Sweden Trade Surplus Shrinks In March

(RTTNews) - Sweden's foreign trade surplus decreased notably in March from a year ago as exports fell faster than imports, figures from Statistics Sweden showed on Friday.

The trade surplus dropped to SEK 4.8 billion in March from SEK 10.6 billion in the corresponding month last year. In February, the surplus was SEK 10.9 billion.

The value of exports plunged 11.0 percent in March from last year, and imports slid by 8.1 percent.

The non-EU trade balance showed a surplus of SEK 23.0 billion in March, while the trade balance with the EU revealed a deficit of SEK 18.2 billion.

On a seasonally adjusted basis, the trade surplus was SEK 3.4 billion in March, compared to SEK 4.0 billion in the previous month.

Separate official data showed that household lending increased at a faster rate of 0.6 percent annually in March versus a 0.4 percent rise a month ago.