Euro area records trade surplus of €23.6 bn in February 2024

The EU also experienced a robust improvement in its trade balance, recording a €22.1 billion surplus in February 2024 compared to just €2.0 billion in the same month the previous year. EU exports slightly increased to €210.6 billion, up 0.7 per cent from February 2023, while imports saw a more significant decline of 9 per cent, amounting to €188.5 billion.

For the first two months of 2024, the euro area's cumulative trade surplus was €35.2 billion, a reversal from the €28.4 billion deficit witnessed during the same period in 2023. Euro area exports edged up to €460.7 billion, a 0.6 per cent increase, while imports decreased sharply by 12.5 per cent to €425.5 billion. Intra-euro area trade also declined, down 6.2 per cent to €428.9 billion, as per Eurostat.

In the same period, the EU turned around its trade performance, registering a surplus of €28.4 billion compared to a €36.6 billion deficit in January-February 2023. EU exports rose modestly to €409.8 billion, and imports plummeted by 14.2 per cent to €381.4 billion.

Looking at the month-over-month (MoM) seasonally adjusted data, the euro area saw a slight dip in exports by 0.2 per cent while imports increased by 4.2 per cent, resulting in a seasonally adjusted trade balance of €17.9 billion in February 2024, a decrease from €27.1 billion in January. The EU also reported changes in its seasonally adjusted figures, with exports rising by 0.5 per cent and imports growing by 5.4 per cent, leading to a trade balance of €14.8 billion, down from €24.1 billion the previous month.

Over the past three months, seasonally adjusted data reveals that exports in the euro area have risen by 0.4 per cent while imports have fallen by 3.0 per cent. The EU saw a similar trend, with exports increasing slightly by 0.3 per cent and imports also decreasing by 3.0 per cent, compared to the September-November 2023 period.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DP)