German trade surplus posts surprise jump in April

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FRANKFURT, June 9 (AFP): The German trade surplus shot up to 18.7 billion euros (29.5 billion dollars) in April, coming in well above analysts forecasts but against a backdrop of slowing economic activity, official data showed today.

The surplus surpassed the March figure of 17.5 billion euros, and an analysts poll by Dow Jones Newswires which had forecast 15.1 billion in April for the world's leading exporter, which like other Eurozone countries must deal with the euro's strength against other major currencies.

The biggest European economy also posted a current account surplus of 14.5 billion euros, down from 17.5 billion in March, according to figures from the national statistics service Destatis.