* German exports resume slide, falling 4.8 percent
* Imports fall 5.8 percent in April, worst since Nov 2008
* Data tempers recovery hopes after solid orders data
(Adds economist quotes, car woes, trade breakdown by region)
By Noah Barkin
BERLIN, June 9 (Reuters) - German exports resumed their slide in April and imports fell even more sharply, tempering hopes that Europe's largest economy will soon recover from its deepest recession since World War Two.
Data from the Federal Statistics Office showed the trade surplus edged up slightly to 9.0 billion euros ($12.5 billion) in April on a seasonally adjusted basis.
But after rising in March for the first time in six months, exports fell sharply, dipping 4.8 percent month-on-month to 63 billion euros.
Imports tumbled at an even faster pace, declining 5.8 percent to 53.9 billion, their weakest performance since November 2008.
The figures suggest Germany, the world's biggest exporter of goods since 2003, will recover only slowly from a deep downturn which saw gross domestic product plunge by a record 3.8 percent in the first quarter of this year.
"This is a severe blow," said Andreas Scheuerle at Dekabank.
The euro fell about a third of a cent against the dollar after the data was released, before recovering to above $1.39.
Economists surveyed by Reuters had forecast the trade surplus would rise to 9.4 billion euros, with imports up 0.2 percent month-on-month and exports down 0.1 percent.
On an unadjusted basis exports slid by 28.7 percent in April to 63.8 billion euros, the worst drop-off since World War Two, while imports slumped by 22.9 percent to 54.4 billion.
Germany is highly dependent on trade and as a result has been hit harder by the global downturn than many other leading economies.
The drop-off in foreign demand has hit German carmakers like
Porsche
Last week, the Bundesbank forecast that GDP would shrink 6.2 percent this year, a contraction which would be nearly seven times as sharp as the country's previous post-war low.
Manufacturing orders data released on Monday raised hopes the battered industrial sector may have seen the worst of a severe downturn. Forward-looking indicators, such as the Ifo economic research institute's index of corporate sentiment, have pointed to improvement as well.
But the trade data suggests a recovery will take time.
"These figures show you cannot yet give the all clear," said Andreas Rees of Unicredit. "Early indicators are pointing upwards, but the hard numbers need a bit more time."
The unadjusted figures showed the hit to trade was broad-based, with German exports to euro zone countries falling 28.8 percent, those to EU countries outside the currency bloc dipping 32.2 percent and those to other countries falling 26.5 percent. (Additional reporting by Madeline Chambers in Berlin) (Writing by Noah Barkin, editing by Mike Peacock)