United Kingdom Balance of Trade  1955-2018 | Data | Chart | Calendar

The UK's trade deficit narrowed sharply by GBP 2.0 billion to GBP 0.965 billion in February 2018 from a downwardly revised GBP 2.949 billion in the previous month and below market expectations of a GBP 2.6 billion gap. It was the smallest trade deficit since September, as imports slumped 4.8 percent from a record high to GBP 53.4 billion while exports decreased at a slower 1.3 percent to GBP 52.4 billion. Balance of Trade in the United Kingdom averaged -1453.27 GBP Million from 1955 until 2018, reaching an all time high of 2946 GBP Million in March of 1981 and a record low of -6225 GBP Million in September of 2016.

United Kingdom Balance of Trade
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UK Trade Deficit Narrows to 5-Month Low


The UK's trade deficit narrowed sharply by GBP 2.0 billion to GBP 0.965 billion in February 2018 from a downwardly revised GBP 2.949 billion in the previous month and below market expectations of a GBP 2.6 billion gap. It was the smallest trade deficit since September.

Imports of goods and services to the UK fell by 4.8 percent to GBP 53.41 billion in February from the previous month's record high of GBP 56.11 billion. The sharp decline was due to a 6.5 percent decrease in purchases of goods, led by fuels and manufactured goods, and a 0.2 percent drop in imports of services. Among trading partners, imports of goods from the EU fell 0.8 percent, mainly from France (-3.9 percent) and the Netherlands (-1.9 percent). In addition, purchases from non-EU countries slumped 13.3 percent, as imports decreased the most from Norway (-32 percent), the US (-20.1 percent) and Japan (-16.1 percent).

Exports of goods and services from the UK declined by 1.3 percent to GBP 52.45 billion in February from GBP 53.16 billion in the previous month, due to lower sales of goods (-2.2 percent) and services (-0.3 percent). Among major trading partners, exports of goods to non-EU countries shrank 4.7 percent, namely to the US (-17.1 percent), China (-7.1 percent), Hong Kong (-7.5 percent) and South Korea (-11.8 percent). By contrast, exports of goods to the EU grew slightly by 0.3 percent, as sales increased mainly to Germany (8.2 percent) and Ireland (3 percent), but fell to the Netherlands (-5.9 percent) and Spain (-9.8 percent).

In the three months to February 2018, the trade deficit widened by GBP 0.4 billion to GBP 6.4 billion, due mainly to a GBP 2.1 billion fall in non-EU goods exports, partially offset by increases of GBP 0.9 billion in EU goods and GBP 0.4 billion in total services exports.


ONS | Joana Ferreira | joana.ferreira@tradingeconomics.com
4/11/2018 9:04:23 AM


Recent Releases

UK Trade Deficit Widens in January as Imports Hit Record High
The UK’s deficit on trade in goods and services widened by GBP 0.6 billion to GBP 3.074 billion in January 2018 from a downwardly revised GBP 2.492 billion in the previous month, due primarily to an increase in goods imports including aircraft and cars from non-EU countries and fuels (refined oil) from EU countries.
Published on 2018-03-09

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The UK’s deficit on trade in goods and services widened by GBP 1.2 billion to GBP 4.896 billion in December 2017 from an upwardly revised GBP 3.652 billion in the previous month and way above market expectations of GBP 2.4 billion. It was the largest trade deficit since September 2016.
Published on 2018-02-09

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The UK’s deficit on trade in goods and services widened by GBP 0.5 billion to GBP 2.804 billion in November 2017 from an upwardly revised GBP 2.270 billion in the previous month. It was the largest trade deficit since June.
Published on 2018-01-10

UK Trade Gap Well Below Expectations in October
The UK’s deficit on trade in goods and services increased to GBP 1.41 billion in October of 2017 from a downwardly revised GBP 1.14 billion gap in September but way below market expectations of a GBP 3 billion gap. Both exports and imports reached record values although purchases rose at a faster pace, mainly due to unspecified goods (including non-monetary gold) from non-EU countries.
Published on 2017-12-08



