For many German companies, China is one of the most important markets worldwide. Conversely, Germany is the rising Asian superpower’s biggest trading partner in Europe. Relations between the two countries with their very different economic systems are marked by the push-and-pull of partnership and competition.
China is pursuing the issue of standardization with ambition. A separate program has been announced for the end of this year: China Standards 2035, and initial conclusions can already be drawn about its direction. But what would be the consequences of another standardization system?
Milestone in the China Debate: BDI Presents Strategic Position Paper
In the past, the China-related work of the BDI has concentrated, first and foremost, on issues affecting German companies in China. In a strategic position paper published in January, the BDI shifts its focus to the long-term challenges that arise from the competition between economic systems.
The BDI office in Beijing opened in September 2016, thereby providing German industry with a representation in the Middle Kingdom. Since January 2019, Stefan Gätzner serves as head of the representative office. We asked him about the role that the office plays and the challenges it currently faces.
U.S.-Chinese Trade Conflict Spells Danger for German Industry
China is increasingly playing the role of defender of free world trade, albeit without having distinguished itself as a driving force for a liberal global trade regime. The confrontation between the US government and China poses various risks for German industry.
Chinese company takeovers in Germany are currently being hotly debated. As such, the responses from Berlin and Brussels are politically motivated. For its part, German industry rejects protectionist measures.
Strengthen the European Union to better compete with China
-
The European Union and Germany both face growing challenges posed by China and its state-led economy. Although China remains an important partner, it has at the same time become a systemic competitor, said BDI President Kempf on the occasion of the presentation of a new policy paper on China.
- The BDI expects a GDP increase of 2.25 percent in 2018. 2018 must be a year of action, BDI President Dieter Kempf said. A future federal government will have to spend money in areas where there are increasing opportunities for growth, where jobs can be secured and new ones created.
more
- German companies are unhappy about high market access barriers in China. Lower restrictions could appease critics in Europe, BDI President Dieter Kempf declared ahead of the Chinese Communist Party Congress.
more
