German exports slump in December as global trade slows

Feb 8, 2012, 8:08 GMT

Berlin - German exports slumped in December as the eurozone debt crisis hit the country's key European trading partners, data released Wednesday showed.

The statistics office said exports from Europe's biggest economy dropped 4.3 per cent in December after a 2.6-per-cent gain in November.

Analysts had predicted a more modest fall of 1 per cent in December. After China, Germany is the world's second-biggest exporter.

However, for the full year 2011, exports from Germany surged 11.4 per cent with the total value crossing the 1-trillion-euro mark (1.33 trillion dollars) for the first time. Total exports were worth 1.06 trillion euros in 2011.

German imports tumbled 3.9 per cent, adding to signs that its domestic economy also lost steam at the end of last year, the statistics office said. Imports slipped 0.2 per cent in November.

Year-on-year imports climbed 13.2 per cent to reach a record 902 billion euros.

The nation's trade surplus narrowed to 12.9 billion euros from 15.9 billion euros in November, the statistics office said.