UK trade gap widens in May on higher aircraft imports

LONDON, (Reuters) - Britain's goods trade deficit widened in May, pushed up by imports of aircraft, official data showed on Thursday. The Office for National Statistics said the goods trade deficit grew to just over 9.2 billion pounds from 8.8 billion pounds in April. Economists in a Reuters poll had forecast a gap of 8.75 billion pounds. Including Britain's surplus in its trade in services, the overall trade deficit widened to 2.42 billion pounds from 2.05 billion pounds in April. Britain's government has been seeking to help the country’s exporters in order to put the economic recovery on a sounder footing. But its efforts have been hampered by weak demand in the euro zone, home to key trading partners. Exports to the European Union dipped slightly in May. A rise in sterling has also raised concerns about British exports. The country's trade performance has been volatile in recent months due to so-called erratic goods such as aircraft, which are high in value and traded infrequently. In May, imports of aircraft rose by more than 400 million pounds to about 1.2 billion pounds, the ONS said. Overall, the value of goods exports in May rose by 0.6 percent to 24.1 billion pounds while imports rose a faster 1.7 percent to 33.3 billion pounds. Over the three months to the end of May, a smoother reading of the trade balance, the goods trade deficit widened slightly to 26.31 billion pounds. Over the three months to May, the volume of goods exports rose 1.6 percent while imports were up 1.9 percent. The goods trade deficit with non-EU countries grew to 3.96 billion pounds in May from 3.88 billion pounds in April, against forecasts for a gap of 3.4 billion pounds. ((Reporting by William Schomberg))