British trade gap rose in December

While the trade gap increased in December and in the fourth quarter, for the year the trade gap narrowed compared with 2008, ONS said.

For the month, the gap reached $5.1 billion, up from $4.5 billion in November. For the year, the trade gap dropped by $6.9 billion compared with the previous year, to $53 billion.

As in the United States, the economic recovery has accelerated the trade gap, which shrank during the recession when international trade contracted.

British exports fell by 9.5 percent in 2009, while imports dropped by 10.3 percent.
Excluding oil, exports dropped 12.1 percent, while imports fell 13.4 percent.

For the year, the price of imports, up 3 percent, accelerated faster than the price of exports, which rose 2.5 percent.

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