THE merchandise trade growth has quickened in the final quarter of 2010 in
most major economies, with record trade figures in China. Total
exports of G7 and BRICS countries grew by 8%
in the fourth quarter compared to 1% in the previous quarter. Total imports grew
by 7% compared to 1% in the previous quarter.
Exports were up 3% in China (to US$ 420 billion). But
with imports rising at 9% (to US$ 379 billion), China’s trade surplus fell by
US$ 17 billion to US$ 41 billion. In the United States the
trade deficit decreased to US$ 152 billion, compared to US$ 160 billion in the
third quarter, as exports grew by 5% and imports by 1%.
Germany’s trade surplus increased by US$ 10 billion in
the fourth quarter of 2010 to reach US$ 54 billion , as export growth of 7%
outpaced import growth of 4%. Double-digit export growth in Russia
(19%) and South Africa (14%) also led to large
increases in these countries’ trade surplus. In India, export
growth of 21% resulted in a significant decrease in the trade
deficit.
In
the United Kingdom exports grew at the same pace as imports
(5%), while imports grew at a faster pace than exports in
France (5% for imports versus 2% for exports), Italy
(9% vs 7%), Japan (5% vs 4%) and Brazil
(4% vs 1%). In Canada exports grew by 6% compared to
3% for imports, resulting in a small trade surplus, the first since the third
quarter of 2009.
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