Finland Times

 

Service imports, exports and surplus in 2013 to 2014, EUR million. Source: Foreign trade in services 2014, Statistics Finland.

The surplus in international trade in services grew by over ten per cent in 2014 compared with the previous year, according to Statistics Finland’s preliminary data.

 

A majority of the growth is explained by exports of computer software that grew by more than EUR one billion.

 

Both computer software and other computer and information services are good EUR two billion in surplus, which resulted in a total surplus of EUR four billion in computer and information services.

 

The exports and imports of services decreased slightly in 2014. Services were exported to the value of EUR 14.2 billion, while service imports amounted to EUR 12.5 billion.

 

The surplus in international trade in services was EUR 1.6 billion. The value of net sales of goods processed abroad and of merchanting nearly halved in 2014 compared with 2013. The value from this item was only EUR 1.6 billion in 2014 while it had been EUR 2.8 billion in 2013, the data show.

 

Nearly one-half of the value of service exports is generated from computer and information services. In addition to computer and information services, other considerable items in service exports in 2014 were technical, trade-related and other business services, user licences of results from R&D activity, as well as construction abroad and project deliveries abroad.

Over the same period, spending on royalties and licence fees, however, nearly halved.

 

The biggest deficit in services generated in research and development services and in business and management consulting services was around EUR 1.5 billion.

 

Examined by region, the main trade partners have remained unchanged from 2013. Countries in the European Union covered  67 per cent of imports and 57 per cent of exports. The most significant change in country-specific figures was a decrease in service imports from Ireland to nearly one-half from 2013.

 

Of Asian countries, Japan surpassed China as the main trade partner in service exports with a share of 20 per cent in Asian exports.

 

In terms of service imports, China remained the main trade partner with a share of good 40 per cent of total Asian imports. The share of the United States was most important both in exports and imports in 2014 as well.