German Imports Rise in January

German imports rebounded strongly in January, suggesting that domestic demand in the country may be set to recover after an autumn downturn.

Imports rose by a seasonally adjusted 3.3% from the month before, helping to shrink Germany’s trade surplus.

Exports also rose, by 1.4%, driven by robust demand in the US and China.

Germany’s economy shrank 0.6% in the last three months of 2012, thanks to recession in its main eurozone export markets and tepid domestic confidence.

However, the Ifo survey of business confidence has pointed to a strong rebound in expectations for growth since the beginning of the year, although the January trade data is the first solid indication that economic activity in Germany is picking up again.

Other data for manufacturing orders and industrial output released last week suggested that the German economy remained stagnant in the New Year.

via BBC

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Alfonso Esparza

Alfonso Esparza

Senior Currency Analyst at Market Pulse
Alfonso Esparza specializes in macro forex strategies for North American and major currency pairs. Upon joining OANDA in 2007, Alfonso Esparza established the MarketPulseFX blog and he has since written extensively about central banks and global economic and political trends. Alfonso has also worked as a professional currency trader focused on North America and emerging markets. He has been published by The MarketWatch, Reuters, the Wall Street Journal and The Globe and Mail, and he also appears regularly as a guest commentator on networks including Bloomberg and BNN. He holds a finance degree from the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education (ITESM) and an MBA with a specialization on financial engineering and marketing from the University of Toronto.
Alfonso Esparza