BERLIN, Oct. 9 (Xinhua) -- Germany's exports to the United States took another hit in August, falling for the fifth consecutive month as U.S. tariffs on cars and other goods piled pressure on Europe's largest exporter, official data showed Thursday.
Shipments to the United States dropped 2.5 percent from July and were down 20.1 percent year-on-year at 10.9 billion euros (12.7 billion U.S. dollars), the lowest level since November 2021, according to the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis).
"The outlook for Germany's foreign trade remains gloomy," said Dirk Jandura, president of the Federation of German Wholesale, Foreign Trade and Services, noting that overall trade had been stagnating with a slight downward trend for months.
Jandura said in a statement that while exports to China rose in August, the increase could only partly offset the tariff-driven slump in trade with the United States.
Destatis data showed exports to China climbed 5.4 percent month-on-month in August, but total exports still edged down 0.5 percent. The figures underlined how U.S. tariff hikes are hitting German exporters directly while also weighing on global demand, adding further strain to the export-driven economy.
Germany's Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, in its autumn projection released on Wednesday, also warned that after two years of contraction, the current recovery will be driven by domestic demand rather than foreign trade, marking a departure from the country's typical rebound pattern.
The ministry expects the economy to grow by 0.2 percent this year and 1.3 percent in 2026, but cautioned that the anticipated recovery faces potential risks from the U.S. unpredictable trade and security policies.
The United States is Germany's biggest export market, with cars and car parts accounting for a major share of its trade surplus with Washington.
Early this year, the U.S. administration announced steep tariff hikes on automobiles, car components and other products from the European Union. The measures took effect gradually from April, triggering a steady fall in German shipments to the United States.
Data from Destatis showed that in the first seven months of the year, German exports to the United States fell 5.3 percent from a year earlier. While in April and May alone, 23.5 percent fewer German cars were shipped to the American market. (1 euro = 1.16 U.S. dollar) ■