EU trade in goods: four consecutive quarters with surplus

According to the Eurostat, the EU balance for trade in goods was €40.4 billion in the second quarter of 2024, down from €55.3 billion in the previous quarter.
As such, the trade balance has now shown a surplus for 4 quarters in a row, following a period of deficits from the fourth quarter of 2021 to the second quarter of 2023, primarily due to a high deficit for energy offsetting surpluses in other product categories.

In the second quarter of 2024, the surpluses recorded in machinery and vehicles (€56.9 billion), chemicals and related materials (€59.3 billion), food and drink (€13.9 billion), other manufactured goods (€1.8 billion) and other goods (€3.2 billion) outweighed the deficits in energy (-€88.4 billion) and raw materials (-€6.3 billion).