FRANKFURT, Oct 9, 2008 (AFP) - Germany's trade surplus contracted in August as the pace of exports fell faster than that of imports, figures released on Thursday by the national statistics office showed.

The biggest European economy and the world's leading exporter posted a surplus of 10.6 billion euros (14.4 billion dollars), compared with 13.8 billion in July, the Destatis service said.

Exports declined by 13 percent while imports were 11 percent lower, it added.