São Tomé and Príncipe - International trade

São Toméan international trade relies mostly on the export of cocoa that gives up to 86 percent of the earnings. According to The CIA World Factbook, it also exports copra, coffee, and palm oil to the Netherlands (51 percent), Portugal (6 percent), and Germany (6 percent). Exports totaled US$4.9 million in 1999.

The country depends heavily on food imports, mainly from Portugal. It also imports machinery, electrical equipment, and petroleum products. The main import partners are Portugal (26 percent), France (18 percent), Angola, Belgium, and Japan. Angola is the main source of petroleum products. Imports in 1999 totaled US$19.5 million.

Trade (expressed in billions of US$): São Tomé & Príncipe
	Exports	Imports
1975	.007	.011
1980	.017	.019
1985	.006	.010
1990	.004	.021
1995	.005	.029
1998	N/A	N/A
SOURCE: International Monetary Fund. International Financial Statistics Yearbook 1999.

Exchange rates: São Tomé and Príncipe
dobras (Db) per US$1
2001	N/A
Dec 2000	2390.04
1999	7,119.0
1998	6,883.2
1997	4,552.5
1996	2,203.2
SOURCE: CIA World Factbook 2001 [ONLINE].