2010.08.1904:19:00UTC+00Switzerland Trade Surplus Surges In July

Switzerland's trade surplus increased in July as exports rebounded from a plunge in June, while imports dropped for a second month.

The trade balance showed a surplus of CHF 2.88 billion in July compared to CHF 1.77 billion in June, the Federal Customs Administration said on Thursday. The expected surplus was CHF 1.82 billion.

Reversing last month's 5.5% decrease, exports grew by a real 1.9% on a monthly basis in July. Meanwhile, imports dipped 4%, smaller than the 10.2% contraction seen in June.

Annually, growth in exports as well as imports eased sharply in July. Exports showed an annual growth of 2.2% in real terms after rising 14.7% in June. At the same time, imports rose 0.3%, much smaller than the 13.2% increase seen in June.

From January to July, strong exports boosted the foreign trade surplus. Exports grew 7.5% in nominal terms to CHF 112.8 billion and imports were up 6.4% to CHF 99.9 billion, resulting in a surplus of CHF 12.88 billion.

Elsewhere, data from the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry FH showed an increase in export value of watch. The value advanced 19.9% in July from the previous year, to attain a level of CHF 1.4 billion. The cumulative result since the beginning of the year totaled CHF 8.7 billion, up 19.6% from the same time last year.

Developments among the Swiss watch industry's main markets were varied. While, Hong Kong recorded another very strong performance, the U.S. showed that its situation was still not completely clear with a sluggish result in July, the report showed.

France continued its growth, albeit at a below-average rate. While, Singapore showed a marked increase, China temporarily slowed its lightning pace. Data revealed that Italy and Germany were among the rare markets to register downturns.

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