FRANKFURT (AFP) – Germany logged a record trade surplus with the United States (US) last year, data showed yesterday, news that could stoke tensions with US President Donald Trump as he threatens the European Union (EU) with tariffs.
The US also returned as the top trading partner for Europe’s biggest economy last year, it showed, overtaking China which had been in the number one spot since 2016.
Germany’s surplus with the world’s top economy came in at EUR71.4 billion (USD74.1 billion), according to the figures from statistics agency Destatis, with the US the destination for over 10 per cent of all German exports.
Germany accounts for a hefty chunk of the European Union’s large trade surplus with the US, which has been a source of anger for Trump.
The US president has threatened to hit the EU with tariffs soon, saying the bloc has treated Washington “very badly”.
Since taking office, Trump has unveiled fresh duties on Canada, Mexico and China, before reaching deals with the Canada and Mexico to halt the levies for a month. Klaus-Juergen Gern, from the IfW Kiel economic institute, said that if Washington levied new tariffs on the EU, this could deal a heavy blow to the ailing German economy, which is already faced with a manufacturing slowdown and structural problems.
“It would be particularly problematic if tariffs were to be imposed only on some products from Europe… that play a particularly important role for German exports, such as cars, pharmaceuticals and medical technology,” he told AFP. Total trade between the US and Germany last year amounted to about EUR255 billion, above the EUR247 billion in trade between China and Germany, according to the data, which was collated by AFP.
Germany’s total exports worldwide amounted to nearly EUR1.6 billion in 2024, down one per cent year-on-year, highlighting the challenges for the economy.
Imports also dropped by 2.8 per cent. There was a positive trade balance for the year of EUR241.2 billion.
