EU posts $13.2B trade surplus in August
14:43, 16/10/2020, FridayU: Update: 14:47, 16/10/2020, Friday
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Imports of goods for all EU countries recorded significant drops, except for Croatia, Estonia and Slovenia, says Eurostat
European Union's foreign trade balance ran a €11.3 billion ($13.2 billion) surplus in August compared to the same period last year, the bloc's statistical office revealed on Friday.
The figure was €10.6 last year, according to Eurostat.
"The first estimate for extra-EU exports of goods in August was €139.7 billion, down by 14.0% compared with August 2019," it said.
Imports from the rest of the world stood at €128.3 billion, down by 15.6% compared with the same month in the last year.
Intra-EU trade fell to €208.8 billion in August, -4.2% compared with August 2019.
During the same period, exports of goods decreased for all member states, except Slovenia ( 3.7%) and Slovakia ( 15.8%).
The largest decreases were registered in Malta (-48.7%), France (-27.2%), Bulgaria (-25.9%) and Greece (-22.0%).
With regard to imports, the picture is similar.
In August 2020, compared to August 2019, all the EU countries recorded significant drops, with the exception of Croatia ( 4.9%), Estonia ( 6.3%) and Slovenia ( 20.2%).
The highest overall falls were registered in Greece and Cyprus (both -36.0%).