1. National Sustainable Development Plan Indicators (NSDP)

Total value of imports targeted by Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) as those that can be produced domestically is VT 21 million (ENV 1.3.1). The products imported included Potatoes (VT 11 million), Onions and Shallots (VT 5 million), Cauliflower and Broccoli (VT 0.1 million), Carrots and Turnips (VT 2 million), and Oranges (VT 2 million). (Refer to Table 16)

The total value of the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) agreement is VT 239 million (ECO 1.5.2). This Trade-by-Trade agreement included total exports of VT 66 million and total imports of VT 173 million. (Refer to Table 11). The Balance of Trade by Major Partner Countries is VT -3,221 million (ECO 1.5.3). (Refer to Table 8)

Level of production of major commodities is VT 490 million (ECO 1.7.1). The major commodities included Beef (VT 10 million), Cocoa (VT 67 million), Coconut Oil (VT 10 million), Coffee (VT 2 million), Copra (VT 68 million) and Kava (VT 334 million) The ratio of processed export commodities including coconut, kava, cocoa, and coffee to raw exports is 1 (ECO 4.3.2). Total value of processed exports is VT 285 million and total value of raw exports is VT 20 million. (Refer to Table 6)

2. Trade Balance by Major Partner Countries

Balance of trade by major partner countries is VT -3,221 million. The main countries that account for this Balance are Singapore (VT -1,157 million), Japan (VT -451 million), China (VT -404 million), Australia (VT -390 million) and New Zealand (VT -227 million). These countries represent 82 per cent of the total Balance by Major Partner Countries (VT -2,629 million).

Major imports from Singapore were Mineral Products (VT 1,102 million), and Photographic and Optical instruments (VT 32 million). Major imports from Australia were Machinery & Electrical Appliances (VT 112 million); and Prepared Foodstuffs, Beverages, Alcohol, and Tobacco (VT 111 million). Major imports from New Zealand were Machinery and Electrical Appliances (VT 83 million), and Base Metals and articles (VT 38 million). Major imports from Japan were Vehicles and Transport Equipment (VT 288 million); and Machinery & Electrical Appliances (VT 155 million). Major imports from China were Machinery & Electrical Appliances (VT 94 million) and Base Metals (VT 72 million)

3. Trade Balance of Pacific Islands (excluding Melanesian Islands, Australia and  New Zealand)

Total Trade Balance of Pacific Islands excluding Melanesia, Australia and New Zealand is VT 143 million. This was driven by exports of Kava to Kiribati (VT 81 million) and Pharmaceuticalsto Nauru (VT 1 million) and imports of Motor Vehicle from American Samoa (VT 6 million), and Medicaments from French Polynesia (VT 3 million).

4. Trade by Trade Agreement- Melanesian Spearhead Group

The major imports from Fiji are Bread, Pastry, Cakes and Biscuits (VT 31 million). The major imports from Papua New Guinea is Prepared or Preserved Fish (VT 30 million), and from the Solomon Islands is also Sawn Wood (VT 7 million).

The major export to Fiji is Kava (VT 48 million), to Papua New Guinea is Beef (VT 10 million), and to Solomon Islands is Pharmaceuticals (VT 4 million).

5. Principle Exports

The level of production of the top five Major Principal Exports is VT 490 million. The Principal Exports identified included Beef (VT 10 million), Cocoa (VT 67 million), Coconut Oil (VT 10 million), Copra (VT 68 million), and Kava (VT 334 million).

The main country of destination for Beef was Papua New Guinea (VT 10 million). The major country of destination for Cocoa is Indonesia (VT 67 million), for Coconut Oil is Singapore (VT 10 million), and Copra is Philippines (VT 68 million). Kava is exported mainly to United States of America (VT 90 million), Kiribati (VT 81 million), and New Zealand (VT 49 million)

6. Top 5 New Major Exports

Total value of Scrap Metal VT 12 million, Documents VT 8 million, Empty Transtainer VT 6 million, Pharmaceuticals VT 4 million, and Kava Powder VT 3 million.

7. Principle Imports

Total value of top five Principal imports is VT 1,331 million. The Principal Imports included Alcoholic Drinks (VT 51 million), Articles of Iron and Steel (VT 73 million), Medicaments (VT 55 million), Petroleum Oils (VT 1,107 million), and Rice (VT 45 million).

