Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- The Central Bank has prepared preliminary indicators of the current account of the balance of payments for the first half of 2020.

According to preliminary calculations, the current account deficit of the balance of payments for the first half of 2020 made up US$2 billion, an increase of 14% compared to the first half of 2019 (US$1.7 billion).

The fall in world energy prices, as well as the slowdown in the global economy caused by the coronavirus pandemic, had an impact on the volume of exports of goods and services, which amounted to US$6.0 billion, a decrease of US$1.8 billion compared to the same period in 2019 (US$7.8 billion).

Groups of goods prevail in the structure of exports:

- precious metals (42%);

- textile materials and products (18%);

- products of plant origin (10%).

Imports of goods and services amounted to US$10.4 billion, having decreased compared to the same period last year by US$2.1 billion (US$12.5 billion).

The structure of imports is dominated by groups of goods:

- machinery and equipment (31%);

- metals and metal products (12%);

- products of the chemical industry (11%);

- vehicles (11%).

The negative trade balance according to the BPM6 methodology relative to the first half of 2019 improved by 6% and amounted to US$4.3 billion.

The positive balance of factor income and transfers decreased by 19% due to a significant reduction in the international movement of individuals while maintaining the level of cross-border remittances to residents.

In turn, the investment income of non-residents (on loans issued and foreign investments) reached US$829 million.

The reporting data of the balance of payments, international investment position and external debt for the first half of 2020 will be compiled in accordance with the BPM6 methodology and presented to users in September 2020.

Taking into account that the operational indicators are based on preliminary data and expert judgment, they may differ from the actual values.

Data compiled in accordance with the methodology of the Balance of Payments and International Investment Position Manual (BPM6) and may differ from the trade balance statistics published by Goskomstat