Eurozone trade surplus rises sharply in July

Lower imports helped the eurozone to a sharp increase in its trade surplus in July over the previous month, European Union statistical bureau Eurostat said Thursday.

According to Eurostat's first estimate, the 16-nation bloc had a trade surplus of 6.7 billion euros (about 8.7 billion U.S. dollars) in July, compared with a surplus of 2.2 billion euros (2.86 billion dollars) in June.

In July, seasonally adjusted exports fell by 0.6 percent but imports fell further, by 1.5 percent.

Official figures also showed the 27-nation EU posted a deficit of 5.7 billion euros (7.4 billion dollars) in July, compared with a 9.7 billion euro (12.6 billion dollar) deficit the previous month.

According to Eurostat, the EU's trade with all its major partners grew from January until June compared with the same period last year, except for imports from the U.S., which dropped 3 percent.

During the past year, trade has acted as a main driver of the EU's economic growth. But the European Commission warned that, with a slowdown in global demand in the second half of the year, the contribution of trade to Europe's economic growth would be reduced.
(Source:xinhua)