Britain's trade balance holds steady

LONDON, Sept. 9 (UPI) -- The British trade deficit in July was unchanged for the second consecutive month, the Office for National Statistics said Wednesday.

July's preliminary trade deficit estimate came in at $3.9 billion, unchanged from both June and May.

In July, import and export prices kept in stride, both dropping by a half a percent compared with June, the ONS said.

Britain's trade deficit in goods reached $10.7 billion, also unchanged since June. The goods deficit with the European Union dropped slightly in July from $4.6 billion to $4.3 billion. Among non-EU countries, the goods deficit grew by $331 million to $6.4 billion.