The first estimate for the euro area (EA17) trade balance with the rest of the world in March 2011 gave a 2.8 bn euro surplus, compared with +2.7 bn in March 2010. The February 2011 balance was -3.0 bn, compared with +1.4 bn in February 2010. In March 2011 compared with February 2011, seasonally adjusted exports rose by 1.1% and imports by 0.3%.

The first estimate for the March 2011 extra-EU27 trade balance was a 9.6 bn euro deficit, compared with -8.9 bn in March 2010. In February 2011 the balance was -10.1 bn, compared with -7.5 bn in February 2010. In March 2011 compared with February 2011, seasonally adjusted exports fell by 0.2%, while imports rose by 0.6%.

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

EU27 detailed results for January to February 2011

The EU27 deficit for energy increased significantly (-61.0 bn euro in January-February 2011 compared with -44.4 bn in January-February 2010), while the surplus for manufactured goods rose notably (+27.1 bn compared with +17.4 bn).

EU27 trade with all its major partners grew in January-February 2011 compared with January-February 2010. The most notable increases were recorded for exports to Turkey (+47%), Russia (+46%), China (+33%) and South Korea (+31%), and for imports from Brazil (+41%), Russia (+33%), Norway (+30%) and Turkey (+28%).

The EU27 trade surplus increased with the USA (+11.1 bn euro in January-February 2011 compared with +7.9 bn in January-February 2010), Turkey (+3.3 bn compared with +1.4 bn) and Switzerland (+3.3 bn compared with +2.7 bn). The EU27 trade deficit increased with China (-27.9 bn compared with -22.8 bn), Russia (-16.4 bn compared with -13.2 bn), Norway (-8.3 bn compared with -6.4 bn) and Japan (-3.5 bn compared with -2.8 bn), but reduced with South Korea (-1.0 bn compared with -1.7 bn).

Concerning the total trade of Member States, the largest surplus was observed in Germany (+21.9 bn euro in January-February 2011), followed by the Netherlands (+7.5 bn) and Ireland (+6.0 bn). The United Kingdom (-18.4 bn) registered the largest deficit, followed by France (-15.9 bn), Italy (-10.2 bn), Spain (-8.1 bn), Greece (-3.9 bn) and Portugal (-2.7 bn).