Germany's record trade surplus with the United States could exacerbate trade tensions

Germany's trade surplus with the United States hit a record high last year, official data showed, adding to U.S. President Donald Trump's frustration with the European Union and worsening trade tensions between the two countries. Trump has previously threatened to impose tariffs on the EU.

The United States regained its position as Germany's largest trading partner in 2024, displacing China, which had held the top spot since 2016, according to data released by Germany's Federal Statistics Office (Destatis) on Friday. It is reported that Germany has a trade surplus with the United States of 71.4 billion euros, and the American market absorbs more than 10% of German exports.

Germany accounts for a significant share of the EU's trade surplus with the US, an imbalance that has long been a source of discontent for Mr Trump. He threatened to soon impose tariffs on the EU, accusing it of being "unfair" to the US.

Since taking office, Trump has imposed new tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China, although he later reached an agreement with Canada and Mexico to suspend some of the tariffs.

Klaus-Juergen Gern, an economist at the German economic think tank IfW Kiel, said that if the United States imposes new tariffs, it could deal a heavy blow to the German economy, especially at a time when manufacturing is slowing and structural problems are becoming more prominent.

"If the tariffs only target certain European goods and involve major German export industries such as cars, pharmaceuticals and medical technology, the impact will be significant," he said.

According to the data, bilateral trade between Germany and Germany amounted to 255 billion euros in 2024, surpassing the total German-Chinese trade of 247 billion euros. In addition, Germany's global exports last year totaled nearly 1.6 trillion euros, down 1% year on year, imports decreased 2.8%, and the annual trade surplus reached 241.2 billion euros, reflecting the pressure of slowing economic growth.