Provisional data for international trade show that a trade deficit of €191.7 million was registered in November 2018, compared to a deficit of €150.9 million a year earlier.
This brings the trade deficit for the first 11 months of the year to €2,787.4 million, up by €452.5 million when compared to the corresponding period of 2017.
The National Statistics Office said that both imports and exports decreased by €109.0 million and €149.8 million respectively.
The decrease in the value of imports was primarily due to machinery and transport equipment (€112.4 million), while mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials (€77.4 million) and food (€60.3 million) accounted for the main decrease in the value of exports.