Latest data released by Destatis - 8 July 2019

  • Prior €17.9 billion
  • Current account balance €16.5 billion
  • Prior €22.6 billion
  • Exports +1.1% vs +0.9% m/m expected
  • Prior -3.7%; revised to -3.4%
  • Imports -0.5% vs +0.3% m/m expected
  • Prior -1.3%; revised to -0.9%

Slight delay in the release by the source. Exports rebounded after a big drop in the month of April but imports surprisingly failed to hold up, resulting in the larger-than-expected trade surplus for May.

The bounce in exports is a welcome sign but the optimism will be short-lived until it can be sustained and the fall in domestic demand takes away some of the more positive items seen in the other figures.