Eurozone exports fall for third month: Eurostat

[Brussels] Eurozone exports fell for the third month running in August, official data showed on Thursday, in a further sign of the lacklustre state of European economy.

Deepening worries over the state of the eurozone economy have sent markets plummeting in recent days, with new sharp falls on thursday, and the latest trade data underline analyst warnings that that recession could return.

The EU's official Eurostat agency also confirmed on Thursday that inflation in the eurozone had dipped to 0.3 per cent in September, the lowest level since financial debt crisis in 2009.

Low Inflation has become a central problem for the eurozone economy, with sluggish demand from households and businesses slowing price rises and stoking deflation worries.

Exports from the eurozone dipped by 0.9 per cent in August compared with July to 140.5 billion euros (US$180 billion), the agency said.

Exports had already dropped by 0.3 per cent the month before.

Overall, the 18-nation currency bloc posted a slimmer 9.2-billion-euro trade surplus in August, down from 21.6 billion euros the month before.

In August, powerhouse Germany posted the EU's biggest trade surplus, 124.5 billion euros for the year to date, followed by the Netherlands at 34.6 billion euros.

Britain posted the widest trade deficit, at 76.2 billion euros, followed by France, Spain and Greece.

Imports into the eurozone overall also fell, losing 3.1 per cent and snapping three consecutive months of rises.

Across the whole 28-nation European Union, exports dropped, by 2.1 per cent over the period, while imports sank 4.0 percent.

- AFP