Eurozone foreign trade surplus triples to €176.9bn
Maxim Hopman, Unsplash
According to Eurostat, the eurozone recorded a significant increase in the trade surplus in 2024. The surplus totalled €176.9bn, more than triple the figure for 2023 (€57.4bn).
Exports of goods outside the eurozone rose 0.6 per cent to €2.86 trillion, while imports fell 3.7 per cent to €2.69 trillion.
Overall, intra-European trade (between eurozone countries) decreased by 2.9% to €2.57 trillion.
The European Union as a whole also increased its trade surplus, which reached €150.1bn in 2024 (up from €34.4bn in 2023).
Exports rose 1.1 per cent to €2.58 trillion, while imports fell 3.5 per cent to €2.43 trillion. Within the EU, trade fell 2.2 per cent to €4.02 trillion.
The biggest contributors to the eurozone's trade surplus were:
- Machinery and vehicles - the balance increased from €13.0bn to €16.7bn.
- Chemicals - balance sheet reduction from €23.0bn to €20.6bn.
The US remains the largest partner, increasing exports by 5.6%. The situation is the opposite with China: EU exports fell by 8.8%, while imports rose by 10.3%, resulting in a trade deficit of €23.6bn.
Trade with the UK remains stable, with exports down 1.4 per cent and imports up 1.3 per cent.