The main country of origin for Alcoholic Drinks is Australia (VT 50 million). The main country of origin for Articles of Iron and Steel is Japan (VT 94 million), and Medicaments is Australia (VT 10 million). The main country of origin for Petroleum Oils is Singapore (VT 1,635 million), and Rice is China (VT 51 million).

8. Top 5 New Major Imports

Total value of Extractors (VT 147 million), E Passport Booklets (VT 39 million), Apparatus System (VT 29 million), Baby Diapers (VT 19 million), and Pump Truck (VT 17 million).

9. Imports of Dietary Risk Factors for Noncommunicable Diseases

Total value of Bakery Products is VT 55 million and are mainly imported from Fiji (VT 31 million). Total value of Confectionary is VT 10 million and are mainly imported from Bangladesh (VT 3 million). Total value of Cordial is VT 12 million and are mainly imported from Fiji (VT 4 million). Total value of Noodles is VT 1 million and are mainly imported from Australia (VT 1 million). Total value of Processed Meats is VT 24 million and are mainly imported from Brazil (VT 13 million).

10. Imports of food and products targeted as those that can be produced  domestically

Total value of Chicken is VT 73 million and are mainly imported from Brazil (VT 28 million). Total value of Canned Tunas is VT 66 million and are mainly imported from Thailand (VT 35 million). Total value of Canned Mackerel is VT 9 million and are mainly imported from China (VT 9 million). Total value of Chicken Eggs VT 4 million and are mainly imported from Fiji (VT 4 million).

Table Downloads

Vanuatu IMTS Release Tables_June_2024.xlsx

Download the IMTS June 2024 Provisional Highlights (PDF)

The format content in these monthly provisional highlights is as below: 

1. National Sustainability Development Plan (NSDP Indicators: The NSDP serves as the Country’s highest level policy framework. The indicators provide a system to monitor progress. To report on trade related NSDP indicators, some adaptions has been made. This include ENV E.3.1 report value, not volume ECO 1.5.2 and ECO 1/6/2 reporting on Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) agreement, ECO 1.7.1 reporting on level of export production of major commodities.
2. Trade Balance of Major Partner Countries: Balance of Trade is the value of a country’s exports and the value of a country’s imports for a given period. The Major Partner Countries are: Australia, China, Fiji, France, Hongkong, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Netherlands, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Thailand, United Kingdom and United States of America.
3. Trade Balance of Pacific Islands, excluding Melanesian Islands, Australia and New Zealand: The Pacific Islands included are: American Samoa, Tonga, Cook Islands, Kiribati, Federated States of Micronesia, Micronesia, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Samoa, French Polynesia, Tuvalu and Wallis and Futuna.
4. Trade by Trade Agreement - Melanesian Spearhead Group: The Melanesian Free Trade Agreement (MFTA) aims to achieve regional integration of economics in the MSG. It comprises four (4) Countries namely, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu.
5. Major Principal Exports: Major Exports are commodities that account for the majority of the total export value. The commodity group focus is Beef, Cocoa, Coconut Oil, Copra and Kava. Focus is a time series analysis of current monthly exports from 2018 to 2023.
6. Top 5 New Major Exports:  The traditional VNSO tables report on 13 major commodities. The rest of the commodities are grouped as “other products”. This investigates the main commodities within “other products”.
7. Major Principal Imports: Major imports are commodities that account for the majority of the total import value. The commodity group focus is Alcoholic drinks, Articles of Iron and Steel, Medicaments, Petroleum oils and /Rice. Focus is a timeseries analysis of current monthly imports from 2018-2023.
8. Top 5 New Major Imports:  The Traditional VNSO tables report on 47 major import commodities. The rest of the commodities are grouped as “other Imports”. This investigates the main commodities within “other imports”.
9. Imports of Dietary Risk Factors for Non-Communicable Diseases (NCD):  The Pacific has a growing reputation as having one of the world’s highest NCD rates. These major NCD, is share for behavioural risk factors; tobacco use, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity and harmful use of alcohol. This investigates some of the dietary risk factors including Bakery Products, Canned Meats, Confectionary, Cordial and Noodles.
10. Imports of Food and Products Targeted as those that can be Potentially Produced Domestically: Import substitution is the idea that; blocking imports of manufactured goods can help an economy by increasing the demand for domestically produced goods. The imports of foods and products targeted include: Canned Mackerel, Canned Tunas, Chicken and Chicken eggs.