Eurostat said the non-seasonally adjusted
external trade surplus of the 18 countries sharing the euro was
21.2 billion euros (27.39 billion US dollar) in July, up from
18.0 billion in July 2013. Exports increased 3 percent
year-on-year while imports only 1 percent.
Adjusted for seasonal swings, however, and on a month-on-month
basis, exports edged 0.2 percent lower in July against June
while imports rose 0.9 percent.
The seasonally adjusted trade balance was a 12.2 billion
surplus, down from 13.8 billion in June and 15.2 billion in May.
There was no detailed data for July yet, but Eurostat said that
in the first six months of the year the euro zone's trade
deficit narrowed to 144.9 billion euros from 157.8 billion in
the first six months of 2013.
The trade deficit with Russia, Europe's main oil and gas
supplier, rose slightly to 31.7 billion euros in the
January-June period from 29.5 billion in the same period of
2013, because euro zone experts to Russia tumbled 14 percent and
the value of imports fell only 6 percent.
The biggest contributions to the euro zone trade surplus came
from a strong exports increase to Britain and the United States
and as well as China.
Germany remains Europe's biggest exporter with a trade surplus
of 100.7 billion euros in the first six months of the year.
Britain is Europe's biggest importer, with a trade deficit of
60.2 billion euros in the first six months.
(Reporting By Jan Strupczewski; Editing by Martin Santa)
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