Maputo  - Mozambique's first quarter exports fell 36 per cent compared to the same period last year due to the global financial crisis, a top government official revealed.

Joao Macaringue, chief executive of the Export Promotion Institute (IPEX), said that during the first quarter of 2009, Mozambique's exports slid from 543.1 million dollars in the first quarter 2008 to 347.6 million this year.

Macaringue, quoted on Friday by the daily paper Noticias, described the country's foreign export situation as bad, but added that the reversal of the current situation depended on the diversification of export products.

The country's chief exports are aluminium, natural gas, wood, prawns and cashews. (dpa)