Press release No. 431 of 8 November 2018
Exports, September 2018
109.1 billion euros
-0.8% on the previous month (calendar and seasonally adjusted)
-1.2% on the same month a year earlier
Imports, September 2018
90.7 billion euros
-0.4% on the previous month (calendar and seasonally adjusted)
+5.3% on the same month a year earlier
Foreign trade balance, September 2018:
18.4 billion euros
17.6 billion euros (calendar and seasonally adjusted)
Current account of the Deutsche Bundesbank, September 2018
21.1 billion euros
WIESBADEN – Germany exported goods to the value of 109.1 billion euros and imported goods to the value of 90.7 billion euros in September 2018. Based on provisional data, the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) also reports that German exports declined by 1.2%, while imports increased by 5.3% in September 2018 year on year. After calendar and seasonal adjustment, exports were down 0.8% and imports declined 0.4% compared with August 2018.
The foreign trade balance showed a surplus of 18.4 billion euros in September 2018. In September 2017, the surplus amounted to 24.2 billion euros. In calendar and seasonally adjusted terms, the foreign trade balance recorded a surplus of 17.6 billion euros in September 2018.
According to provisional results of the Deutsche Bundesbank, the current account of the balance of payments showed a surplus of 21.1 billion euros in September 2018, which takes into account the balances of trade in goods including supplementary trade items (+19.7 billion euros), services (-1.8 billion euros), primary income (+6.8 billion euros) and secondary income (-3.6 billion euros). In September 2017, the German current account showed a surplus of 26.9 billion euros.
In September 2018, Germany exported goods to the value of 64.7 billion euros to the Member States of the European Union (EU), while it imported goods to the value of 52.1 billion euros from those countries. Compared with September 2017, exports to the EU countries decreased by 0.4%, while imports from those countries increased by 5.8%. Goods to the value of 41.0 billion euros (+0.6%) were dispatched to the Euro area countries in September 2018, while the value of the goods received from those countries was 34.1 billion euros (+9.3%). In September 2018, goods to the value of 23.7 billion euros (-2.0%) were exported to EU countries not belonging to the Euro area, while the value of the goods imported from those countries was 18.0 billion euros (-0.3%).
Exports of goods to countries outside the European Union (third countries) amounted to 44.4 billion euros in September 2018, while imports from those countries totalled 38.6 billion euros. Compared with September 2017, exports to third countries declined by 2.2% and imports from those countries increased by 4.7%.
Methodological note:
The results for reference year 2017 now are final and available in the GENESIS-Online database (Tables 51000).
| Item | September | January to September | August | September | January to September |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 2017 | ||||
| 1 According to calculations of the Deutsche Bundesbank | |||||
| Foreign trade | |||||
| 1 Exports (f.o.b.) | 109.1 | 988.0 | 105.4 | 110.3 | 954.2 |
| 2 Imports (c.i.f.) | 90.7 | 813.6 | 88.3 | 86.1 | 767.6 |
| 3 Foreign trade balance (1-2) | 18.4 | 174.4 | 17.1 | 24.2 | 186.6 |
