Germany increased exports of goods to Russia by 3.6% in September compared to August, according to the Federal Statistical Office of Germany (Destatis). At the same time, imports from Russia rose by 20.1%.
On a year-on-year basis, September exports to Russia rose 5.6%, but imports from Russia fell 34.4%. Overall, between January and September, German exports from Germany to Russia decreased by 18.5% year-on-year, while imports decreased by 53.6%.
Total seasonally adjusted German exports fell 1.7% in September to €128.2 billion, the first decline since June. By contrast, imports rose 2.1% to €111.3 billion.
Exports to the European Union in September were down 1.8% from August, while shipments to non-EU countries fell 1.6%. Exports to the US increased by 4.8%, exports to China decreased by 3.7% and exports to the UK decreased by 4.9%. Imports from the EU increased by 1.6% and imports from outside the EU increased by 2.6%. In particular, imports from China increased by 5.6%, from the US decreased by 0.3% and from the UK by 0.6%.
Germany’s foreign trade balance surplus narrowed to €17 billion in September from €21.4 billion in August.
Consumer prices in Germany, harmonized with EU standards, increased by 2.4% in annual terms in October 2024 after rising by 1.8% a month earlier, according to preliminary data from the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis). Compared to the previous month, consumer prices increased by 0.4%.
In September, a drop of 0.1% was recorded in monthly terms. Analysts on average had forecast a 2.1% rise in annual terms and a 0.2% rise in monthly terms.
Consumer prices, calculated according to German standards, increased by 2% in annual terms in October. They rose by 0.4% compared to September. Experts had expected a 1.8% rise in annual terms and a 0.2% rise in monthly terms.
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The German federal government has confirmed the increase in imports of Ukrainian grain in recent years and at the same time denied the negative impact on its market, the Bavarian trade publication Wochenblatt reported.
“Grain imports have been growing since 2022, when the Russian war against Ukraine began. Imports of feed and food grains from Ukraine to Germany reached its peak in recent years – about 741 thousand tons. In the first six months of 2024, the volumes approached 490 thousand tons,” the publication writes.
The largest share in imports is corn. In January-June 2024, Germany imported about 447 thsd tonnes of corn, while in 2023 it was 619 thsd tonnes. At the same time, in 2023, wheat imports reached almost 106 thousand tons, but from the beginning of 2024 to July 2024, only about 16.5 thousand tons were registered. Before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, wheat imports ranged from 6,000 to 2,000 tons.
The federal government also emphasized that it has no information about any deviations from the requirements and standards during inspections of Ukrainian grain by the official German Food and Feed Inspectorate. According to the Federal Government, food and feed imported into the EU from third countries, such as Ukraine, must comply with the requirements of the food and feed legislation in force in the EU.
This information is contained in the federal government’s response to questions from the parliamentary group Alternative for Germany.
Ukrainians will soon stop receiving civilian assistance (Bürgergeld), which is intended for unemployed German citizens and amounts to EUR 563 per month, and social benefits will be reoriented in general, German Finance Minister Christian Lindner said, according to Bild.
“We should consider a separate legal status for refugees from Ukraine, Ukrainians… should not… immediately receive civilian assistance, which is focused on providing a socio-economic subsistence level and participation in society even without work,” Lindner told Wirtschaftswoche.
According to the minister, Ukrainians should receive the same benefits as other refugees. Currently, they amount to EUR 460, which is less than the Bürgergeld. According to Lindner, Ukrainians will still not have to go through the asylum procedure, but they will not automatically receive civilian assistance.
Currently, there are about 1.2 million Ukrainians in Germany. According to Bild, 65% of them receive Bürgergeld, and this share is much higher than among immigrants from other countries.
During a meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz last week, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski also proposed changing the mechanism of social payments to Ukrainian refugees. In an interview with TVP Info following the visit, he said that he proposed to direct the social benefits that Ukrainian refugees currently receive in Germany directly to support Ukraine.
“It’s not good that there is a financial incentive to be in Germany instead of men fighting at the front and women restoring the tax base,” said Sikorsky, who said that payments in Germany can reach EUR 1200 per month.
In January-September 2024, Ukraine exported 64.913 thousand tons of honey for $124.817 million, which is 1.7 times and 44.3% more than in the same period of 2023, respectively.
According to statistics released by the State Customs Service (SCS), Germany became the largest buyer of Ukrainian honey, purchasing 22.13% of total exports worth $27.627 million in January-September 2024.
The United States and France accounted for 16.1% and 11.7% of supplies, for which these countries paid $20.139 million and $14.63 million, respectively.
A year earlier, the top three buyers of Ukrainian honey were Germany with a share of 24.9%, Poland and France with 16.0% and 7.32%, respectively. Ukraine earned $21.5 million, $13.88 million, and $6.332 million from the sale of honey to them, respectively.
In January-September 2024, Ukraine increased honey imports by 36.1% to 200 tons, for which it paid $105 thousand. Its suppliers were Poland and Bosnia and Herzegovina, which supplied 75 tons (37.5%) each, as well as Romania, which accounted for 22% of supplies with 44 tons.
A year earlier, Ukraine imported 122 tons of honey exclusively from Poland.
As reported, Ukraine has been among the world’s top five honey exporters for several years. In 2023, Ukraine ranked fourth among the traditional world leaders in honey exports with 55.4 thousand tons. In this ranking, it is ahead of China with 152.6 thousand tons, India with 98.7 thousand tons, Argentina with 68.9 thousand tons, and Brazil with 28.5 thousand tons of honey.
The German government intends to allocate 400 million euros for the purchase of weapons for Ukraine, Stern magazine reported on Thursday.
“The federal government wants to allocate an additional 400 million euros for military support to Ukraine as soon as possible. This follows from a letter from the Ministry of Finance to the Bundestag Budget Committee, which was obtained by the State Tax Administration,” the publication informs.
The money is to be used to purchase air defense systems, drones and protective equipment for the Ukrainian military.
At the same time, according to Stern, State Secretary of the German Ministry of Finance Florian Tonkar warned that “without a significant increase in material support, Ukraine will be defeated.”
The magazine reminds that the German government plans to allocate 1.42 billion euros for military support to Ukraine by the end of 2024. This is 397 million euros more than budgeted, so the Bundestag’s consent is required for additional spending.
