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To: smolejv@gmx.net who wrote (186836)	8/9/2002 6:03:25 AM
From: Haim R. Branisteanu	Respond to of 436258

UPDATE 1-German June trade surplus up, domestic demand weak August 09, 2002 02:48 AM ET Email this article Printer friendly version (Adds analyst comment, detail) FRANKFURT, Aug 9 (Reuters) - Germany's trade surplus widened in June as exports jumped but a rise in imports did not signal a substantial strengthening of domestic demand. The Federal Statistics Office data on Friday showed exports lifting the trade surplus in Europe's largest economy to 10.9 billion euros in June from 9.7 billion euros in May. The June rise was above the consensus expectation for a 9.9 billion euro trade surplus in a Reuters poll of analysts. But Stefan Bielmeier, an economist at Deutsche Bank, said the details were less rosy than the headline figure suggested. "The picture is that imports are weak, certainly weaker than exports, which means that domestic demand is currently very weak while foreign demand is quite stable," he said. The Office said imports rose to 45.8 billion euros from a revised 40.5 billion euros in May and were down 0.3 percent on the year. Exports rose to 56.7 billion euros in June from 50.2 billion euros in May and were up 6.0 percent on the year. Bielmeier said net exports have risen recently but the gain was outweighed by a run-down in inventories, offsetting any positive effect on GDP growth. On a seasonally and calendar-adjusted basis, June exports were 6.8 percent higher on the month and imports 10.0 percent above their May levels. The current account surplus fell slightly to 3.7 billion euros in June from 3.9 billion euros in May, revised down from 4.3 billion. The current account measures not only goods and services trade with other nations, but also elements like remittances and debt servicing costs, making it a country's broadest measure of international financial transactions. The data showed Germany's exports to euro zone countries were up 6.9 percent from June 2001, while imports from those countries rose just 0.4 percent. Germany's exports to countries outside the European Union rose 4.9 percent year-on-year, while imports fell 2.7 percent. For the year to date, Germany has exported 318.6 billion euros in goods, which is a decline of 0.5 percent from the January-June period last year. Exports totalled 256.8 billion euros, for a decline of 7.2 percent from the year-ago period.