Current Account Deficit Reaches USD 1.3 bln in 1Q07

The current account deficit grew 1.7 times yoy in 1Q07 and reached USD 1.3 bln (5% of GDP). Despite the fact that in 1Q07, the exports of goods grew slightly faster than imports (32.4% versus 32% yoy), the negative trade balance continued to expand. A relatively low positive balance in the trade of services (USD 0.05 mln compared to USD 0.22 mln in 1Q06) did not significantly mitigate the negative figures in the trade of goods, which resulted in foreign trade totaling USD 1.7 bln (1.5 times higher than in 1Q06). The income balance deficit in January-March grew 57.5% yoy to USD -0.4 bln, while the positive balance of current transfers reached USD 0.8 bln (+26.9% yoy).