Algeria cut its trade deficit by a third to $11.2bn in 2017. But dwindling oil output and higher domestic consumption mean that last year’s 23% increase in oil prices only translated into a 16% increase in export revenue.
Export revenue continues to almost exclusively mean oil and gas revenue. Hydrocarbons accounted for 94.5% ($32.9bn) of 2017’s $34.8bn export revenue, a figure that has hardly budged in recent years despite repeated claims that Algeria is taking action to diversify its economy (see table). The only reason its share has fallen at all in recent years is the fall in oil prices. (CONTINUED - 1228 WORDS)