Calendar GMT Actual Previous Consensus TEForecast
2018-02-09 09:30 AM Balance of Trade £-4.896B £-3.65B £-2.4B £-3.2B
2018-03-09 09:30 AM Balance of Trade £-3.074B £-2.492B £-3.8B
2018-04-11 08:30 AM Balance of Trade £-0.965B £-2.949B £-2.6B £-3.4B
2018-05-10 08:30 AM Balance of Trade £-0.965B £-2.9B
2018-06-12 08:30 AM Balance of Trade
2018-07-10 08:30 AM Balance of Trade


United Kingdom Trade Last Previous Highest Lowest Unit
Balance of Trade -965.00 -2949.00 2946.00 -6225.00 GBP Million [+]
Exports 52447.00 53163.00 53880.00 962.00 GBP Million [+]
Imports 53412.00 56112.00 56112.00 1031.00 GBP Million [+]
Current Account -18443.00 -19173.00 2654.00 -33681.00 GBP Million [+]
Current Account to GDP -4.10 -5.80 2.60 -5.80 percent [+]
External Debt 6385526.00 6218711.00 6428718.00 565439.00 GBP Million [+]
Terms of Trade 101.50 102.10 107.60 80.10 Index Points [+]
Capital Flows 24382.00 10929.00 42878.00 -15043.00 GBP Million [+]
Foreign Direct Investment 8667.00 8172.00 82539.00 -44536.00 GBP Million [+]
Gold Reserves 310.30 310.29 588.27 310.25 Tonnes [+]
Crude Oil Production 739.00 977.00 2821.00 1.00 BBL/D/1K [+]
Terrorism Index 5.10 5.08 5.68 4.19 [+]
Tourism Revenues 1560.00 1790.00 2938.00 126.00 GBP Million [+]
Tourist Arrivals 2590.00 3050.00 4020.00 540.00 Thousand [+]
Weapons Sales 1214.00 1365.00 6069.00 744.00 USD Million [+]

Exports by Country  |   Exports by Category  |   Imports by Country  |   Imports by Category



United Kingdom Balance of Trade

The UK's trade balance has been in deficit since 1998, due to deficits in trade in goods which are partly offset by surpluses in trade in services. The level of total UK trade in goods as a proportion of total trade in goods and services has been gradually declining since 1986 after peaking at 75 percent in 1985. This is consistent with the rising share of UK trade in services (35 percent of total trade in 2017). In 2017, the biggest goods deficits were recorded with Germany, China, the Netherlands, Norway, Belgium & Luxembourg and Italy; and the largest surpluses were recorded with the United States, Ireland and South Korea. This page provides - United Kingdom Balance of Trade - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news. United Kingdom Balance of Trade - actual data, historical chart and calendar of releases - was last updated on April of 2018.

Actual Previous Highest Lowest Dates Unit Frequency
-965.00 -2949.00 2946.00 -6225.00 1955 - 2018 GBP Million Monthly




balance of trade by Country
Country Last
Australia 825.00 Feb/18
Brazil 6280.75 Mar/18
Canada -2686.00 Feb/18
China -49.83 Mar/18
Euro Area 18897.50 Feb/18
France -5186.00 Feb/18
Germany 18400.00 Feb/18
India -13690.00 Mar/18
Indonesia 1091.70 Mar/18
Italy 3104.28 Feb/18
Japan 797.35 Mar/18
Mexico 1062.00 Feb/18
Netherlands 4514.00 Feb/18
Russia 12192.00 Feb/18
South Korea 6865.00 Mar/18
Spain -3935000.00 Jan/18
Switzerland 3215.34 Feb/18
Turkey -5760.71 Feb/18
United Kingdom -965.00 Feb/18
United States -57591.00 Feb/18


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