High trade surplus based on development in capital goods sectors
In 2017, German goods exports were up 6.2% in nominal terms, after having
grown 0.9% in 2016. German goods imports even rose 8.3% in 2017 (2016:
+0.6%). As a result, the German trade surplus narrowed by 1.7% in 2017, to just
below EUR 245 bn.
Nevertheless, this is the second-highest surplus on record.
The trade surplus contributed 7.5% to GDP in 2017, down from 7.9% in 2016.
Taken together, the automotive industry, electrical and mechanical engineering
accounted for 48% of aggregate German exports in 2017. This shows that
German companies from these traditional capital goods sectors are highly
competitive on the world market. Automotive sector and mechanical engineering
exports made significant contributions to the trade surplus. In electrical
engineering, large exports are offset by considerable imports of electronic
goods, in particular consumer electronics.
As a result, the export-import balance
is considerably lower in this sector than in the automotive industry or in
mechanical engineering.
EU Forecast
euf:ba.18.j:177/nws-01