The European Union's current account deficit increased nearly fivefold last year to 88 billion euros, according to an estimate released Friday by the EU's Eurostat data agency.
The 2005 figure, which could be revised when more complete data are available, marked a sharp deterioration from a deficit of 18.5 billion euros (22 billion dollars) that the 25-nation EU recorded in 2004.
However, the services account for 2005 showed a surplus of 44.9 billion euros, slightly more than the 43.9 billion euros registered in 2004.
In the fourth quarter of 2005, the EU posted a current account deficit of 26.1 billion euros, compared with a deficit of 21.8 billion euros in the third quarter, and surplus of 1.7 billion euros in the final quarter of 2004.
At the same time, the services account showed a surplus of 11.6 billion euros compared to a surplus of 8.5 billion euros in the third quarter and 9.7 billion euros in the fourth quarter of 2004.
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