* Ecuador’s federation of exporters (Fedexpor) has announced that the country registered a trade surplus of US$267m in the first two months of 2023, with exports totalling US$4.86bn and imports totalling US$4.59bn. Exports were down by 5% on the same period last year, while imports were up by 2%. Oil exports were down 20% year-on-year to total US$1.29bn, while oil imports were up 18% at US$1.13bn; this slump came after operations at two key pipelines were temporarily suspended in February following a landslide. Non-oil exports were up 2% at US$3.57bn, while non-oil imports were down 3% at US$3.47bn.