German exports post surprise fall

Berlin - German exports posted a surprise fall in December, bringing to an end four consecutive monthly gains, the Federal Statistics Office said Friday.

Monthly exports from Europe's biggest economy fell by 0.9% in December after gaining 0.7% in November. Analysts had expected a rise of 0.8%.

Imports also dropped unexpectedly in December, by 0.6%, after contracting by 2.3% in November, the data showed. Analysts had forecast a 1.2% increase.

This resulted in the calendar and seasonally adjusted trade surplus narrowing to $25.13bn in December. For the full year, exports slipped by 0.2%, while imports dropped by 1.2% compared with 2012.

This represented the first full-year fall in exports since the 2009 recession. Germany's trade balance widened year on year, the statistics office said.