Germany posted a record trade surplus of €22.2 billion in July, suggesting Europe's largest economy could bounce back strongly in the third quarter after a surprise contraction in the second.
Seasonally-adjusted data from the Federal Statistics Office showed exports surged 4.7% to €98.2 billion.
This was the most goods and services Germany has ever sent abroad in a single month.
It was the sharpest rise in exports since May 2012, easily outstripping expectations for a modest 0.5% increase.
Coming on the heels of July data showing industrial output and orders jumping, the trade figures suggest the German economy will be able to skirt a technical recession in the third quarter after shrinking by 0.2% in the three months from April to June.
"It looks like demand from the US and UK is more than offsetting any weakness from German exports to Russia so these fears that German exports would go down the drain were clearly exaggerated," analysts said.
They added that they expect the German economy to grow by around 0.3% in the third quarter.
The German economy shrank by 0.2% in the second quarter due to slow trade and weak investment, leading some economists to warn of a risk that Germany will fall into a technical recession in the third quarter.
Exports - the traditional backbone of Germany's economy - struggled last year and fell in three of the first seven months this year, weighing on overall growth.
Exports to Russia plunged by 15.5% in the first half of 2014 amid a standoff between the West and Moscow over Ukraine.
A breakdown of unadjusted data showed exports to the euro zone climbed by 6.2% in July compared to the same time last year, while exports to countries outside of Europe were up 7.2%.
Imports fell by 1.8% - the consensus forecast had been for them to fall by 0.1%.
