WORLD : British Trade Deficit Doubled

Britain announced monthly trade figures today that were much worse than expected, as the country’s trade deficit more than doubled in January over the prior month.

The data showed the deficit on the current account, the widest measure of Britain’s foreign trade, was $3.16 billion, more than double a revised $1.37-billion gap for December.

Economists had been forecasting a current account deficit of around $2.2 billion for January.

The Central Statistical Office said Britain’s monthly current account figures are proving erratic and suggested that trends over three months give a more accurate picture.

The office attributed the size of the January gap to a deficit in several volatile items where a small surplus would have been expected. This reflected large diamond imports and smaller aircraft exports than had been predicted, it said.