The euro area trade surplus declined to a four-month low in May on weak exports, official data showed on Tuesday.
The trade balance posted a surplus of EUR 13.9 billion in May compared to a surplus of EUR 14.2 billion in April, Eurostat reported. This was the lowest surplus since January.
Nonetheless, in the same period last year, the trade balance was in EUR 0.4 billion deficit.
Exports logged a decrease of 0.5 percent annually, in contrast to the sharp 13.5 percent increase in April. At the same time, imports declined 6.4 percent, reversing a 1.8 percent rise in the previous month.
The EU balance showed a EUR 9.7 billion surplus in trade in goods in May, compared with a deficit of EUR 2.6 billion in May 2023.
On a seasonally adjusted basis, the euro area trade surplus decreased to a five-month low level in May after the drop in exports exceeded the decrease in imports.
The trade surplus fell to an adjusted EUR 12.3 billion from EUR 18.5 billion in April. Exports fell 2.6 percent on month, while imports dropped only 0.1 percent.
Data showed that the euro area trade surplus totaled EUR 84.9 billion in the January to May period compared to a shortfall of EUR 21 billion in the previous year. Exports gained 0.5 percent, while imports slid 8.3 percent.
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