The euro zone had a current account surplus of €1.2 billion ($1.4 billion) in March, data published by the European Central Bank (ECB) today showed.
That was smaller than the surplus of €7.4 billion recorded a year earlier.
The ECB attributed the decline to a sharp decline in the goods surplus, "which was only partially offset by a lower deficit for current transfers and a by a shift of the balance for services from a deficit to a surplus".
In the financial account, combined direct and portfolio investment in the euro area recorded net inflows of €12.7 billion in March, compared with outflows of €1.7 billion a year earlier, the ECB added.
The surplus in the euro zone contrasts with a heavy deficit in the United States, which economists say is one reason why the dollar has fallen and the euro has risen.
AFP