The eurozone's trade surplus was wider in January than a year earlier, but there was little sign that the weakening euro is delivering a significant boost to exports, which were largely unchanged.
The European Union's statistics agency said Wednesday the 19 countries that use the euro had a surplus in their trade in goods with the rest of the world of EUR7.9 billion ($8.38 billion), up from EUR100 million in January 2014.
But that widening gap was due to a 6% decline in imports, which likely reflects lower oil prices, while exports rose very slightly.
Over 2014 as a whole, the eurozone's trade surplus rose to EUR193 billion from EUR152 billion in 2013, as exports rose by 2%, and imports were unchanged.
The euro has been depreciating against the U.S. dollar since May 2014, a slide that has continued into 2015 with the launch of the European Central Bank's program of quantitative easing. That involves the purchase of mostly government bonds using freshly created money, increasing the supply of euros and lowering their value on currency markets.
Although policy makers stress a weaker exchange rate isn't their primary goal in launching QE, they are counting on the euro's 12% slide against the dollar so far this year to help boost exports and revive economic growth.
But there are as yet few firm signs that boost will prove substantial. Figures released last week showed industrial production fell in January, and the trade figures released suggest manufacturers have yet to benefit from new overseas orders.
However, there were signs that investment may be continuing to revive. Eurostat also released figures that showed construction activity increased by 1.9% in January from December, the largest month-to-month rise since the end of 2013.
A revival in investment was a key factor driving a modest pickup in economic growth during the final three months of 2014, and the increase in construction suggests that may have continued into 2015.
