The deepening of the current account deficit was caused by a much poorer export performance than previously thought – down 3 per cent in the latest quarter – as well as weaker investment income from abroad.
This group, consisting of Ireland, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Greece, is "united by weak public finances, poor export competitiveness and big trade deficits".
A slightly smaller fraction is accounted for by its southern and western "periphery"—Ireland, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Greece a group united by weak public finances, poor export competitiveness and big trade deficits.
But even those who know recovery will be slow and painful are perturbed by the persistence of one particular symptom: poor export performance.
The current crisis over the euro has deep roots in the imbalances between north and south, rich and poor, export-led and service-driven economies, tied together by a currency but few rules, and those are rarely enforced.
"Poor export performance is weighing on the UK economy, as manufacturers are held back by a strong pound and a weakening global growth outlook," said CBI economist Rain Newton-Smith.
The collapse in semiconductor prices, which fell by more than 70% in 1996, coincided with a poor market for other South Korean exports, such as steel and chemicals.
Under his stewardship, Taiwan changed from a poor agrarian society into an export-driven manufacturing one.
Exports now look a poor bet.
Betting on exports alone is a poor gamble.
