R.I. exports grow 14.8% in October over same 2013 period

RHODE ISLAND'S exports dropped 13.7 percent in October, following an increase of 34 percent in September, according to e-forecasting.com. / COURTESY E-FORECASTING.COM
RHODE ISLAND'S exports dropped 13.7 percent in October, following an increase of 34 percent in September, according to e-forecasting.com. / COURTESY E-FORECASTING.COM

PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island’s exports increased 14.8 percent in October compared with a year earlier, according to the latest data collected by e-forecasting.com.

The gain to $211.4 million outpaced the rate of growth nationally, as the United States exported $138 billion worth of goods in October, an increase of 1.4 percent on the October 2013 total.

In addition, the data showed that Rhode Island ranked No. 10 in terms of growth among the 50 states through the first 10 months of the year with a 9.1 percent increase, the highest placing of any New England state. New Hampshire came in at No. 15, with 10-month growth of 7 percent. Massachusetts was No. 26 (3.2 percent growth). Maine (-2.8 percent), Connecticut (-3.8 percent) and Vermont (-12.4 percent) all have shown declines in exports through the first 10 months of the year.

Exports fell 13.7 percent in October compared with September, following a month-to-month increase of 34 percent in September.

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The state export numbers are adjusted for seasonal variation to bring them in line with the national trade numbers.

Exports of manufactured goods – an important contributor to overall economic development and a generator of export-related jobs – accounted for 74 percent of all state exports in October, e-forecasting said. Shipments abroad from state factories increased in October by 5.3 percent from the previous month to $156.4 million, adjusted for seasonal variation.

Exports of non-manufactured goods – agricultural goods, mining products and re-exports which are foreign goods that entered the state as imports and exported in substantially the same condition as when imported – decreased 42.9 percent month-to-month in October to $55 million.

Nationwide, exports of goods rose in October over September by 1.5 percent to $138 billion, led by solid gains in foreign sales of capital goods.

According to the latest business survey, conducted by the Arizona-based Institute of Supply Management, the nation’s supply executives are optimistic about the prospects of growing overseas shipments in early 2015.
“The latest reading also indicates that new export orders in November went up faster than in October. This is good news for Rhode Island’s exporting companies, as more new export orders imply higher production and more export-related jobs in the future,” e-forecasting said.

The World Trade Organization’s trade figures on exports from January to October of 2014 show that the United States was the second-largest exporter in the world with foreign sales hitting $1.4 trillion, $42 billion more than during the first 10 months of 2013.

China was the world’s leading exporter selling abroad $1.9 trillion worth of exports so far this year, 5.8 percent more than the same period a year ago. Germany maintained third place, posting $1.3 trillion in foreign sales in 2014.

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