Current account balance in Germany
Germany: Current account balance was 4.5% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Current account balance in Germany, 1971–2025
Source: Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Germany recorded 4.5% for current account balance in 2025.
That represents a change of down 23.5% on the previous year and down 44.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, current account balance in Germany peaked at 8.9% in 2016 and was at its lowest, -1.8%, in 2000.
Germany ranks 44th of 199 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Current account balance in Germany, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 0.0% | — |
| 1972 | 0.1% | +165.8% |
| 1973 | 1.0% | +826.1% |
| 1974 | 2.0% | +94.4% |
| 1975 | 0.6% | -69.1% |
| 1976 | 0.7% | +14.2% |
| 1977 | 0.6% | -9.8% |
| 1978 | 1.2% | +92.7% |
| 1979 | -0.6% | -148.8% |
| 1980 | -1.6% | +169.5% |
| 1981 | -0.7% | -59.8% |
| 1982 | 0.7% | -207.1% |
| 1983 | 0.6% | -20.5% |
| 1984 | 1.3% | +125.3% |
| 1985 | 2.4% | +93.3% |
| 1986 | 3.7% | +50.4% |
| 1987 | 3.4% | -7.8% |
| 1988 | 3.8% | +13.1% |
| 1989 | 4.1% | +5.9% |
| 1990 | 2.6% | -35.7% |
| 1999 | -1.4% | -154.6% |
| 2000 | -1.8% | +23.8% |
| 2001 | -0.4% | -74.7% |
| 2002 | 1.7% | -483.0% |
| 2003 | 1.3% | -26.6% |
| 2004 | 4.3% | +239.1% |
| 2005 | 4.4% | +3.1% |
| 2006 | 5.5% | +25.6% |
| 2007 | 6.5% | +17.9% |
| 2008 | 5.4% | -17.0% |
| 2009 | 5.7% | +4.7% |
| 2010 | 5.6% | -1.3% |
| 2011 | 6.1% | +9.0% |
| 2012 | 7.0% | +15.2% |
| 2013 | 6.6% | -6.6% |
| 2014 | 7.2% | +9.7% |
| 2015 | 8.1% | +12.5% |
| 2016 | 8.9% | +10.0% |
| 2017 | 8.1% | -9.3% |
| 2018 | 8.4% | +4.4% |
| 2019 | 7.9% | -6.7% |
| 2020 | 6.3% | -19.4% |
| 2021 | 6.9% | +9.0% |
| 2022 | 4.1% | -40.6% |
| 2023 | 5.5% | +33.8% |
| 2024 | 5.9% | +7.1% |
| 2025 | 4.5% | -23.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 0.7% | -0.6% | 2.0% | 9 |
| 1980s | 1.8% | -1.6% | 4.1% | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.6% | -1.4% | 2.6% | 2 |
| 2000s | 3.3% | -1.8% | 6.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 7.4% | 5.6% | 8.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.5% | 4.1% | 6.9% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Germany
More economy & growth data for Germany
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 0.7761 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 0.6565 Percent per annum (2029)
- Services, value added (current US$), annual growth rate 8.49 % change on previous year (2025)
- Services, value added (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.6446 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Services, value added (current US$), per capita 38,996 current US$ per person (2025)
- Services, value added (current LCU), annual growth rate 3.92 % change on previous year (2025)
- Services, value added (current LCU), per unit of GDP 0.5704 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Services, value added (current LCU), per capita 34,510 current LCU per person (2025)
- Services, value added (constant 2015 US$), annual growth rate 0.4868 % change on previous year (2025)
- Services, value added (constant 2015 US$), per unit of GDP 0.4802 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is current account balance in Germany?
- Current account balance in Germany was 4.5% in 2025, according to Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest current account balance recorded in Germany?
- The highest recorded value was 8.9% in 2016.
- What is the lowest current account balance recorded in Germany?
- The lowest recorded value was -1.8% in 2000.
- How does Germany rank for current account balance?
- Germany ranks 44th out of 199 countries with data for 2025.
- Is current account balance rising or falling in Germany?
- Over the last ten years it is down 44.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Germany data come from?
- The figures come from Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Current account balance (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Balance of current transactions (transactions in goods and services, earned income and transfer income) between residents and non-residents. The term current account balance is used in the external accounts and is expressed from the perspective of resident units. The term current external balance is used in the national accounts and is expressed from the perspective of the non-resident units, and therefore with the opposite sign. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which is the total income earned through the production of goods and services in an economic territory during an accounting period.