Iron ore and other leading export commodities production in Liberia declined in the third quarter of 2022 according to the Central Bank of Liberia Financial and Economic Bulletin published in February this year.
Rubber output fell 11.0 percent to 16,613 metric tons, from 18,800 metric tons produced during the previous quarter. Lower production from the largest producing entity underpinned the commodity’s poor performance, the report said. When compared
to 2021 period production fell 23 percent.
Cocoa Cocoa
Output for the quarter decreased by 51.1 percent to 425 metric tons, from 869 metric tons produced in the preceding quarter mainly on account of unfavorable harvest. Compared with the corresponding period a year ago, output also fell by 63.7 percent.
Diamond
The output of diamond during the quarter fell by 27.0 percent to 9,049 carats, from 12,391 carats reported in the previous quarter on account of decreased mining activity. Compared with the corresponding quarter of 2021, output fell by 36.2 percent.
Iron Ore
Output of iron ore fell by 19.2 percent to 1,050,000 metric tons, from 1,300,000 metric tons produced in the previous quarter. Also, compared with the corresponding period in 2021, output decreased by 3.7 percent. The declines recorded in the outputs of diamond, gold and iron ore were largely on account of unfavorable weather condition.
Liberia’s exports of natural rubber were valued at 193.7 million U.S. dollars in 2021. That year, Liberia ranked as the eleventh largest natural rubber exporting country worldwide, based on sales.
While in In 2020, Liberia exported $322M in Iron Ore, making it the 19th largest exporter of Iron Ore in the world. At the same year, . The main destination of Iron
Ore exports from Liberia are: France ($114M), Germany ($67.4M), China ($56.2M), Poland ($43.7M), and Spain ($16M).
– Festus Poquie
