According to the latest available data, the EU27 external current account recorded a deficit of 38.8 billion euro in the first quarter of 2011, compared with a deficit of 27.7 bn in the first quarter of 2010 and a deficit of 20.4 bn in the fourth quarter of 2010.

In the first quarter of 2011, compared with the first quarter of 2010, there was an increase in the deficit of the goods account (-46.5 bn euro compared with -32.6 bn) and of the current transfers account (-19.2 bn compared with -16.6 bn). The surplus of the services account rose (+16.9 bn compared with +11.5 bn), while the surplus of the income account remained stable (+9.9 bn compared with +10.0 bn).

The surplus recorded in the services account (+16.9 bn euro) is mainly the result of surpluses in “other business services”, which includes miscellaneous business, professional and technical services (+7.1 bn), financial services (+6.7 bn), computer & information services (+5.8 bn), transportation (+3.1 bn), insurance services (+2.5 bn) and construction services (+1.8 bn), partially offset by deficits in travel (-3.2 bn) and royalties & license fees (-2.4 bn).

In the first quarter of 2011, the EU27 external current account recorded a surplus with the USA (+14.0 bn), Switzerland (+11.6 bn euro), Hong Kong (+5.5 bn), Brazil (+3.6 bn), Canada (+2.7 bn) and India (+1.0 bn), and a deficit with China (-32.9 bn), Russia (-18.9 bn) and Japan (-8.1 bn).

In the first quarter of 2011, the EU27 made direct investments abroad of 71.2 bn euro, compared with 38.7 bn in the same quarter of 2010, while foreign direct investors made investments in the EU27 of 63.5 bn, compared with 10.8 bn in the same quarter of 2010. Portfolio investments recorded a net inflow of 67.5 bn, compared with 93.9 bn in the first quarter of 2010.

Current account of Member States (including intra-EU flows)

As concerns the total (intra-EU plus extra-EU) current account balances of the EU27 Member States5, twelve recorded surpluses, fourteen deficits and one was in balance in the first quarter of 2011. The highest surpluses were observed in Germany (+35.4 bn euro), the Netherlands (+16.6 bn) and Sweden (+8.0 bn), and the largest deficits in Italy (-22.3 bn euro), Spain (-17.2 bn), the United Kingdom (-13.5 bn) and France (-10.9 bn).

These data, issued by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, are not seasonally adjusted. They are based on the information available at the time of publication and are subject to revision.

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