BERLIN: German ICT exports increased by 9 percent in the first nine months of 2017 to EUR 27.5 billion. The growth was led by IT hardware, up 20 percent to EUR 14.1 billion, while telecom exports were flat, at EUR 10.1 billion. The consumer electronics segment grew by 3 percent to EUR 3.3 billion, according to the figures from industry group Bitkom.
Imports of foreign ICT goods also grew strongly, by 11 percent to EUR 44.9 billion, figures from the Federal Statistics Office show. China
accounted for nearly half the imports, at EUR 20.6 billion, followed by the Netherlands and the Czech Republic with each EUR 2.5 billion.
The biggest export markets were the Czech Republic, up 51 percent to EUR 2.3 billion; Poland, up 21 percent to EUR 2.3 billion; and the UK, up 14 percent to EUR 2.3 billion.
