We examine evidences of low frequency variability in the Ekman heat flux due to changes in the global temperature and wind patterns. The 10-year long time series of high resolution surface wind vectors was provided by the European Remote Sensing Satellites 1 and 2. A linear regression of the zonally averaged Ekman heat flux shows a latitudinal trend for the period between 1992 and 1997. This trend indicates a decrease in the poleward Ekman heat flux of warmer waters from the tropics and a slight decrease in the equatorward flux in the high latitudes. This intra-decadal trend ended after the 1998 El Ni¿o event. These variations are mostly due to changes in the wind stress field. The decrease in the poleward Ekman heat flux may have far reaching consequences involving the global heat balance.