HC Deb 15 November 1989 vol 160 cc330-1W
Mr. Wigley

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish an analysis of the trade deficit for the most recent convenient period, identifying the imports, exports and net deficit or balance, respectively for(a) capital goods, (b) non-capital manufactured goods and (c) other elements.

Mr. Norman Lamont

In the third quarter of 1989 the United Kingdom visible trade deficit is provisionally estimated to be £6.8 billion on a seasonally adjusted balance of payments basis. Information about trade in capital goods is available only on an overseas trade statistics basis, as shown in the table, which tends to understate surpluses and overstate deficits.

Table 1
3rd Quarter 1989. OTS basis, seasonally adjusted
£ billion
Exports fob Imports cif Crude Balance1
Capital Goods2 5.4 5.1 +0.3
Other Manufactures3 14.2 19.9 -5.7
Other Goods 4.2 6.7 -2.5
Total Trade 23.8 31.7 -7.9
1 Exports fob less Imports cif.
2 Based on the United Nations broad economic categories analysis, and including ships. North Sea oil installations and aircraft.
3 Manufactures are defined as SITC (Rev. 3) Sections 5 to 8.