BERLIN (Reuters) - German exports to Iran roughly halved in the first 11 months of 2019 compared with the same period in the previous year due to U.S. sanctions, preliminary data from the Statistics Office showed on Friday.

Between January and November 2019 German shipments to Iran fell by 48.2% to around 1.3 billion euros ($1.44 billion), the data showed. Germany primarily delivers machines, chemical products, food and pharmaceutical products to Iran.

German imports from Iran dropped by 54.7% to around 191 million euros in the same period.

The United States withdrew from a 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers in 2018 and has since imposed tough new sanctions, driving down Iran’s oil exports and hammering its economy. Tensions have escalated since the U.S. killing of a top Iranian commander earlier this month and Iran’s retaliatory missile strikes.