2017.10.1704:10:00UTC+00Eurozone Trade Surplus Shrinks in August

The eurozone's trade surplus in goods with the rest of the world dropped €1.4 billion year-on-year in August as demand in the euro area for imports surpassed increases in export sales.

According to the European statistics office Eurostat, the 19-country currency bloc's surplus in goods trade fell to €16.1 billion ($18.9 billion) in August from 23.2 billion in July. It was also lower than in August 2016 when it stood at €17.5 billion.

The lower surplus was propelled by a jump in imports from countries outside the eurozone, which increased 8.6 percent on the year, according to seasonally unadjusted data.

Such an increase surpassed the 6.8 percent rise in exports, which led to a smaller surplus for the eurozone. The August surplus was the lowest recorded this year, excluding a temporary deficit in January.

As the rise in imports shows that consumer demand in the bloc remains strong, the rate of growth is lower than the increase for the year-to-date from the same period in 2016. Imports climbed 11.1 percent in the first eight months of the year compared to the same period in 2016.

Trade between eurozone nations expanded marginally ahead of trend so far in 2017, higher by 7.6 percent from the same time last year to €132.9 billion, against 7.5 percent for January to August.

Inflation in the euro bloc was 1.5 percent in September, according to Eurostat preliminary estimates, the same rate as in August and below the European Central Bank's target of a rate near two percent.