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Trade · November 9, 2026 · 2 min read

German September trade surplus narrows as import values rise faster than exports

By Econ Data Tools Editorial Team

Published November 9, 2026 • Updated November 9, 2026

Destatis reports an adjusted EUR 15.6 billion goods surplus, down from August but slightly above a year earlier. Export values rose 2.0% monthly and imports 4.2%; provisional data do not establish the causes.

Germany's calendar- and seasonally adjusted goods exports rose 2.0% in September 2026 from August to EUR 141.1 billion, while imports rose 4.2% to EUR 125.5 billion. The adjusted trade surplus narrowed to EUR 15.6 billion from EUR 17.9 billion in August, according to provisional figures released by the Federal Statistical Office, Destatis, on November 9. These are trade values, not a measure of the physical volume of goods shipped. Compared with September 2025, adjusted exports were 7.7% higher and imports were 8.7% higher. The adjusted surplus was slightly above the EUR 15.5 billion recorded a year earlier, despite its monthly decline. The two comparisons describe different reference periods: a smaller surplus than August does not mean the surplus was also smaller than in September of the previous year. EU markets accounted for much of the monthly export increase. Adjusted exports to EU members rose 3.5% to EUR 80.8 billion, while imports from the EU rose 4.9% to EUR 62.9 billion. Within the export total, euro-area deliveries rose 2.4% to EUR 55.8 billion and deliveries to non-euro-area EU countries rose 6.1% to EUR 25.0 billion. Exports to countries outside the EU rose only 0.1% to EUR 60.3 billion; imports from those countries rose 3.6% to EUR 62.7 billion. The United States remained Germany's largest export destination in September, with adjusted exports of EUR 13.4 billion. That was down 0.5% from August but up 10.3% from September 2025. Exports to China fell 5.2% on the month to EUR 5.5 billion, while imports from China rose 1.6% to EUR 17.3 billion. Imports from the United States rose 6.2% to EUR 8.8 billion. The country-level figures do not identify the industries or underlying reasons responsible for those changes. The unadjusted figures tell a separate statistical story: exports were EUR 148.5 billion, imports were EUR 131.1 billion and the surplus was EUR 17.4 billion. Unadjusted exports rose 7.6% year over year and imports rose 8.7%. Destatis cautions that adjusted values are notional calculated values and should not be directly compared with unadjusted values. The adjusted EUR 15.6 billion surplus and the unadjusted EUR 17.4 billion surplus are therefore different series, not competing estimates on the same basis. These monthly foreign-trade results are provisional. Destatis says the early release does not contain enough detailed information to explain changes in overall trade or in trade with particular countries. The figures alone do not establish a specific Chinese substitution effect, a shift in German domestic demand, or an exchange-rate or policy cause. Detailed September results are scheduled for November 20, when the first provisional figures will be updated.

Sources

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