* Swiss trade surplus jumps 60 percent y/y in April
* Imports adjusted for price swings fall over 18 pct yr/yr
* Exports fall 18 pct
By Katie Reid
ZURICH, May 28 (Reuters) - Switzerland's trade surplus jumped 60 percent in April after imports slumped, pointing to a slowdown in Swiss consumer spending and highlighting the downturn in the country's manufacturing sector.
The country's trade surplus widened to 2.56 billion Swiss francs ($2.36 billion), from 1.58 billion a year ago, with imports tumbling over 18 percent as the prices of imports fell 8 percent due to lower energy costs, the Federal Customs Office said on Thursday.
"Imports are often linked to exports as manufacturers import raw materials to make finished goods. It may also be a sign that consumption is slowing as many of the consumption goods in Switzerland are imported," said Sarasin analyst Alessandro Bee.
Demand for Swiss products has dwindled as the global economic crisis has forced consumers and businesses across the world to cut back on spending.
Exports declined by 18 percent on the year when adjusted for price swings and were also 9 percent lower when adjusted for working days in April, which lost two working days due to Easter.
Nominal exports stood at 15.46 billion Swiss francs ($14.24 billion), but were 8 percent higher than in March in a sign that the pace of decline of exports may be easing.
"Data reflects the breakdown in global trade, which is also hitting Switzerland. But the April data shows greenshoots as the downturn has slowed a bit," Bee said.
BROAD-BASED SLUMP
All export sectors were hit, with the watchmaking industry
The slump in demand was also broad-based geographically and demand from Latin America and Europe fell the most.
"The SNB has intervened in the forex markets to prevent any further appreciation of the franc against the euro, yet exports are likely to continue to suffer as global demand remains at depressed levels," said 4Cast Limited analyst Saara Tuuli.
Earlier this week Swissmem, the Swiss association for the manufacturing industry, said foreign orders had tumbled 44 percent in the first quarter and that it does not expect a recovery to come before 2010. [ID:nLQ955033]
And the International Monetary Fund warned on Tuesday the recession in Switzerland would deepen as the economic downturn hits exports and financial sector inflows. [ID:nN26475862] (Editing by Toby Chopra) ($1=1.086 Swiss Franc)