T

he value and volume of the island’s exports dropped by 4.24 percent in 2011 mostly due to the contraction of the global economy.

Industry and trade data from the province showed that the total value of last year’s exports was US$497.8 million, a 4.24 percent decrease from $519.9 million in the previous year.

During the last five years, the value has been decreasing by an average of 0.04 percent.

Agency head Gede Darmaja said countries importing commodities from Bali were still feeling the impact of the global financial crisis since 2008. The impact has expanded to European countries.

In Japan, exports were also affected by the earthquake and tsunami that occurred in March last year. The export value to this country decreased by 7.21 percent last year to $88.7 million.

In previous years, the export value to Japan had always showed a significant increase despite the global crisis.

Therefore, the decrease was affected more by the country’s economy after the disaster, Darmaja said.

Meanwhile, Bali’s exports to Australia decreased by 16.12 percent.

As for the US, the condition recovered last year, with the export value increasing by 6.79 percent after a continuous decrease from 2008 until 2010.

However, the value in 2011 of $102.4 million was still below the 2007 figure of $112.7 million.

The agency’s data also showed that the export value to each country in the European Union also dropped, despite the fact that Italy and France were Bali’s main export market besides the US, Japan and Australia.

The decrease affected the value of exports to Italy (25.23 percent), to France (30.84 percent), Belgium (40.49 percent), Denmark (23.65 percent) and Greece (16.26 percent).

The US is Bali’s main market for handicraft, while Japan is the island’s main market for fishery products.

The island’s export figure in 2008 was still high, reaching $553.8 million, a rise of 9.87 percent compared to the previous year. However, the beginning of the crisis brought down the value by 9.26 percent to $502.5 million in 2009.

The condition improved in 2010 due to an increase of 3.46 percent to $519.9 million.

“However, the value decreased again by 4.24 percent from 2010 to 2011, despite the good quality of our commodity. This was because of the decrease in consumer spending in importing countries. The people in those countries prioritized primary needs,” Darmaja said.

The total export value of handicrafts last year was $197.4 million, a decrease of 8.28 percent from 2010. Thirteen kinds of handicrafts out of 17 kinds of commodities showed decreasing values.

Handicrafts made of candles decreased by 48.91 percent, musical instruments decreased by 88.89 percent, terra-cotta decreased by 44.17 percent and handicrafts made of shells decreased by 40.89 percent.

The export value of agriculture commodities decreased by 14.37 percent to $102.5 million.

Tuna, which has been a main export commodity, decreased in value by 16.3 percent, grouper fish dropped by 9.56 percent and snapper fish dropped by 3.14 percent.

Handicraft and agriculture products each contributed around 39.66 percent and 20.6 percent to the total export value of Bali.

The export value of industrial products, plantation products and various other commodities showed an increase of 6.61 percent, 1.79 percent and 28.45 percent, respectively.

In response to the condition, the agency said it would continue to intensify cooperation with the exporters, producers and other related institutions. It would also carry out efforts to raise the product’s competitiveness and apply easier procedures to exporters.