diff --git a/modules/@angular/compiler/src/i18n/extractor_merger.ts b/modules/@angular/compiler/src/i18n/extractor_merger.ts
index 84e1f489aa..1d58fed826 100644
--- a/modules/@angular/compiler/src/i18n/extractor_merger.ts
+++ b/modules/@angular/compiler/src/i18n/extractor_merger.ts
@@ -55,20 +55,22 @@ enum _VisitorMode {
  * @internal
  */
 class _Visitor implements html.Visitor {
+  private _depth: number;
+
   // <el i18n>...</el>
   private _inI18nNode: boolean;
-  private _depth: number;
   private _inImplicitNode: boolean;
 
   // <!--i18n-->...<!--/i18n-->
+  private _inI18nBlock: boolean;
   private _blockMeaningAndDesc: string;
   private _blockChildren: html.Node[];
   private _blockStartDepth: number;
-  private _inI18nBlock: boolean;
 
   // {<icu message>}
   private _inIcu: boolean;
 
+  // set to void 0 when not in a section
   private _msgCountAtSectionStart: number;
   private _errors: I18nError[];
   private _mode: _VisitorMode;
@@ -210,50 +212,31 @@ class _Visitor implements html.Visitor {
     this._depth++;
     const wasInI18nNode = this._inI18nNode;
     const wasInImplicitNode = this._inImplicitNode;
-    let childNodes: html.Node[];
+    let childNodes: html.Node[] = [];
+    let translatedChildNodes: html.Node[];
 
-    // Extract only top level nodes with the (implicit) "i18n" attribute if not in a block or an ICU
-    // message
+    // Extract:
+    // - top level nodes with the (implicit) "i18n" attribute if not already in a section
+    // - ICU messages
     const i18nAttr = _getI18nAttr(el);
+    const i18nMeta = i18nAttr ? i18nAttr.value : '';
     const isImplicit = this._implicitTags.some(tag => el.name === tag) && !this._inIcu &&
         !this._isInTranslatableSection;
     const isTopLevelImplicit = !wasInImplicitNode && isImplicit;
-    this._inImplicitNode = this._inImplicitNode || isImplicit;
+    this._inImplicitNode = wasInImplicitNode || isImplicit;
 
     if (!this._isInTranslatableSection && !this._inIcu) {
-      if (i18nAttr) {
-        // explicit translation
+      if (i18nAttr || isTopLevelImplicit) {
         this._inI18nNode = true;
-        const message = this._addMessage(el.children, i18nAttr.value);
-        childNodes = this._translateMessage(el, message);
-      } else if (isTopLevelImplicit) {
-        // implicit translation
-        this._inI18nNode = true;
-        const message = this._addMessage(el.children);
-        childNodes = this._translateMessage(el, message);
+        const message = this._addMessage(el.children, i18nMeta);
+        translatedChildNodes = this._translateMessage(el, message);
       }
 
       if (this._mode == _VisitorMode.Extract) {
         const isTranslatable = i18nAttr || isTopLevelImplicit;
-        if (isTranslatable) {
-          this._openTranslatableSection(el);
-        }
+        if (isTranslatable) this._openTranslatableSection(el);
         html.visitAll(this, el.children);
-        if (isTranslatable) {
-          this._closeTranslatableSection(el, el.children);
-        }
-      }
-
-      if (this._mode === _VisitorMode.Merge && !i18nAttr && !isTopLevelImplicit) {
-        childNodes = [];
-        el.children.forEach(child => {
-          const visited = child.visit(this, context);
-          if (visited && !this._isInTranslatableSection) {
-            // Do not add the children from translatable sections (= i18n blocks here)
-            // They will be added when the section is close (i.e. on `<!-- /i18n -->`)
-            childNodes = childNodes.concat(visited);
-          }
-        });
+        if (isTranslatable) this._closeTranslatableSection(el, el.children);
       }
     } else {
       if (i18nAttr || isTopLevelImplicit) {
@@ -265,19 +248,18 @@ class _Visitor implements html.Visitor {
         // Descend into child nodes for extraction
         html.visitAll(this, el.children);
       }
+    }
 
-      if (this._mode == _VisitorMode.Merge) {
-        // Translate attributes in ICU messages
-        childNodes = [];
-        el.children.forEach(child => {
-          const visited = child.visit(this, context);
-          if (visited && !this._isInTranslatableSection) {
-            // Do not add the children from translatable sections (= i18n blocks here)
-            // They will be added when the section is close (i.e. on `<!-- /i18n -->`)
-            childNodes = childNodes.concat(visited);
-          }
-        });
-      }
+    if (this._mode === _VisitorMode.Merge) {
+      const visitNodes = translatedChildNodes || el.children;
+      visitNodes.forEach(child => {
+        const visited = child.visit(this, context);
+        if (visited && !this._isInTranslatableSection) {
+          // Do not add the children from translatable sections (= i18n blocks here)
+          // They will be added later in this loop when the block closes (i.e. on `<!-- /i18n -->`)
+          childNodes = childNodes.concat(visited);
+        }
+      });
     }
 
     this._visitAttributesOf(el);
@@ -287,7 +269,6 @@ class _Visitor implements html.Visitor {
     this._inImplicitNode = wasInImplicitNode;
 
     if (this._mode === _VisitorMode.Merge) {
-      // There are no childNodes in translatable sections - those nodes will be replace anyway
       const translatedAttrs = this._translateAttributes(el);
       return new html.Element(
           el.name, translatedAttrs, childNodes, el.sourceSpan, el.startSourceSpan,
@@ -434,7 +415,7 @@ class _Visitor implements html.Visitor {
 
