German trade surplus grows again

Experts are unsure how exports will hold up in coming months

Germany's trade surplus grew again in July, despite a dip in exports, the Federal Statistics Office said.

The mild decrease still left exports close to historic highs. By contrast, imports declined a sharp 2.4%.

As a result, the trade surplus went up to 16.5bn euros ($22.5bn; £11.2bn) from 15bn euros in June.

Looking ahead, analysts said that while foreign growth was supporting trade, recent market turmoil made it difficult to predict future developments.

Uncertainty

"It is hard to know what the coming months will look like, because we still do not know what effect the turbulence in the financial markets will have," said DZ Bank analyst Bernd Weidensteiner.

"We will see growth in the third quarter of 2007, but also possibly a decline later on. We hope that the domestic economy will be able to even things out if there is a decline."

Recent data has raised concerns about economic developments in the months ahead.

Late last month, German confidence fell more than expected, as a result of global market worries sparked by mounting concerns over US credit worries.

Meanwhile, manufacturing orders in July experienced their biggest monthly decline since Germany's unification in 1990.