Imports from the rest of the world stood at €141.6 bn, a fall of 13.5% compared with August 2019. As a result, the euro area recorded a €14.7 bn surplus in trade in goods with the rest of the world in August 2020, compared with +€14.4 bn in August 2019. Intra-euro area trade fell to €129.2 bn in August 2020, down by 4.6% compared with August 2019.
In January to August 2020, euro area exports of goods to the rest of the world fell to €1 355.6 bn (a decrease of 12.4% compared with January-August 2019), and imports fell to €1 228.7 bn (a decrease of 13.1% compared with January-August 2019). As a result the euro area recorded a surplus of €127.0 bn, compared with +€133.7 bn in January-August 2019. Intra-euro area trade fell to €1 150.4 bn in January-August 2020, down by 12.3% compared with January-August 2019.
European Union
The first estimate for extra-EU exports of goods in August 2020 was €139.7 billion, down by 14.0% compared with August 2019. Imports from the rest of the world stood at €128.3 bn, down by 15.6% compared with the same month in the previous year. As a result, the EU recorded a €11.3 bn surplus in trade in goods with the rest of the world in August 2020, compared with +€10.6 bn in August 2019. Intra-EU trade fell to €208.8 bn in August 2020, -4.2% compared with August 2019.
In January to August 2020, extra-EU exports of goods fell to €1 229.9 bn (a decrease of 12.4% compared with January-August 2019), and imports fell to €1 118.8 bn (a decrease of 13.4% compared with January-August 2019). As a result, the EU recorded a surplus of €111.1 bn, compared with +€112.3 bn in January-August 2019. Intra-EU trade fell to €1 808.5 bn in January-August 2020, -11.2% compared with January-August 2019.
The degree to which the year-on-year development of exports and imports was affected depended however on the type of products. Food & Drink and chemicals were the only product groups with levels close to those observed in 2019. By contrast, machinery & vehicles, other manufactured products and in particular energy all recorded large drops.
In the first eight months of 2020, China was the main partner for the EU. This result was due to an increase of imports (+4.4%) combined with a slight drop of exports (-1.1%), while trade with the US recorded a significant drop in both imports (-11.9%) and exports (-10.7%)
Annual comparison by Member State
The impact of Covid outbreak continues to be visible in the annual comparison. In August 2020, compared with August 2019, exports of goods decreased for all Member States, except Slovenia (+3.7%) and Slovakia (+15.8%). The largest decreases were registered in Malta (-48.7%), France (-27.2%), Bulgaria (-25.9%) and Greece (-22.0%).
With regard to imports, the picture is similar. In August 2020 compared to August 2019, all Member States recorded significant drops, with the exception of Croatia (+4.9%), Estonia (+6.3%) and Slovenia (+20.2%). The highest overall falls were registered in Greece and Cyprus (both -36.0%).
