• Zambia’s imports rose by 23.1 percent to US$5.2 billion from US$4.2 billion in the first half of 2023.
• Exports declined by 11.6 percent to US$5.9 billion.
• The can be attributed to low copper production.

A foreign relations institute says the return of Vedanta Resources to Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) huge potential to boost Zambia’s trade balance that underperformed in the first half of 2023.
Speaking to Money FM News, Rhoma Foreign Relations Institute Executive Director, Cornelius Bwalya noted that Zambia’s imports rose by 23.1 percent to US$5.2 billion from US$4.2 billion in the first half of 2023, compared to the same period in 2022, while exports declined by 11.6 percent to US$5.9 billion at the end of June 2023 from US$5.9 billion in 2022.
Mr. Bwalya attributed the trade imbalance to low copper production, the country’s main Forex earner and export commodity.
“Copper production reduced from 365,042 MT to 321,779MT in June 2022 and June 2023 respectively. And apart from the low production, even the exports of Copper decreased during the first half of 2023 by a 22.6% from $4.4 Billion to $3.4 Billion in 2022 and 2023 respectively,” Mr. Bwalya noted.
He further observed that the decline in the merchandise trade to US$0.02 billion from US$1.7 billion between June 2022 and June 2023 is another factor affecting Zambia’s trade with the world.
Mr. Bwalya added that more could be done to attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from Saudi Arabia, United States of America (USA) and Russia among other big world economies.
“The geopolitical situation in the region as well as at global level takes effect and sometimes determines to what extent such FDI can be harvested for the benefit of Zambia. A case in point he cited was the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war and its devastating impact on the global economy, making it hard for some countries to trade with either of the two countries,” he added.

Mr. Bwalya was reacting to Zambia’s trade performance in the first half of 2023 while making reference to Vedanta Resources return to Konkola Copper Mines and the Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) opportunities available in the region and beyond.