Eurozone current account surplus falls in July

0 Comments | AFP, September, 2007

FRANKFURT (AFP) — The eurozone current account surplus fell sharply in July from the previous month, although direct investments posted a steep rise, data released Friday by the European Central Bank showed.

The current account, the broadest measure of trade and income flows, showed a surplus of 1.7 billion euros (2.4 billion dollars), compared with a revised 7.3 billion in June according to provisional, seasonally-corrected figures.

In terms of capital movements, the eurozone registered net direct and portfolio investment inflows of 36.6 billion euros in July, compared with net inflows of 25.1 billion euros in June, the ECB said in a statement.

The vast majority of capital inflows in July, 33.9 billion euros, represented portfolio investments in stocks,...