1.3
GERMANY
With a population of 83.2 million39 and a GDP per capita of $46,200,40 Germany has the fourth largest economy in the world. The western European behemoth was responsible for nearly one quarter of the entire EU’s GDP in 2020.41 Directly bordering nine European nations and housing the port of Hamburg, the world’s third largest seaport,42 Germany is strategically positioned for strong international activities. Like most countries around the world, the German economy was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, retracting by 5% over the course of 2020.43 Forecasts predict that the German economy will grow 3.3% in 2021 and 4.4% in 2022, reaching pre-pandemic levels sometime in 2022.44 Germany is the third largest exporter in the world,45 with international trade accounting for nearly 45% of the country’s GDP. Its 2019 import flows were nearly $1.2 trillion, with imports primarily coming from China, Netherlands, USA, France, and Poland.46 On the export side, Germany sent out over $1.5 trillion, primarily to the USA, France, China, Netherlands, and UK.47 German exports are dominated by a few key categories: motor vehicles, trailers, and semitrailers (18%); machinery and equipment (14%); chemicals and chemical products (9%); and computer, electronic, and optical products (9%).48
https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.POP.TOTL?locations=DE
39
https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.PCAP.CD?locations=DE
40
https://www.trade.gov/knowledge-product/germany-market-overview
41
https://www.hafen-hamburg.de/en/statistics/
42
https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2021/01/15/na011921-germanys-post-covid19-recovery-in-five-charts
43
https://www.oecd.org/economy/germany-economic-snapshot/
44
https://tradingeconomics.com/germany/exports
45
https://wits.worldbank.org/CountryProfile/en/Country/DEU/Year/2019/SummaryText
46
https://wits.worldbank.org/CountryProfile/en/Country/DEU/Year/2019/SummaryText
47
https://tradingeconomics.com/germany/exports
48
Is SME trade finance viable?
17