| Transition to trade in goods 1 | |||||
| 4 Supplementary trade items | 1.3 | 15.9 | 0.9 | 1.5 | 17.1 |
| Current account balances 1 | |||||
| 5 Trade in goods (3+4) | 19.7 | 190.3 | 18.0 | 25.8 | 203.7 |
| 6 Services | -1.8 | -15.8 | -5.5 | -2.4 | -19.5 |
| 7 Primary income | 6.8 | 44.4 | 6.6 | 6.6 | 42.3 |
| 8 Secondary income | -3.6 | -31.9 | -3.7 | -3.1 | -39.7 |
| Current account (5+6+7+8) | 21.1 | 187.0 | 15.3 | 26.9 | 186.8 |
| Item | September 2018 | January to September 2018 | change on | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 2017 | January to September 2017 | |||
| billion euro | % | |||
| Total exports | 109.1 | 988.0 | -1.2 | 3.5 |
| including: | ||||
| EU Member States | 64.7 | 585.3 | -0.4 | 4.6 |
| Euro-zone | 41.0 | 369.8 | 0.6 | 5.4 |
| Non-euro-zone | 23.7 | 215.5 | -2.0 | 3.1 |
| Third countries | 44.4 | 402.7 | -2.2 | 2.1 |
| Total imports | 90.7 | 813.6 | 5.3 | 6.0 |
| including: | ||||
| EU Member States | 52.1 | 465.3 | 5.8 | 6.9 |
| Euro-zone | 34.1 | 303.4 | 9.3 | 7.8 |
| Non-euro-zone | 18.0 | 162.0 | -0.3 | 5.3 |
| Third countries | 38.6 | 348.3 | 4.7 | 4.8 |
| Year | Month | Exports | Imports | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| original value | calendar and seasonally adjusted value 1 | original value | calendar and seasonally adjusted value 1 | ||||||
| value in billion euros | change on the same month of the previous year in % | value in billion euros | change on previous month in % | value in billion euros | change on the same month of the previous year in % | value in billion euros | change on previous month in % | ||
| 1 Using Census X-12-ARIMA | |||||||||
| 2017 | January | 98.8 | 11.3 | 103.2 | 2.4 | 83.7 | 11.2 | 84.0 | 2.2 |
| February | 102.4 | 3.9 | 105.6 | 2.3 | 82.1 | 3.4 | 83.9 | -0.1 | |
| March | 118.1 | 11.0 | 105.2 | -0.4 | 92.8 | 14.6 | 85.7 | 2.2 | |
| April | 100.8 | -3.0 | 106.1 | 0.8 | 82.8 | 5.1 | 86.2 | 0.5 | |
| May | 110.5 | 14.1 | 107.3 | 1.1 | 88.4 | 15.9 | 86.8 | 0.7 | |
| June | 107.2 | 1.0 | 105.2 | -1.9 | 84.8 | 3.4 | 84.2 | -3.0 | |
| July | 103.1 | 7.6 | 105.5 | 0.3 | 84.1 | 9.3 | 85.8 | 1.8 | |
| August | 103.0 | 7.3 | 107.9 | 2.3 | 82.7 | 7.9 | 86.4 | 0.8 | |
| September | 110.3 | 4.5 | 107.6 | -0.3 | 86.1 | 5.2 | 85.6 | -1.0 | |
| October | 108.0 | 6.9 | 107.3 | -0.2 | 88.9 | 8.1 | 87.0 | 1.7 | |
| November | 116.3 | 8.0 | 110.8 | 3.2 | 92.4 | 7.9 | 88.4 | 1.6 | |
| December | 100.5 | 3.5 | 110.7 | -0.0 | 82.1 | 4.2 | 89.2 | 0.8 | |
| 2018 | January | 107.1 | 8.4 | 110.5 | -0.2 | 89.9 | 7.4 | 89.4 | 0.3 |
| February | 104.7 | 2.3 | 108.0 | -2.3 | 86.5 | 5.2 | 88.3 | -1.3 | |
| March | 116.1 | -1.7 | 109.5 | 1.4 | 91.5 | -1.4 | 87.9 | -0.4 | |
| April | 110.2 | 9.4 | 109.4 | -0.2 | 89.8 | 8.5 | 89.8 | 2.1 | |
| May | 109.1 | -1.3 | 111.2 | 1.6 | 89.0 | 0.7 | 90.4 | 0.6 | |
| June | 115.3 | 7.6 | 111.1 | -0.1 | 93.4 | 10.1 | 91.6 | 1.3 | |
| July | 111.0 | 7.7 | 110.4 | -0.6 | 94.5 | 12.4 | 94.5 | 3.2 | |
| August | 105.4 | 2.4 | 110.4 | 0.1 | 88.3 | 6.8 | 92.2 | -2.4 | |
| September | 109.1 | -1.2 | 109.5 | -0.8 | 90.7 | 5.3 | 91.9 | -0.4 | |
First detailed provisional results by country of origin/country of destination and by chapter of the Commodity Classification for Foreign Trade Statistics as well as a comparative table based on the country of origin/country of consignment concepts are available for downloading (only in German).
