"Output is expected to recover at a slow pace, in particular owing to a gradual improvement in domestic demand supported by the accommodative monetary policy stance"
- The European Central Bank
The 17-nation economy recorded its seventeenth straight monthly trade surplus in July, albeit the figure came below analysts' expectations, the European Central Bank said Tuesday. The report showed the current account surplus, which measures a difference between imported and exported goods, services, income flows, and unilateral transfers during the corresponding period, stood at 16.9 billion euros in July, short of the estimates for 18.3 billion and down from a 19.8 billion recorded a month before. Meanwhile, trade with goods posted a surplus of 13.5 billion, while trade with services saw an 8.5 billion surplus. Moreover, income reported a surplus of 3.5 billion. These three segments were partly offset by an 8.6 billion deficit seen in current transfers.
Despite another monthly surplus, figures are raising concerns over a sustain recovery, as income halved from a 7.1 billion surplus a month earlier, while deficit on current transfers widened significantly. A drop in surplus indicates that foreigners are buying less of the single currency to execute transaction in the currency bloc. Even though, after a release of disappointing data the shared currency advanced 0.11% against the greenback climbing to 1.3348.
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