Kenya Quarterly Balance of Payments Third Quarter 2022

Table 1 presents the country’s quarterly Balance of Payments statistics for the period, September 2020 to September 2022. The current account deficit expanded by 5.5 per cent from KSh 183.4 billion in the third quarter of 2021 to KSh 193.4 billion in the corresponding quarter of the period under review. During the third quarter of 2022, merchandise trade deficit widened to KSh 373.1 billion from KSh 322.0 billion in the third quarter of 2021, an increase of 15.8 per cent. Export earnings grew by 29.7 per cent to KSh 228.2 billion while the import bill increased by 20.8 per cent to KSh 601.2 billion over the same period. The increase in import expenditure was largely due to growth in imports of petroleum products during the quarter under review, despite the sustained reduction in the price of crude oil in the global market in the preceding months. Murban oil prices per barrel reached USD 82.26 on September 27 from a high of USD 130.24 on March 9. Increased export earnings from tea was the main driver in growth of exports.