Australia’s Feb trade surplus smallest since last September

Australia’s trade surplus has shrunk to AUD 7.28 billion in February from a revised down AUD 10.06 billion surplus in January, data by the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed.

It has been the nation’s smallest trade surplus since September 2023.

In comparison, market consensus had pointed to a surplus of AUD 10.4 billion.

Total exports dropped 2.2% month-over-month to AUD 45.52 billion, or a four-month low, mostly due to lower shipments of metal ores and minerals.

Shipments to China, Australia’s top trading partner, decreased 10.1% in February, while exports to Japan shrank 2.1% and those to Hong Kong plummeted 23.8%.

Total imports went up 4.8% month-over-month to AUD 38.24 billion, or a five-month high, mostly driven by processed industrial supplies.

The Australian Dollar was 0.07% weaker on the day against its US counterpart, with the AUD/USD currency pair last trading at 0.6583.

The major Forex pair has eased from yesterday’s two-week high of 0.6619.