German trade surplus contracts as exports fall

Germany's trade surplus contracted slightly in January, dragged down by falling exports, official data showed on Thursday. The trade surplus is a key gauge of an economy's comparative strength and in recent months has highlighted the robustness of Europe's biggest economy amid the current global economic uncertainties. German exports declined by 0.5 percent to 98.2 billion euros ($108 billion) in seasonally-adjusted terms in January, the federal statistics office calculated.