The first estimate for euro area (EA17) trade with the rest of the world in June 2011 gave a 0.9 bn euro surplus, compared with +0.7 bn euro in June 2010. The May 2011 balance was +0.2 bn, compared with -4.9 bn in May 2010. In June 2011 compared with May 2011, seasonally adjusted exports fell by 4.7% and imports by 4.1%.

The first estimate for the June 2011 extra-EU271 trade balance was a 12.2 bn euro deficit, compared with -11.1 bn in June 2010. In May 20112 the balance was -12.3 bn, compared with -16.0 bn in May 2010. In June 2011 compared with May 2011, seasonally adjusted exports fell by 4.8% and imports by 3.8%.

These data are released by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.

EU27 detailed results for January to May 2011

The EU27 deficit for energy increased significantly (-154.7 bn euro in January-May 2011 compared with -119.3 bn in January-May 2010), while the surplus for manufactured goods rose notably (+91.3 bn compared with +62.6 bn).

EU27 trade with all its major partners grew in January-May 2011 compared with January-May 2010, except for imports from South Korea (-1%). The highest increases were recorded for exports to Turkey (+41%), Russia (+39%), India (+28%), China (+26%) and South Korea (+24%), and for imports from Russia (+33%), Brazil (+29%), India (+28%), Norway (+24%) and Turkey (+23%).

The EU27 trade surplus increased with the USA (+29.1 bn euro in January-May 2011 compared with +24.9 bn in January-May 2010), Turkey (+11.0 bn compared with +5.6 bn) and Switzerland (+10.7 bn compared with +6.7 bn). The EU27 trade deficit increased with China (-62.0 bn compared with -57.8 bn), Russia (-42.9 bn compared with
-33.5 bn), Norway (-20.4 bn compared with -15.7 bn) and Japan (-9.6 bn compared with -9.1 bn), but fell with South Korea (-2.4 bn compared with -5.0 bn).

Concerning the total trade of Member States, the largest surplus was observed in Germany (+65.9 bn euro in January-May 2011), followed by the Netherlands (+20.2 bn) and Ireland (+16.9 bn). The United Kingdom (-46.7 bn) registered the largest deficit, followed by France (-38.5 bn), Italy (-20.3 bn), Spain (-20.1 bn), Greece (-8.2 bn) and Portugal (-7.6 bn).