German exporters expect 2.7% fall in sales in 2025

About 80% of businesses in foreign trade expect a further decline in sales this year, Germany's BGA trade association said on Tuesday, forecasting a 2.7% decline in turnover compared with 2024.

"The outlook for 2025 is bleak," said BGA president Dirk Jandura. "Small and medium enterprises have lost their trust in politics."

Orders are dropping, investment is declining and insolvencies are increasing, he noted.

"Without a turnaround in economic policy, without a clear policy change from Feb. 23, we will no longer be able to shoulder these challenges for long," Jandura said.

Germany will hold elections on Feb. 23, and how to revive anaemic growth in Europe's biggest economy is one of the main topics in the election campaign.

Jandura called for investment in infrastructure, business-friendly conditions, cuts in red tape, and lower energy and labour costs.

PESSIMISTIC WHOLESALE TRADERS

Two-thirds of wholesalers recorded declining sales in the second half of 2024 and for 2025, 40% expect a further decline in sales, according to a BGA survey.

The exporters' association forecasts stagnation in 2025 in wholesale trade in real terms and a 0.5% decline year-on-year in nominal terms

"The economic engine of foreign trade is not just stuttering anymore, it has noticeably failed," Jandura said.

(Reporting by Maria Martinez; Editing by Miranda Murray)