BERLIN (AP) — German exports rose 0.9 percent in June compared with the previous month, while the strongest rise in imports to Europe’s biggest economy for nearly four years trimmed the country’s trade surplus.
The export figure reported Friday by the Federal Statistical Office was slightly better than economists’ 0.8 percent forecast and followed a 1.1 percent drop in May. Imports surged 4.5 percent, the biggest month-on-month rise since November 2010, following a 3.4 percent drop in May.
Germany’s trade surplus for June was 16.2 billion euros ($21.7 billion), down from 18.8 billion euros in May. June imports were 1.1 percent higher than a year earlier, while imports rose 2.1 percent.
The trade data follow disappointing factory orders and industrial production figures this week that underlined expectations of lackluster second-quarter economic growth.
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