Eurozone current account drops into deficit: ECB

The flow of current payments into and out of the eurozone switched sharply to show a deficit last year from a surplus in 2007, figures from the European Central Bank showed on Tuesday.
The current account, the broadest measure of the flow of all current payments including transfers for trade in goods and services, showed a deficit of 63.2 billion euros (80 billion dollars).
This represented about 0.7 percent of total gross domestic product, the ECB said.
In 2007, the eurozone had recorded a surplus of 36.3 billion euros, a statement said.
The balance of payments on current account is a key indicator of the performance of an economy.
The December figure was more positive, showing the deficit narrowing on a monthly basis to 7.3 billion euros from a revised figure for November of 13.9 billion.
According to ECB data, combined direct and porfolio investment recorded net inflows of 128 billion euros in 2008, compared with net inflows of 47 billion euros a year earlier.
That was mainly "a result of lower net purchases of foreign debt instruments by euro area residents," the statement said.