Member Article

Trade deficit widens more than expected

Britain’s trade deficit in goods and services widened significantly by £2.5bn in August, and total exports of goods fell by £1bn, according to official figures from the Office of National Statistics (ONS). The UK’s deficit on trade in goods increased to £9.8bn, which is £2.5bn more than July, although this was offset by a surplus in services of approximately £5.7bn. Volumes of oil and erratic items exported were 1.2% lower in the three months running up to August compared with the preceding quarter.

The figures are higher than expected, and imports into Britain rose, with fuel coming into the country up £1bn, and oil imports up £0.9bn. Manufacturing imports also rose by £0.6bn, and material manufacturers particularly suffered as imports into the country increased by £0.4bn. ONS warned that month-to-month figures were often volatile, and a more rounded picture could be gathered from analysis a longer period. Figures have been fluctuating for months, although the drop from July to August this year is sharper than the same period in 2011.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Miranda Dobson .