TRADE: EU POSTS EURO 3.2 BILLION DEFICIT IN JULY.

The value of the EU's exports rose 5% from euro 87.0 billion in July last year to 91.3 billion this July while imports were up 10% from euro 86.0 billion in July last year to 94.4 billion. Within the EU, dispatches rose 2% from euro 166.2 billion to 168.9 billion.

Eurostat also gave final data for June, which showed that exports were up 10% from euro 85.6 billion to 94.5 billion, and imports up 9% from euro 88.1 billion to 96.3 billion. The trade deficit in June was definitively put at euro 1.8 billion, down from a euro 2.5 billion shortfall in June 2004. And within the EU, dispatches rose 5% from euro 176.2 billion last year to 185.5 billion in June this year.

With rising oil prices, the EUs energy deficit grew to euro 95.4 billion between January and June this year compared with 65.3 billion in January to June...