--UK Feb non-EU goods trade gap 2.128 bln stlg; Jan 2.449 bln
--UK Jan world goods trade gap 2.445 bln stlg; Dec 2.901 bln
--ONS: No sign of effect on UK trade from US slowdown
--ONS: Trend in UK goods deficit still widening
--UK Feb non-EU goods trade gap ex-oil erratics 1.681 bln stlg
--UK Jan EU goods trade surplus 4 mln stlg; Dec deficit 144 mln
--UK Jan total trade deficit 1.617 bln stlg vs Dec 2.037 bln

London, March 20 (BridgeNews) - The U.K. posted a better than expected trade performance in the first two months of the year, with no sign yet that export growth has been hurt by the slowdown in the U.S. economy. Trade in goods with countries outside the EU posted a deficit of 2.128 billion sterling in February, better than the 2.6 billion sterling markets expected. Meanwhile the global goods trade deficit in January was 2.445 billion sterling, also marginally better than expected.
* * * Exports to the U.S. grew by 6.7% in the three months to January compared with the previous three months, the ONS said.
Nevertheless the Office for National Statistics said that its estimate of the underlying trend was that the U.K. trade gap was continuing to widen.