National Statistics UK Snapshot Neighbourhood Economy Population About Us Jobs 22 November 2009

Economy

Balance of Payments
2009 Q2: UK deficit widens


This is a graph showing quarterly current account balance
Current account
The current account recorded a deficit of £11.4 billion in the second quarter of 2009, up from a deficit of £4.1 billion in the previous quarter. The second quarter deficit is equivalent to -3.3 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) compared to -1.2 per cent of GDP in the previous quarter. The current account deficit increased as:

• the income surplus declined by £5.6 billion to £1.4 billion
• the surplus on trade in services decreased by £2.1 billion to £11.3 billion
• the deficit on current transfers increased by £0.5 billion to £4.2 billion
These increases were partly offset as:
• the deficit on trade in goods fell by £0.9 billion to £19.9 billion

Trade in Goods
Exports fell by £0.8 billion mainly reflecting a decrease in exports of finished and semi-manufactured goods. Imports fell by £1.7 billion mainly due to a decrease in imports of other fuels (excluding oil) and finished manufactured goods.

Trade in Services
Exports fell by £2.9 billion to £39.4 billion mainly reflecting a decrease in financial and other business services exports. Imports fell by £0.8 billion to £28.1 billion mainly due to falls in imports of travel, financial and transportation services.

Income
UK earnings on investment abroad fell by £9.1 billion to £38.1 billion, mainly due to lower earnings on other investment and direct investment abroad. Foreign earnings on investment in the UK fell by £3.7 billion to £36.5 billion. This was due to lower earnings on other investment and portfolio investment in the UK that were partially offset by an increase in earnings on direct investment.

Current Transfers
The deficit on current transfers increased by £0.5 billion in the second quarter to £4.2 billion. This was as a result of a rise in debits, mainly from the UK's payments to EU institutions.
Notes:
The balance of payments data are presented in current price terms.

The current account includes transactions in goods, services income and current transfers.

Unless otherwise specified, current account figures are seasonally adjusted.
Published on 29 September 2009 at 9:30 am


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