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News from 2020-04-14 / KfW Research

KfW Internationalisation Report 2020

German SMEs' foreign trade – economic impact of coronavirus crisis eclipses concern over trade conflicts

The coronavirus crisis has hit the export-oriented German economy in what was already a difficult situation. Growing tensions in international trade relations and a worsening global economy also affected SMEs, whose international turnover grew by a mere 3.1% in 2018 to EUR 595 billion, down from 5.5% in 2017. The KfW ifo Export Expectations of the German SME sector were persistently negative in 2019, before crashing through the floor in March 2020. The approx. 800,000 internationally active SMEs have been hit particularly hard by the consequences of the coronavirus crisis in Europe, where their most important sales and procurement markets are located. Even though the trade conflict between the EU and the US is being overshadowed by the coronavirus crisis, one in three SMEs are worried about a possible escalation.

KfW Internationalisation Report 2020

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Economic development in Germany and around the world, studies on topics relevant to society such as environmental and climate protection, demography, globalisation, innovation and sustainability, impact of KfW promotional programmes.

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