Business
Uganda trade surplus hits $740.46m
The Ministry of Finance's Performance of the Economy Report for May 2026 says the surplus with the Middle East amounted to $718.83 million, the rest of Africa to $20.81 million, and the rest of Europe to $0.82 million.
Economic experts say that if a country’s value of exports is greater than its imports, it creates a trade surplus, which means the country is making money from trade.
By: Umar Kashaka, Journalist @New Vision
KAMPALA - During the month of April 2026, Uganda recorded a trade surplus with the Middle East, the rest of Africa and the rest of Europe totaling $740.46 million.
The Ministry of Finance's Performance of the Economy Report for May 2026 says the surplus with the Middle East amounted to $718.83 million, the rest of Africa to $20.81 million, and the rest of Europe to $0.82 million.
On the other hand, trade deficits were registered with the East African Community (EAC), Asia and the European Union worth $438.07 million, $391.25 million and $0.91 million, respectively.
The deficit of $438.07 million was a deterioration from that of $107.29 million recorded in April 2025, the report says.
This deterioration was on account of a surge in imports from the region by 85.2%, alongside a modest increase in export earnings of 1.77% from the EAC partner states.
Similarly, Uganda’s trade on a month-on-month basis resulted in a widening of the deficit from $54.95 million in March 2026 to $438.07 million in April this year, on account of a fall in exports coupled with the doubling of imports.
At a country-specific level, Uganda registered trade surpluses with the DR Congo ($113.16 million), South Sudan ($59.08 million) and Rwanda ($33.20 million), while trade deficits were recorded with Kenya, Tanzania and Burundi worth $454.62 million, $151.40 million and $37.48 million, respectively.
“These trade deficits have been largely attributed to the non-tariff barriers which continue to constrain Uganda’s exports to Kenya and Tanzania, while importing goods worth significant value from both countries,” says the report.
This reinforces the need to address these barriers to trade at the level of the EAC Secretariat, it adds.
The EAC Partner States agreed to, as provided under Article 75 (5) of the Treaty, remove all the existing non-tariff barriers on the importation into their territory of goods originating from the other Partner States and thereafter to refrain from imposing any further non-tariff barriers.
Similarly, Uganda’s trade on a month-on-month basis resulted in a widening of the deficit from $54.95 million in March 2026 to $438.07 million in April this year, on account of a fall in exports coupled with the doubling of imports.
At a country-specific level, Uganda registered trade surpluses with the DR Congo ($113.16 million), South Sudan ($59.08 million) and Rwanda ($33.20 million), while trade deficits were recorded with Kenya, Tanzania and Burundi worth $454.62 million, $151.40 million and $37.48 million, respectively.
“These trade deficits have been largely attributed to the non-tariff barriers which continue to constrain Uganda’s exports to Kenya and Tanzania, while importing goods worth significant value from both countries,” says the report.
This reinforces the need to address these barriers to trade at the level of the EAC Secretariat, it adds.
The EAC Partner States agreed to, as provided under Article 75 (5) of the Treaty, remove all the existing non-tariff barriers on the importation into their territory of goods originating from the other Partner States and thereafter to refrain from imposing any further non-tariff barriers.
Article 13 of the Customs Union Protocol provides for the elimination of non-tariff barriers in order to promote intra EAC trade.
Economic experts say that if a country’s value of exports is greater than its imports, it creates a trade surplus, which means the country is making money from trade.
And if a country’s value of exports is less than its imports, it creates a trade deficit, meaning the country is not making money from trade and is inevitably in debt.
Usually, developed countries have a trade surplus and developing countries have a trade deficit, according to experts.
Economic experts say that if a country’s value of exports is greater than its imports, it creates a trade surplus, which means the country is making money from trade.
And if a country’s value of exports is less than its imports, it creates a trade deficit, meaning the country is not making money from trade and is inevitably in debt.
Usually, developed countries have a trade surplus and developing countries have a trade deficit, according to experts.