Exports of Germany's electrical industry in October fell by 5.4 percent year-on-year to 18.2 billion euros (22.1 billion U.S. dollars), the German Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers' Association (ZVEI) announced on Monday. "The latest drop in deliveries was more severe than in September," when exports of Germany's electrical industry decreased only by 0.9 percent year-on-year, said ZVEI chief economist Andreas Gontermann in a statement. In Greater Europe, exports of Germany's electrical industry to Turkey and Poland were the only ones to increase in October, while exports to the Czech Republic, the United Kingdom and Russia dropped most sharply, according to ZVEI. October's exports to China's mainland, the most important export market for the German electrical industry, declined slightly by 0.3 percent to 2 billion euros, ZVEI data showed.
Although the business development with regards to China was also fluctuating, sales of the German electrical industry to China were the "driving force behind the recovery in exports," said Gontermann. In the first 10 months of 2020, exports of Germany's electrical industry to China rose by 4.9 percent year-on-year to 19 billion euros, according to ZVEI. The only other country that recorded a year-on-year increase in deliveries from Germany during this time was Poland, with exports of electrical products rising 2.3 percent to 8.5 billion euros. In 2019, China had been the biggest export country for the German electrical industry, as goods worth 21.9 billion euros had been exported to China, according to ZVEI.