Press release No. 110 of 15 March 2022

• Imports up 57.8% on January 2021 and exports up 30.7%
• Imports of crude oil and natural gas rose 54.2%

WIESBADEN – German trade with the Russian Federation increased in January 2022 compared with January 2021. The Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) reports that German exports to Russia increased by 30.7% to 2.1 billion euros compared with the same month in the preceding year. Imports grew by 57.8% to 4.0 billion euros. At the same time, foreign trade prices rose markedly. As a result of the increase in crude oil and natural gas prices, Germany recorded an excess of imports over exports in trade with Russia (1.8 billion euros) in January 2022. In January 2021, the excess of imports amounted to 0.9 billion euros.

Major trading goods in trade with Russia

Major goods imported from Russia in January 2022 were crude oil and natural gas to the value of 2.6 billion euros (+54.2% on January 2021), followed by metals to the value of 452 million euros (+80.2%) and coal to the value of 330 million euros (+181.9%).

The value of imports from the Russian Federation thus accounted for 24.1% of the imports of crude oil and natural gas. Metal imports from Russia accounted for 6.7%, and coal imports for almost half (49.1%) of the total value of imports of the relevant goods.

Overall, imports from the Russian Federation accounted for 3.7% of total German imports in January 2022.

Exports from Germany to Russia in January 2022 focused on machinery (413 million euros; +22.3%), motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers (349 million euros; +21.0%) and chemical products (281 million euros; +32.1%). As a result, exports to Russia accounted for 2.0% of total German exports in January 2022.

Sanctions against Russia from the aspect of German foreign trade

Within the scope of sanctions imposed on the Russian Federation by the European Union (EU), bans on exports of goods and technologies suited for use in the aerospace sector were introduced in February 2022. In the aircraft sector, which is affected by direct sanctions, goods to the value of 895 million euros were exported from Germany to Russia in 2021. Last year, aircraft accounted for 3.4% of total German exports to the Russian Federation. This referred mainly to exports of fixed-wing aircraft with an unladen weight exceeding 15 tonnes, that is, larger passenger and cargo aircraft. In 2021, 12 aircraft of that category to the value of 809 million euros were exported to Russia. These transactions only referred to aircraft owned by Russia whose safety systems were retrofitted in Germany, for example, by installing new fire extinguishing systems.

Exports of goods which can be used for oil refining and are also affected by the direct sanctions accounted for 2.5% of German exports to Russia, or 672.6 million euros, in 2021.

In the coming months, German foreign trade figures will show in how far the sanctions, further measures to restrict exports, and unsanctioned behaviour of market participants have had an impact on German trade with the Russian Federation. First results on Germany’s exports to the Russian Federation and to other non-EU countries in February 2022 will be published by the Federal Statistical Office on 21 March 2022.

More information:

The product categories of foreign trade statistics which are affected by EU sanctions and contain goods that can be used for oil refining cannot be identified clearly in foreign trade statistics. Here we can only consider all exports falling under the respective commodity codes.

All detailed results on German foreign trade in reference month January 2022 are available in the GENESIS-online database (tables 51000).

Russia’s attack on Ukraine and the related sanctions have an impact on many parts of the economy and society. We have compiled data and information on the subject for you on a special webpage (only in German).