Costa Rica Goods Trade Gap Hits US$2.9 Billion

Costa Rica’s goods trade deficit reached US$2,898.22 million in January to September 2026, according to preliminary Banco Central de Costa Rica (BCCR) data. Through August, the cumulative gap stood at US$2,396.24 million, putting September’s calculated deficit at about US$502 million. That gap ran about US$63 million wider than August’s calculated figure and roughly 68% above the average monthly deficit of about US$300 million during the first eight months.

The figures point to a widening imbalance in goods trade, but they don't show what drove it. The BCCR table lists cumulative balances rather than separate September export and import totals. It doesn't say how much of September’s change reflected weaker exports or stronger imports.

What the figures show

The BCCR’s table, titled Balance comercial acumulado, draws on customs records from the Dirección General de Aduanas. The bank adjusts those records for processing services performed for third parties, maintenance and repairs, and labels the series FUES.

The bank marks figures from January 2025 onward as preliminary. It may revise earlier figures, and the data provided don't include a comparison with the same period in 2025. Monthly September and August gaps come from calculations using cumulative figures; the bank doesn't state them directly.

On 24 September, Comex, Costa Rica’s Foreign Trade Ministry, reported that goods exports reached US$15.68 billion in January to August. That marked an increase of 4%, or US$655 million, from a year earlier. Comex and export-promotion agency Procomer supplied those export figures, which come from a series separate from the BCCR trade balance.

Precision and medical equipment accounted for US$7.29 billion, or 46%, of goods exports, up 1%. Electrical and electronic exports rose 18%. Plastics exports fell 5%.

Markets and external trade measures

North America received US$7.47 billion, or 48%, of Costa Rica’s exports in January to August, down 2% from a year earlier. Exports to Asia rose 25% to US$1.11 billion; Europe increased 10% to US$3.45 billion; Central America rose 9% to US$2.77 billion; and South America increased 8% to US$308 million.

Trade Minister Indiana Trejos called the 4% export growth “favourable” given geopolitical and trade uncertainty. Comex’s press page didn't carry September export figures when checked on 22 October, so the available numbers don't show whether the January-to-August trend continued into September.

On 23 July, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative confirmed a 12.5% tariff on certain Costa Rican export goods. Comex said the tariff took effect on 24 July, replacing a temporary 10% surcharge. The measure followed a Section 301 investigation into rules against forced-labour imports in 60 economies.

Coffee, pineapple, bananas and orange juice remained excluded from the tariff. Comex said it added additional products to the exemption list. The available figures don't break down exports by U.S. tariff treatment, so they don't establish how much, if anything, the tariff contributed to the 2% decline in exports to North America.

The BCCR hadn't set a release date for its October trade balance, and Comex hadn't announced when it would publish export totals including September. The published figures document a large cumulative goods deficit, but don't provide the monthly import-export breakdown or same-period comparison needed to explain its causes.