Georgia 2022 Exports Up 31.8% From Strong China and Russia Demand
Batumi Port City, Georgia
Georgia exported locally produced goods worth US$5.59 billion in 2022, a 31.8% increase year-on-year, according to preliminary data from the Georgian National Statistics Office.
Georgia’s top trading partners were:
China – US$694.8 million
Russia – US$536.1 million
Bulgaria – US$419.9 million
Georgian exports received a boost due to handling parallel imports from Europe into Russia, as well as improved trade connectivity with China via overland routes via Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan. Bulgaria was a major export route into the EU markets.
The five largest domestic export goods from Georgia last year were as follows:
Copper ores and concentrates – US$1.02 billion (27.7% of total exports)
Ferro-alloys – US$453.3 million (12.2%)
Nitrogenous fertilisers – US$281.4 million (7.6%)
Wine from fresh grapes – US$251 million (6.8%)
Natural or artificial mineral and aerated waters – US$111 million (3%)
Last year Georgia’s total trade turnover amounted to US$19.04 billion, posting a 32.8% increase year-on-year. Georgia’s imports also grew by 33.2%, amounting to US$13.45 billion last year, with neighboring Turkiye accounting for US$2.80 billion, and Russia up to US$2.48 billion, with China at US$1.86 billion being in the top three places.
Georgia has Free Trade agreements with countries of Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and Turkey. Georgia signed a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with China in 2017, and in 2018, it signed an FTA with Hong Kong. The EU has granted Georgia GSP+ treatment, with duty free treatment for more than 7,000 products.
Georgia has become a regional hub for supplying imports into Russia from Western brands and third-party resellers that have exited the Russian market. These types of exports are not noted in EU trade figures to Russia, yet they will account for a considerable part of Russian trade, especially in the high-end luxury categories of clothing, consumer products in both food and wine, and white goods as well as luxury automobiles.
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