   /**
    * A translatable section could be:
-   * - a translatable element,
+   * - the content of translatable element,
    * - nodes between `<!-- i18n -->` and `<!-- /i18n -->` comments
    */
   private get _isInTranslatableSection(): boolean {
diff --git a/modules/@angular/compiler/test/i18n/integration_spec.ts b/modules/@angular/compiler/test/i18n/integration_spec.ts
index 24e0a26717..88078cf4c1 100644
--- a/modules/@angular/compiler/test/i18n/integration_spec.ts
+++ b/modules/@angular/compiler/test/i18n/integration_spec.ts
@@ -106,6 +106,8 @@ export function main() {
           .toBe('<div id="i18n-13" title="dans une section traductible"></div>');
       expectHtml(el, '#i18n-15').toMatch(/ca <b>devrait<\/b> marcher/);
       expectHtml(el, '#i18n-16').toMatch(/avec un ID explicite/);
+      expectHtml(el, '#i18n-18')
+          .toEqual('<div id="i18n-18">FOO<a title="dans une section traductible">BAR</a></div>');
     });
   });
 }
@@ -161,7 +163,8 @@ const XTB = `
   <translation id="i18n16">avec un ID explicite</translation>
   <translation id="i18n17">{VAR_PLURAL, plural, =0 {zero} =1 {un} =2 {deux} other {<ph 
   name="START_BOLD_TEXT"><ex>&lt;b&gt;</ex></ph>beaucoup<ph name="CLOSE_BOLD_TEXT"><ex>&lt;/b&gt;</ex></ph>} }</translation>
-  <translation id="4085484936881858615">{VAR_PLURAL, plural, =0 {Pas de réponse} =1 {une réponse} other {<ph name="INTERPOLATION"><ex>INTERPOLATION</ex></ph> réponse} }</translation>  
+  <translation id="4085484936881858615">{VAR_PLURAL, plural, =0 {Pas de réponse} =1 {une réponse} other {<ph name="INTERPOLATION"><ex>INTERPOLATION</ex></ph> réponse} }</translation>
+  <translation id="4035252431381981115">FOO<ph name="START_LINK"><ex>&lt;a&gt;</ex></ph>BAR<ph name="CLOSE_LINK"><ex>&lt;/a&gt;</ex></ph></translation>
 </translationbundle>`;
 
 const XMB = ` <msg id="615790887472569365">i18n attribute on tags</msg>
@@ -187,7 +190,8 @@ const XMB = ` <msg id="615790887472569365">i18n attribute on tags</msg>
   <msg id="1491627405349178954">it <ph name="START_BOLD_TEXT"><ex>&lt;b&gt;</ex></ph>should<ph name="CLOSE_BOLD_TEXT"><ex>&lt;/b&gt;</ex></ph> work</msg>
   <msg id="i18n16">with an explicit ID</msg>
   <msg id="i18n17">{VAR_PLURAL, plural, =0 {zero} =1 {one} =2 {two} other {<ph name="START_BOLD_TEXT"><ex>&lt;b&gt;</ex></ph>many<ph name="CLOSE_BOLD_TEXT"><ex>&lt;/b&gt;</ex></ph>} }</msg>
-  <msg id="4085484936881858615" desc="desc">{VAR_PLURAL, plural, =0 {Found no results} =1 {Found one result} other {Found <ph name="INTERPOLATION"><ex>INTERPOLATION</ex></ph> results} }</msg>`;
+  <msg id="4085484936881858615" desc="desc">{VAR_PLURAL, plural, =0 {Found no results} =1 {Found one result} other {Found <ph name="INTERPOLATION"><ex>INTERPOLATION</ex></ph> results} }</msg>
+  <msg id="4035252431381981115">foo<ph name="START_LINK"><ex>&lt;a&gt;</ex></ph>bar<ph name="CLOSE_LINK"><ex>&lt;/a&gt;</ex></ph></msg>`;
 
 const HTML = `
 <div>
@@ -240,4 +244,6 @@ const HTML = `
     =1 {Found one result}
     other {Found {{response.getItemsList().length}} results}
 }</div>
+
+<div i18n id="i18n-18">foo<a i18n-title title="in a translatable section">bar</a></div>
 `;