The EU had a current account surplus of €108.8 billion ($126.5) billion, or 3.1% of its gross domestic product (GDP), in the second quarter of 2021, according to estimates released Monday by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.
The figure is up from a surplus of €80.0 billion, or 2.6% of GDP, recorded in the same period of 2020. However, it is down from a surplus of €122.9 billion, or 3.7% of GDP, in the first quarter of 2021.
Surplus of the goods account decreased to €74.4 billion in April-June period, from €96.4 billion in January-March, and surplus of the services account also declined to €27.2 billion, from €31.9 billion, during the same period.
In the second quarter of 2021, the EU recorded external current account surpluses with the UK at €53.6 billion, followed by the US at €25.3 billion and Switzerland at €21.9 billion.
Household savings down
Eurostat, on the other hand, also announced that the household saving rate in the euro area was down to 19% in the second quarter of 2021, compared with 21.5% in the first quarter of 2021.
Despite the decline from the previous quarter, the household saving rate in April-June period this year is still the third highest value since the beginning of the data in 1999.
The highest household saving rate came at 25.2% in the second quarter of 2020 during the first months of the coronavirus pandemic when quarantines worldwide caused a massive decline in global demand of goods and services.
Eurostat noted that household investment rate in the euro area increased to 9.4% in the second quarter of 2021, from the previous quarter, to mark its highest value since 2011.
Source: Anadolu Agency