Mumbai, April 2 -- Australia's trade balance improved sharply in February, rising by $3.43 billion on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The increase was mainly driven by strong movements in non-monetary gold, supported by higher demand for safe-haven assets.
The trade surplus for goods more than doubled to $5.67 billion in February, up from $2.26 billion in January. Gold exports played a major role, increasing by $1.82 billion, while gold imports dropped by $1.37 billion.
Overall goods exports rose by $2.12 billion to $45.65 billion, while imports fell by $1.30 billion to $39.96 billion, further boosting the trade balance.
The strong performance in gold helped offset weaker results i...