Slight plus on the previous month: German exports are only recovering slowly

Wednesday December 09, 2020

Slight plus compared to the previous month
German exports are only slowly recovering

The pandemic slows "Made in Germany" in the spring. Since then, exports have been increasing slowly but steadily, but are still well below the pre-crisis level. The tightened corona measures in many countries also threaten the positive trend.

Despite the ongoing recovery, exports from Germany have not yet reached the pre-crisis level. Exports rose by 0.8 percent in October compared to September, as the Federal Statistical Office in Wiesbaden announced. With a volume of 112.0 billion euros, however, they were 6.5 percent below the same month last year.

Compared to February, the month before the crisis, a minus of 6.8 percent was recorded. Temporary border closings, disruptions in logistics and interruptions in supply chains at the beginning of the corona pandemic in spring had slowed down the "Made in Germany" business. After the recovery in the summer, the economy fears another setback because in many countries the measures to contain the pandemic have recently been tightened again.

Imports are also lagging behind

From January through October, German exports totaled 992.1 billion euros, 11.2 percent below the level of the first ten months of the previous year. Imports to Germany in October totaled 92.7 billion euros, 5.9 percent below the level of the same month last year. For the first ten months there was a volume of 844.0 billion euros, a decrease of 8.9 percent compared to the same period of the previous year.

There were significant differences in exports in October, depending on the trading partner: while exports to China rose 0.3 percent to 8.7 billion euros compared to the same month last year, exports to the USA increased by 10.5 percent to 9.9 billion Euros from. For exports to Great Britain, statisticians recorded a decline of 11.7 percent to 6.5 billion euros compared to the same month last year.

Most of the imports also came from China to Germany in October 2020. Goods to the value of 10.1 billion euros were imported from the People's Republic (minus 3.3 percent). Imports from the USA fell by 18.8 percent to a value of 5.8 billion euros. German imports from Great Britain fell by 17.6 percent to 3.0 billion euros.