The surplus recorded in the services account (+37.8 bn euro) was mainly the result of surpluses in "other business services", which includes miscellaneous business, professional and technical services (+13.7 bn), transportation (+7.4 bn), computer & information services (+6.7 bn), financial services (+6.0 bn), insurance services (+3.5 bn), travel (+2.7 bn) and construction services (+2.4 bn), partially offset by a deficit in royalties & license fees (-1.5 bn).
In the second quarter of 2012, the EU27 external current account recorded a surplus with the USA (+17.7 bn euro), Switzerland (+16.7 bn), Hong Kong (+7.7 bn), Brazil (+7.3 bn), Canada (+3.4 bn) and India (+1.5 bn), and a deficit with China (-25.0 bn), Russia (-15.6 bn) and Japan (-4.8 bn).
Financial Account
In the second quarter of 2012, the EU27 made direct investments abroad of 56.8 bn euro, compared with 114.2 bn in the same quarter of 2011, while foreign direct investors made investments in the EU27 of 58.3 bn, compared with 56.2 bn in the same quarter of 2011. Portfolio investments recorded a net inflow of 164.2 bn, compared with a net inflow of 185.7 bn in the second quarter of 2011.
Current account of Member States (including intra-EU flows)
As concerns the total (intra-EU plus extra-EU) current account balances of the EU27 Member States5, thirteen recorded surpluses and fourteen deficits in the second quarter of 2012. The highest surpluses were observed in Germany (+37.6 bn euro), the Netherlands (+11.2 bn), Sweden (+6.2 bn) and Denmark (+5.1 bn), and the largest deficits in the United Kingdom (-25.1 bn), France (-15.8 bn), Spain (-2.9 bn) and Greece (-2.3 bn).
