"A sustained recovery is now within reach, but only if we persevere on all fronts of our crisis response"
- Oli Rehn, European Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs and the Euro
The 17-nation bloc's current account surplus narrowed unexpectedly in June, with both exports and imports rising, reflecting the currency area is emerging from its long contraction, and pointing at a tentative pickup in consumer demand. The current account surplus came in at 16.9 billion euros, short of the expected 21.2 billion and down from 19.5 billion a month earlier. Trade with goods registered a surplus of 11.8 billion, while trade with services recorded an 8.7 billion surplus, and income also posted a surplus of 6.4 billion. Figures from three segments partially offset a 10.1 billion deficit in current transfers.
Data also showed that exports in June surged 3.0% from May, while imports increased by 2.5%, the strongest gain since January. A wider trade balance indicates that shipments are one of the factors driving the economy back to growth in the second quarter. On Wednesday report showed combined gross domestic product of the area that has Euro in circulation, expanded 0.3% in the second quarter, up from a 0.3% contraction in the first quarter, with its two biggest countries both revealing surprising strength. Besides in case of sustainable growth in imports, it would be a positive development for the currency area's trade partners. Despite upbeat figures, a pickup in demand is expected to be weak and patchy.
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