Bermuda’s current account surplus grew to $145 million in the first quarter, reflecting a positive balance in the Island’s transactions with the rest of the world.However, the Balance of Payments statistics released by Government yesterday indicate a marked slowdown in economic activity.As the commentary in the report stated: “The growth [of $31 million] mostly reflected a decline in payments which outpaced the decrease in receipts.”The first three months of the year saw a $16 million, or 7.4 percent, decline in revenue from business services from 2011, reflecting a fall in the amount of income from financial, legal, accounting and management services.Travel earnings slumped eight percent to $46 million, driven by reduced tourist spending.Bermuda’s first-quarter receipts for goods and services fell by $23 million to $789 million, representing a fall of 2.8 percent from the first three months of 2011.Meanwhile payments to the rest of the world slumped $53 million, or 7.6 percent, to $644 million.Demand for foreign goods continued to fall. The value of goods imported into the Island slid four percent to $211 million in the January through March period, compared to last year, while exports remained unchanged at $3 million.Employee compensation paid by overseas entities to Bermuda residents increased slightly to $312 million from $310 million, while investment income also increased seven percent to $107 million, largely because of higher interest earnings.Bermuda residents’ and companies’ ownership of foreign assets exceeded their foreign liabilities by more than $1.5 billion.The surplus was largely due to the portfolio holdings of financial institutions, which had a positive net asset position of $3.25 billion.Government’s net debt with foreign entities stood at $974 million, while non-financial Bermuda corporations owed the rest of the world $774 million.