Despite deteriorating economic conditions in the final months of 2022, German companies exported a record amount of goods last year. According to the German statistics agency Destatis, goods worth more than 1.5 trillion euros were exported last year, 14% more than the previous record of just under 1.4 trillion euros in 2021.
The year ended weakly for German foreign trade. In December, exports fell by 6.3 percent and imports by 6.1 percent. For example, sales in important markets such as the US and China have weakened.
No quantification
However, the growth in exports throughout the year can partly be explained by the sharp price increases in recent months. These increased the value of both exports and imports. The effects cannot be precisely quantified as the statistics office does not collect price-adjusted data on foreign trade.
Imports from the important trading partner of the Netherlands have increased even faster than exports. This is due to high energy prices in 2022 following the war in Ukraine and the fact that Europe’s largest economy is heavily dependent on energy imports. At 1.488 billion euros, imports were more than 24% above the 2021 level. Germany’s trade surplus, the difference between exports and imports, thus decreased for the fifth consecutive year.
Source: BNR
Andrew Dwight is an author and economy journalist who writes for 24 News Globe. He has a deep understanding of financial markets and a passion for analyzing economic trends and news. With a talent for breaking down complex economic concepts into easily understandable terms, Andrew has become a respected voice in the field of economics journalism.
