The EU is New Zealand`s second largest trading partner. In 2019, the volume of trade amounted to more than 9 billion euros. Agricultural products account for the largest share of New Zealand`s exports to the EU, while the EU mainly exports finished and industrial products to New Zealand. In 2019, Germany`s trade surplus with New Zealand amounted to 2.7 billion euros and EU companies accounted for more than 10 billion euros of foreign direct investment in New Zealand. In addition, increased trade makes production more economical through specialization and economies of scale: the production not only of certain products of a given type, but also of larger quantities for a global clientele reduces the share of fixed costs in the total cost. Because the manufacturer can standardize and prefabricate parts and automate work processes, costs decrease, while quality remains high. In 2019, bilateral trade between Germany and Vietnam amounted to about 14 billion euros. The stock of German direct investment in Vietnam amounted to about 840 million euros in 2017. More than 300 German companies are currently active in the Vietnamese market. The EU is one of the United States` main trading partners. Similarly, the United States is Germany`s largest export market outside Europe, as well as the market in which German companies invest the most.

Negotiations on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) between the EU and the US have been suspended since Donald Trump took office in early 2017 and are not continuing. On 25 July 2018, the European Commission agreed with the US government on a trade programme to address issues of common interest. The agreed cooperation covers several areas. These include reciprocal liberalisation of trade in industrial products, with the exception of vehicles. Both sides are also considering measures to facilitate trade in a number of specific sectors (services, chemicals, medicines, health products, soybeans). In addition, the European Commission and the US government have agreed on closer cooperation on standardization and strategic cooperation in the energy sector.