Weak global economy slows down business of German foreign traders with Central and Eastern Europe
The weak global economy is slowing down the business of German foreign traders with Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia. From January to September, the nominal exchange of goods with the 29 countries of the Committee on Eastern European Economic Relations fell by 5.4 percent year-on-year to just under 406 billion euros, as the Committee on Eastern European Economic Relations announced on Thursday. The decline in value was partly due to significantly lower export and especially import prices, said Committee Chairwoman Cathrina Claas-Mühlhäuser. "German trade with Eastern Europe is also feeling the effects of the global economic headwind."
In particular, business with the trade heavyweights Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary has recently weakened noticeably. The economic slowdown in these countries and in Germany is making itself felt here, it said. Exports to South Eastern Europe, Central Asia and the South Caucasus, where the economy is more robust, developed positively over the course of the year. "However, signs of a slowdown became clearer here too in September."
Meanwhile, Russia's ongoing war against Ukraine is increasingly changing the structure of foreign trade with the region. "Russia continues to lose ground, while other markets are catching up," said Claas-Mühlhäuser, Chairwoman of the Supervisory Board of the Westphalian agricultural machinery manufacturer Claas. In September, German trade in goods with Ukraine (840 million euros) was higher than with Russia (810 million euros) for the first time.
Falling prices for energy, raw materials and primary products as well as the loss of energy supplies from Russia had a particularly noticeable effect on imports from the region. Their value fell by a good 20 billion euros to 198 billion euros in the first three quarters - a drop of nine percent. In contrast, the value of German deliveries abroad only fell by two billion euros to 207 billion euros (-1.7 percent).
Source: www.ntv.de
