China and its population of 1.3 billion has overtaken Germany (population 82 million) as the world's top exporter, trade figures released yesterday by the German national statistics office show.
From January to November, Chinese exports were worth $1.07 trillion, while German data showed that exports from Europe's biggest economy amounted to €734.6 billion, or $1.05 trillion.
The widely-expected crowning of a new export champion should be confirmed when Germany releases full-year 2009 trade figures on February 9.
Economic growth in both countries depend largely on exports, which critics claim contributes to overall global imbalances, urging Germans to consume more and Chinese authorities to let the yuan float freely against the dollar.
In November, the German trade surplus climbed to €17.2 billion, seasonally corrected figures from the Destatis service showed, from 13.6 billion in October amid a pick-up in global trade.
"The German product specialisation with a high share of capital goods and high presence in Asian markets, makes Germany one of the main beneficiaries of an investment-led global recovery," ING senior economist Carsten Brzeski said.
He noted that German exports to China had increased by almost 12 per cent from November 2008, and that the unadjusted German trade surplus of €17.4 billion was the country's biggest since June 2008.
Global trade was slammed in September of that year following the collapse of the US investment bank Lehman Brothers.
China, meanwhile, expects its share of global trade to exceed nine per cent in 2009, Vice Commerce Minister Zhong Shan said late last month, from 8.86 per cent in 2008.
Chinese exports include items such as electronic goods and clothing while those from Germany include automobiles, chemical products and specialised machine tools.
On December 30, China and southeast Asian nations established the world's biggest free trade area in terms of population, and one which rivals the European Union and North America Free Trade Area in terms of value.
Germany benefits greatly from EU trade, which accounted for 63 per cent of its exports in November, and provided €462 billion in revenues.
"It is good to know that the German economy can at least rely on a good old friend: its strong export sector," Mr Brzeski said.
Europe's biggest economy is slowly recovering from its worst recession since World War II, and its economy is estimated to have contracted by around five per cent in 2009.
The German central bank has forecast growth of 1.6 per cent this year.
China's economy likely grew by 8.5 per cent in 2009, senior official Zhang Xiaoqiang has said, and could expand by another 9.5 per cent this year.
Most experts say increased trade benefits everyone in the end, but efforts to boost global commerce remain deadlocked and the 2007-2008 economic slowdown has fuelled fears of increased protectionism.