KUWAIT: Kuwait's Ministry of Commerce and Industry said yesterday that the value of certificates of origin for Kuwaiti non-oil exports rose by 9.2 percent over the past year compared to 2018. The Ministry indicated in a statement that the number of certificates of origin for exports to Arab and foreign countries reached 14,830 at a value of KD 169.6 million ($558 million) in 2019, compared to 8,270 with a value of KD 155.3 million ($511 million) in 2018.

The number of certificates for Kuwaiti exports to Arab countries with the exception of the GCC countries reached 3,802, valued at KD 57.1 million ($187.8) compared to 1,066 at value of KD 47.3 million ($155.6 million) to foreign countries, the statement said. Those to GCC countries stood at 9,962, at a value of KD 65.1 million ($214.2 million) last year.

Iraq topped the list of Arab countries that are the most importers of Kuwaiti exports, followed by Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Algeria, Yemen, then Tunisia, while Qatar ranked first in the Gulf, followed by the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, and then Bahrain. On Kuwaiti exports to other countries of the world, the statement said, Italy came first, then Belgium, followed by Turkey, France, Spain and Portugal. - KUNA