German Trade Surplus Hits All Time High

Germany’s trade surplus hit an all time high last year as the country continued to export significantly more than it imported.

According to the figures, German exports climbed 1.2% to 1.2 trillion euros in 2016, while imports rose 0.6% to 954.6bn euros.

This left a surplus of 252.9bn euros, up from 244.3bn euros in 2015.

It comes days after Donald Trump’s top trade advisor accused Germany of exploiting the euro to boost exports.

In an interview with the Financial Times last week, Peter Navarro alleged the euro was a German currency in disguise, and this gave Germany an unfair advantage over the US and other nations.

A low currency makes goods cheaper to sell abroad.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel rejected the claims, however, stressing it always been her country’s policy that the European Central Bank should pursue an independent monetary policy.

The German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble has said that the euro was in fact too weak for Germany.

via BBC

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