Germany's Trade Deficit with China Widens to EUR 55 Billion; China Slips to Ninth Export Market in 2026

In the first half of 2026, Germany's trade deficit with China widened further, even as China remained Germany's largest trading partner. Preliminary data released on August 9 showed German exports to China fell more than 12% year on year to just under EUR 37 billion in the January-June period. As a result, China became Germany's ninth-largest export market, down from second place in 2021, when German exports to China reached EUR 104 billion.

In contrast to the export decline, China's exports to Germany continued to grow. Germany's imports from China rose 8.9% to EUR 91.8 billion in the first half of 2026. Total bilateral trade exceeded EUR 128 billion, EUR 3 billion more than Germany's trade with the United States. In the first half of 2025, Germany's trade deficit with China stood at EUR 40 billion; in the same period of 2026, it expanded to about EUR 55 billion.

German manufacturing faces multiple pressures, including US tariffs and intensifying competition in the Chinese market, leading to significant job cuts at established companies such as Volkswagen. China's domestic economic performance and the strengthening of its local value chains are seen as underlying factors behind the decline in German exports to China.