Germany December trade surplus decreased to €13.9 billion from €20.4 billion in November

Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) said, in December 2018, Germany exported goods to the value of 96.1 billion euros (-4.5% compared with December 2017) and imported goods to the value of 82.1 billion euros (nearly unchanged on the same month a year earlier). As a result, Germany trade surplus decreased to €13.9 billion from € 20.4 billion in November. After calendar and seasonal adjustment, exports were up 1.5% and imports 1.2% compared with November 2018. That meant the trade surplus widened to €19.4 billion from €18.4 billion the month before.

In 2018, Germany exported goods to the value of 1,317.9 billion euros and imported goods to the value of 1,090.0 billion euros. Based on provisional data, German exports increased by 3.0% and imports by 5.7% in 2018 year on year. Exports and imports in 2018 exceeded the record highs recorded in 2017 when goods had been exported to the value of 1,279.0 billion euros and imported to the value of 1,031.0 billion euros. The foreign trade balance showed a surplus of 227.8 billion euros in 2018. In 2017, the surplus of the foreign trade balance was 247.9 billion euros.

In 2018, Germany exported goods to the value of 778.7 billion euros to the Member States of the European Union (EU), while it imported goods to the value of 623.0 billion euros from those countries. Compared with 2017, exports to the EU countries increased by 3.8%, and imports from those countries by 6.3%. Goods to the value of 492.0 billion euros (+4.5%) were dispatched to the Euro area countries in 2018, while the value of the goods received from those countries was 405.0 billion euros (+6.9%).

According to provisional results of the Deutsche Bundesbank, the current account of the balance of payments showed a surplus of 249.1 billion euros in 2018, which takes into account the balances of trade in goods including supplementary trade items (+242.0 billion euros), services (-16.7 billion euros), primary income (+71.1 billion euros) and secondary income (-47.3 billion euros). In 2017, the German current account showed a surplus of 261.2 billion euros.