Germany remains the UK’s second largest trading partner despite weakening global demand for German industrial goods
Germany remains the UK’s second largest trading partner despite weakening global demand for German industrial goods, say leading audit, tax and business advisory firm, Blick Rothenberg.
Nils Schmidt-Soltau, a partner at the firm, said: “Data from the Department for Business and Trade shows that Germany remains a key trade partner for the UK, having been the UK’s second largest trading partner in the four quarters to Q4 2025, with total trade of £152.5bn.”
He added: “German exports to the UK fell by 9.5% month on month in April but were still up 8.1% in the year to date, suggesting recent weakness is likely temporary. For UK businesses, this reinforces the importance of German trade links. The top five goods exported from Germany to the UK included industrial products such as mechanical power generators and general industrial machinery.”
Nils said: “However, based on the latest figures published by the German Federal Statistical Office (Destatis), although Germany’s foreign trade overall remained broadly stable in April 2026, there are limited signs of an export‑led recovery and decreasing global demand for industrial goods.”
He added: “German exports rose by 0.9% month on month to €136.6bn, while imports increased more strongly, up 1.2% to €122.1bn. The resulting trade surplus of €14.5bn remains substantial, but is below the level recorded a year earlier, pointing to a gradual weakening of Germany’s traditional export‑driven growth model, where economic performance has historically been underpinned by strong global demand for German industrial goods.”
Nils said: “A notable feature of the current environment is the divergence in demand across regions. Exports to EU member states increased by 6.6% in the first four months of 2026, while exports to markets outside the EU declined by 3.3%. This indicates that Germany’s trade performance is increasingly supported by European demand rather than broader global demand.”
He added: “This is reinforced by weaker demand from major non‑EU trading partners. Exports to the United States and China, two of Germany’s largest external partners, have declined on a year‑to‑date basis, highlighting softer demand for German exports in key global markets.”
Nils said: “Destatis notes that the April 2026 figures are provisional and subject to revision, and that short‑term monthly movements should therefore be interpreted with caution.”