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TRADE

Exports fall by 1.1 percent in May

German exports fell by 1.1 percent in May, but the country's trade surplus widened as imports fell even faster, official data showed on Tuesday.

Published: 8 July 2014 08:55 CEST
Exports fall by 1.1 percent in May
Photo: DPA

In seasonally adjusted terms, Germany exported goods worth a total of €92.8 billion in May, down 1.1 percent from the figure for April, the federal statistics office Destatis said in a statement.

Imports dropped by 3.4 percent to €74.1 billion – their fastest month-on-month fall since November 2012. 
   
That meant the seasonally adjusted trade surplus – the balance between imports and exports – increased to €18.8 billion in May from €17.2 billion in April.
   
Destatis reported on Monday that industrial production also fell by 1.8 percent in Germany in May – its biggest drop for two years. 

The statistics agency said May bank holidays and a poor performance by the construction sector were behind the fall. But it added that "geopolitical factors" may also have had an effect.

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TRADE

Norway and UK strike post-Brexit trade deal

Norway and the United Kingdom have struck an agreement on a free trade deal, the Norwegian government announced on Friday.

Published: 4 June 2021 13:51 CEST
Norway and UK strike post-Brexit trade deal
Erna Solberg outside 10 Downing Street in 2019. (Photo by LUDOVIC MARIN / POOL / AFP)

Negotiations over the agreement have been ongoing since last summer, and the Norwegian government said that the deal is the largest free trade agreement Norway has entered into, outside of the EEA agreement. 

“The agreement entails a continuation of all previous tariff preferences for seafood and improved market access for white fish, shrimp, and several other products,” the Ministry of Trade and Industry said in a statement.  

One of the sticking points of the negotiations was Norway wanting more access to sell seafood in the UK, while the UK wanted more access to sell agricultural products like cheese.

The latter was a problem due to Norway having import protection against agricultural goods. 

“This agreement secures Norwegian jobs and value creation and marks an important step forward in our relationship with the UK after Brexit. This is a long-term agreement, which at the same time helps to accelerate the Norwegian economy,” Prime Minister Erna Solberg said in a statement.  

 The United Kingdom is Norway’s second most important single market, after the EU. In 2020 Norwegian companies exported goods worth 135 billion kroner to the UK and imported around 42 billion kroner of goods from the UK. 

Norway has given Britain 26 quotas on agricultural products, but not for mutton and beef. The agreement does not increase the UK’s cheese quotas, state broadcaster NRK have reported. 

The agreement will still need to be signed by both the Norwegian and UK parliament. 

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