BRUSSELS — The trade surplus for the 16 countries using the euro hit a seven-year high of 12.6 billion euros (18.6 billion dollars) in July, giving another sign of European recovery, official data showed on Thursday.
The July trade figures dwarfed the upwardly revised 5.4 billion euro surplus seen in June which had itself been a massive improvement as the eurozone climbs out of the economic mire.
The fragile nature of Europe's economic recovery was laid bare earlier this month as eurozone unemployment burst through the 15 million barrier.
