German trade surplus with US down in 2018, but still almost €49bn
Trump has frequently criticised the large trade surplus that Europe’s biggest economy has with the US and has threatened to put tariffs on German cars in return
Berlin — Germany’s trade surplus with the US, a frequent source of tension with US President Donald Trump, declined in 2018 but nonetheless remained at about €49bn, data seen by Reuters showed on Monday. Trump has frequently criticised the large trade surplus that Europe’s biggest economy has with the US and has threatened to put tariffs on German cars in return. But German Chancellor Angela Merkel has questioned Trump’s analysis, saying that trade surpluses are calculated in an old-fashioned way and that the US runs a large account surplus with Europe if services are included in the total. In June 2018, Merkel suggested that existing international trade accounting systems should be updated. Preliminary calculations from the Federal Statistics Office showed that German exports to the US rose 1.5% to a record high of €113.5bn in 2018. That meant the US remained the biggest buyer of “Made in Germany” goods — ahead of France, which purchased €105bn’s worth, and China, which bought €93b...
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