In the first quarter of 2011, compared with the first quarter of 2010, there was an increase in the deficit of the goods account (-46.5bn euro compared with -32.6bn) and of the current transfers account (-19.2bn compared with -16.6bn). The surplus of the services account rose (+16.9bn compared with +11.5bn), while the surplus of the income account remained stable (+9.9bn compared with +10bn).

The surplus recorded in the services account (+16.9bn euro) is mainly the result of surpluses in “other business services”, which includes miscellaneous business, professional and technical services (+7.1bn), financial services (+6.7bn), computer & information services (+5.8bn), transportation (+3.1bn), insurance services (+2.5bn) and construction services (+1.8bn), partially offset by deficits in travel (-3.2bn) and royalties & license fees (-2.4bn).

In the first quarter of 2011, the EU27 external current account recorded a surplus with the USA (+14bn), Switzerland (+11.6bn euro), Hong Kong (+5.5bn), Brazil (+3.6bn), Canada (+2.7bn) and India (+1bn), and a deficit with China (-32.9bn), Russia (-18.9bn) and Japan (-8.1bn).