In 2021, China became Germany's most important trading partner for the sixth time in a row.
Goods worth 245.4 billion euros were traded between the two countries, 15.1 percent more than in the first Corona year 2020, as the Federal Statistical Office announced on Friday.
The Netherlands followed in second and third place with a turnover of 206.1 billion euros (an increase of 20.1 percent) and the USA with 194.1 billion euros (an increase of 13.4 percent).
In 2021, goods worth 141.7 billion euros were imported from China, more than from any other country and a good fifth more than in the previous year.
The Netherlands with 105.7 billion euros (plus 21.5 percent) and the USA with 72.1 billion euros (plus 6.5 percent) were in second and third place of the most important import countries.
"The value of goods imported from China was almost twice the value of imports from the United States," the statisticians said.
As has been the case since 2015, most German exports went to the United States.
Goods worth 122.1 billion euros were exported there, an increase of 18.0 percent.
China with 103.6 billion euros (plus 8.1 percent) and France with 102.3 billion euros (plus 12.6 percent) were in second and third place among the most important customer countries.
Fewer deals with Great Britain
Bucking the trend, trade in goods with Great Britain continued to fall after Brexit, which took effect on January 1, 2021: With foreign trade turnover of 97.4 billion euros, it was 4.6 percent lower.
Great Britain slipped from seventh to tenth place in the ranking of the most important trading partners.
"For the United Kingdom, this was the worst place in the ranking of German trading partners since foreign trade statistics began in 1950," it said.
Despite production problems as a result of supply bottlenecks for important components such as semiconductors, vehicles remained the biggest German export hit in 2021.
Motor vehicles and motor vehicle parts were exported to the value of 209.4 billion euros, 11.6 percent more than in 2020. Machines with a value of 194.4 billion euros (up 10.3 percent) followed in second and third place of the most important export goods ) and chemical products with 136.3 billion euros (plus 21.7 percent).
The biggest import hits were data processing equipment, electrical and optical products with a value of 127.7 billion euros (plus 9.9 percent), followed by motor vehicles and motor vehicle parts with a value of 113.8 billion euros (plus 1.1 percent) and chemical products with 93 .3 billion euros (plus 15.9 percent).