The trade deficit in the UK has narrowed thanks to record exports to the European Union (EU) and beyond, new figures have shown.

According to statistics released by the Institute of Export and International Trade concerning the year to March 2018, exports of goods and services were up to €702.4 billion, while the current account deficit went down by €13.8 billion to €90.9 billion.

This is a significant decrease when compared to the €104.8 billion witnessed following the first quarter of 2017.

Meanwhile, the trade deficit was narrowed by €8.7 billion during the same period thanks to exports rising at a faster rate than imports.

Finished-manufactured goods products were particularly in demand from the UK, while exports were found to have grown particularly rapidly to Canada, India and China.

Secretary for the Department for International Trade Dr Liam Fox said: "Demand for high quality British products remained strong ... and we are putting companies in position to benefit from growing global opportunities. Far from the negative forecasts after the EU referendum, there is every reason to be optimistic."

The discovery is more positive than the most recent data from Eurostat concerning March 2018, which showed the eurozone nations had experienced goods exports falling by 2.9 per cent.