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EXPORTS

Swedish exports drop 20 percent

Swedish exports declined by 21.4 percent in volume, measured in constant prices, during the first quarter of 2009, according to new figures from Statistics Sweden.

Published: 8 June 2009 13:36 CEST

Import volumes declined by 18.2 percent over the quarter.

While the international downturn has impacted export volumes across the business sectors, worst hit was the automotive industry with exports of cars down 62 percent.

The machinery and transport equipment sector, accounting for nearly half of Swedish exports, decreased in volume by 29 percent with exports of electronic products including IT and telecommunications equipment down 5 percent.

Swedish exports of wood and paper products fell by 8 percent in volume and chemicals and rubber products dipped 8 percent.

Pharmaceutical products and food were the only sectors to report increasing volumes, with small rises in exports during the quarter.

Steel exports collapsed by 46 percent during the period with the minerals sector as a whole down 37 percent by volume.

The dominant import sector, machinery and transport equipment, decreased 29 percent in volume while imports of road vehicles (including spare parts) decreased by a full 47 percent.

Passenger car imports were down 45 percent on the back of low demand and the weak kronor.

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EXPORTS

‘Trade has collapsed’: Germany sees business with UK slump after Brexit

Germany's exports ticked up in January on robust trade with China, but trade with another key trade partner, Great Britain, plummeted after the Britain left the EU.

Published: 9 March 2021 12:22 CET
'Trade has collapsed': Germany sees business with UK slump after Brexit
Southampton harbour. Photo:Andrew Matthews/DPA

The Brexit fallout has continued to hurt commerce with the United Kingdom, with federal statistics office Destatis recording a 29 percent plunge in German exports across the Channel.

Meanwhile, demand for UK goods in Germany collapsed by more than 56 percent, official data showed Tuesday.

Cross-Channel exporters have had to adapt to new customs requirements from January 1, following Britain’s 2016 decision to leave the European Union.

Firms on both sides have since complained of increased bureaucracy and shipment delays as they grapple with the new rules.

BREXIT: What changes in Germany from January 2021?

“Foreign trade with Britain has collapsed,” said LBBW bank economist Jens-Oliver Niklasch.

Overall, German exports rose 1.4 percent month-on-month in seasonally adjusted figures, Destatis said.

But imports sank as coronavirus shutdowns sapped consumer demand in Europe’s top economy.

Imports slumped 4.7 percent, widening Germany’s closely-watched trade surplus to 22.2 billion euros.

Compared with a year ago, before the pandemic ravaged the global economy, exports fell 8.0 percent in January and imports almost 10 percent.

“Consumer demand fell sharply in January due to a lack of opportunities” as the government kept non-essential shops, leisure and cultural centres closed to rein in the coronavirus,  Niklasch.

But demand for “made in Germany” goods was powered by vital trade partner China, which has recovered faster from the virus shock.

Exports to European Union countries plunged six percent year-on-year, while demand for EU goods within Germany was down by almost the same.

Combined with Germany’s struggles to bring down Covid-19 infections despite months of shutdowns, “the January reading is not an indication of renewed German export strength, but rather an alarm bell for the first quarter.”

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