German exports unexpectedly fell while industrial output ticked up in November, official data showed yesterday, highlighting both the challenges Europe’s biggest economy faces globally and moderate improvement at home.
German exports fell by 2.5 per cent in November compared with the previous month, dragged down by declines in shipments to other European Union countries and the US, according to the federal statistics office.
Analysts polled by Reuters had expected no change.
“This once again underscores how much this former growth engine of the German economy has begun to sputter,” Deutsche Bank Research economist Marc Schattenberg said.
On the flip side, industrial production rose 0.8pc in November, marking its third consecutive monthly increase against expectations of a 0.4pc drop.
“The prolonged downturn appears to have come to an end, a view also supported by the latest noticeable rise in incoming orders,” Schattenberg said.
German industrial orders climbed 5.6pc on the previous month in November, driven by large-scale orders, data showed on Thursday.
While economists welcomed such signs of German industry stabilising, doubts remained whether the recovery would last, given tougher trading conditions created by US tariff policies under President Donald Trump.
German exports to the US and EU countries both dropped by 4.2pc on the month, while overall non-EU exports declined by 0.2pc.
Compared with November 2024, exports to the US fell 22.9pc on a calendar- and seasonally-adjusted basis.
“The relationship with our most important export market, the US, also remains problematic in the new year,” said Volker Treier, head of foreign trade at the German Chamber of Commerce DIHK. “It is only scant consolation that China is once again taking over the role of our most important trading partner.”
While a 15pc tariff on most EU goods agreed with the Trump administration in July weighed on exports to the US, Washington’s tariffs on imports from China boosted shipments of Chinese goods to Europe.
Friday’s data showed German exports to China increased by 3.4pc on the month, while imports rose 8.0pc in November.
With overall imports up 0.8pc on a calendar- and seasonally-adjusted basis, Germany’s trade surplus narrowed to 13.1 billion euros ($15.26bn) in November from 17.2bn euros in October and 20bn euros in November 2024.
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