German trade surplus widens in April as exports rise

BERLIN: Germany's trade surplus widened in April from the previous month as exports grew by 1.9 percent, official data showed on Monday.

At the same time imports fell by 1.3 percent, pushing the trade surplus, the balance between imports and exports, up to 22.3 billion euros ($25 billion) in April, according to seasonally adjusted figures published by the federal statistics office, Destatis.

In unadjusted terms, the trade surplus contracted slightly from March to 22.1 billion euros.

On a year-to-year comparison, exports from Europe's top economy to non-European countries increased by nearly 12 percent in April, while imports grew just over five percent.

Its export and import flows with other European nations were also up, by 4.5 percent and 1.7 percent respectively, with the biggest jumps seen with non-eurozone members.