The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in its latest ‘Global Trade Update’ report has said that India, China and South Africa have fared relatively better than other major economies in imports and exports in the first quarter of this year. The latest UN data also said that global trade recovery from the COVID-19 crisis hit a record high during in the same period.
As per the report, in Q1 2021, the value of global trade in goods and services grew by about 4 per cent quarter-over-quarter and by about 10 per cent year-over-year. In Q1 2021, the value of trade in goods was higher than pre-pandemic level, but trade in services remains substantially below averages. During the first quarter of 2021, global trade of COVID-19 related products remained strong.
The UNCTAD also noted that import and export trends for some of the world’s major trading economies further illustrate the recovery patterns of Q1 2021. With a few exceptions, trade in major economies recovered from the fall of 2020.