Monday, 27 May 2019

Factors that Affect a Country’s Balance of Trade

A country’s balance of trade is represented by its net exports, or exports minus imports.  That means it is subject to factors that affect the LBLV Forex Reviews international trade.  Here are some important factors that you should always keep in mind.

Trade Policies

Barriers to trade are also influential to the balance of exports and imports for any given country. Policies that restrict imports or subsidized exports change the relative prices of such goods. Therefore, it makes it more or less appealing to export or import.

Countries that have high import duties and tariffs and other restrictive trade policies usually have larger trade deficits than countries with more open trade policies. That’s because they may be shut out of export markets due to such barriers to free trade.

Aside from that, there are also non-tariff barriers, such as the lack of infrastructure, which increases the relative cost of transporting goods to the Online Investment market. This raises the price of those products and lowers the country’s competitiveness on the global market, which in turn lowers exports.

Exchange Rates

A domestic currency that has gained in value may  be a challenge to the cost-competitiveness of exporters, who may think that they are priced out of export markets. This may put some pressure on the nation’s trade balance.

Foreign Currency Reserves

The international market is extremely competitive. And in order to compete effectively in it, a country needs to have access to imported machinery that enhances productivity, which may be hard if forex reserves are not sufficient.


If inflation is high in a country, the price of production may be higher than the price in a country with lower inflation. This of course affects exports, thus affecting trade balance.


Another important aspect of international trade is the demand for particular products. For instance, the demand for oil influences the price and therefore the trade balance of oil-exporting and oil-importing countries.

If a small oil importer has to deal with falling oil price, its overall imports might decline. The oil exporter, on the flip side, might see exports fall. Depending on how significant this particular good is to the country, a demand change can have huge effects on the overall balance of trade.

Trade Balance as Economic Indicator

Some countries may utilize data over trade balance as an economic indicator. The largest effect is generally seen in nations with limited foreign exchange reserves, where the release of trade data can spark a large swing in the currencies.

The trade data is typically the biggest component of the current account. Traders and market participants keep close tabs on the current account in order to obtain some insights regarding the economy’s current health.

The current account deficit is tracked for signs that the deficit is becoming untenable and could be a reason for the devaluation of the currency.

On the other hand, a temporary trade deficit may be considered as a necessary risk since it may also mean that the economy is growing strongly and is needing to import more to maintain the growth momentum.