ZURICH, Sept 18 (Reuters) - Swiss goods exports to the

United States dropped by more than a fifth in August, the month

in which President Donald Trump imposed 39% tariffs on the

country, official data showed on Thursday.

When adjusted for seasonal swings, total Swiss exports were

down 1% compared to the previous month in nominal terms, and up

2.4% in real terms, according to the Swiss government.

Trump applied the tariffs on August 7, arguing they were

justified by the U.S. trade deficit with Switzerland. Certain

goods such as pharmaceutical products and gold were exempt.

The United States has been Switzerland's largest single

foreign market for goods, and Trump's tariffs caused shock and

dismay among the country's export-oriented companies.

Exports to the U.S. dipped in August by 22.1% to 3.1 billion

Swiss francs ($3.9 billion) from almost 4 billion francs in

July. The data exclude precious metals and stones, works of art

and antiques. The decline took exports to the U.S. to their

lowest level since the end of 2020, the government said.

The figures showed that an increase in exports to European

Union countries and Canada partially offset the U.S. drop. They

also showed that Germany in August moved past the United States

to become Switzerland's biggest export market.

($1 = 0.7881 Swiss francs)

(Writing by Dave Graham, editing by John Revill)