EU current account surplus drops to € 25.4bn

The EU external current account recorded a surplus of 25.4 billion euro in the first quarter of 2014, down from a surplus of 32.7 billion euro in the fourth quarter of 2013 and from a surplus of 32.9 billion euro in the first quarter of 2013, according to figures released Friday by Eurostat, the EU statistical office In the first quarter of 2014 compared with the fourth quarter of 2013, the surplus of the goods account fell from 7.7 billion euro to 1.8 billion euro, while the surplus of the services account grew from 43.5 billion euro to 45.9 billion euro. The 28-member bloc in the first quarter of 2014 recorded disinvestment abroad of 153.7 billion euro , compared with investment of 49.6 billion euro in the first quarter of 2013, while foreign direct investors made investments in the EU of 9.7 billion euro, compared with 47.4 billion euro for the same period.