FRANKFURT: German exports fell sharply in July as demand weakened from outside the euro area, official data showed Friday, adding to a gloomy picture of slowing growth for the EU’s economic powerhouse.
pCompared to June, exports dropped by 2.6 percent to $109.4 billion in seasonally-adjusted terms, the federal statistics office Destatis calculated, marking the biggest monthly fall since August 2015.
pSales to countries outside the European Union such as China and the United States suffered the most, while there was also a steep fall in demand from non-eurozone EU countries, which include Britain.
pThe July figures cover the first few weeks after Britain’s shock vote to leave the bloc, fuelling fears the seismic event could put the brakes on trade with Germany’s third-largest export market.
p”Either the entire industry took an early and long summer break, or Brexit and a general weakness in Germany’s main export partners left another mark on the economy,” said Carsten Brzeski, chief economist at ING-Diba.
