BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's DIHK Chambers of Industry and Commerce has lowered its outlook for German exports to Britain after the British decision to leave the European Union, the DIHK said on Thursday.
DIHK said it now sees a 1 percent drop in exports to the United Kingdom in 2016, down from its previous forecast of a 5 percent rise. In 2017, the Chambers of Industry and Commerce expects German exports to Britain to drop by 5 percent.
A poll among some 5,600 firms commissioned by the DIHK showed that 26 percent of respondents were planning to cut jobs in their British units.
Economists have warned that Britain's decision to leave the 28-member bloc is likely to hit German exports and reduce growth by as much as half a percentage point next year.
The International Monetary Fund is likely to lower its growth forecast for the German economy in the coming weeks as a result of Brexit, a senior IMF official said last week.
In 2015, German companies exported goods worth some 89 billion euros to Britain, making the UK their third-most important export destination. At the same time, Germany imported British goods worth some 38 billion euros, leaving a trade surplus of around 51 billion euros.
With a total trade volume of 127.5 billion euros, Britain is Germany's fifth-biggest trading partner behind the United States, France, the Netherlands and China. For the UK, Germany is the most important trade partner, ahead of the United States.