According to the latest revisions, the EU27 external current account recorded a deficit of 49.2 billion euro in the second quarter of 2009, compared with a deficit of 76.3 bn in the second quarter of 2008 and a deficit of 54.6 bn in the first quarter of 2009.

In the second quarter of 2009, compared with the second quarter of 2008, the deficit of the goods account decreased (-17.2 bn euro compared with -47.5 bn), as did the deficit of the income account (-37.4 bn compared with -40.8 bn). The surplus of the services account diminished (+17.5 bn compared with +22.6 bn) and the deficit of the current transfers account increased (-12.1 bn compared with -10.5 bn).

The surplus recorded in the services account (+17.5 bn euro) is mainly the result of surpluses in "other business services", which includes miscellaneous business, professional and technical services (+6.0 bn), financial services (+5.9 bn), transportation (+5.7 bn) and computer & information services (+3.8 bn), partially offset by deficits in travel (-3.6 bn) and royalties & license fees (-2.7 bn).

In the second quarter of 2009, the EU27 external current account recorded a surplus with Switzerland (+7.4 bn euro), Hong Kong (+2.7 bn), Canada (+1.7 bn), Brazil and India (both +1.2 bn), and a deficit with China (-24.7 bn), Japan (-8.4 bn), Russia (-6.8 bn) and the USA (-0.9 bn).

Financial Account

In the second quarter of 2009, the EU27 made direct investments abroad for 75.5 bn euro, compared with 57.1 bn in the same quarter of 2008, while foreign direct investors made investments in the EU27 for 85.0 bn, compared with 43.0 bn in the same quarter of 2008. Portfolio investments recorded a net inflow of 141.6 bn, compared with 169.4 bn in the second quarter of 2008.

These provisional data, issued by Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Communities, are based on the information available at the time of publication and subject to revision.