtrade, 2023. Because of rounding, the sum of the percentages may be smaller/greater than 100%.
To go further, check out our service Import Export Flows.
2.1 bn USD of services exported in 2018 | |
31.47% | |
27.45% | |
Personal travelPersonal travel | 16.43% |
Business travelBusiness travel | 11.03% |
14.64% | |
6.81% | |
6.13% | |
5.29% | |
4.55% | |
3.10% | |
0.40% | |
0.15% |
2.7 bn USD of services imported in 2018 | |
36.57% | |
25.42% | |
Personal travelPersonal travel | 13.87% |
Business travelBusiness travel | 11.55% |
20.93% | |
5.25% | |
4.17% | |
2.99% | |
2.37% | |
1.75% | |
0.47% | |
0.09% |
Source: United Nations Statistics Division, 2023. Because of rounding, the sum of the percentages may be smaller/greater than 100%.
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Últimas atualizações em November 2023