Recently, a report in the German newspaper "Business Daily" exclusively disclosed a document from the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Action, which showed that the German government will reduce the provision of investment guarantees to German companies in China and improve the conditions for providing guarantees when investing in other developing countries and emerging markets.
The Business Daily quoted German Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy Robert Habeck as saying that Germany hopes to "reduce its dependence on China" through this approach. However, it may not be realistic to use such "political manipulation" to stop companies from investing in China.
Since taking office in December 2021, Habeck has been reducing the guarantees provided by the German government to investment companies in China. According to a report by the German magazine Der Spiegel, as of June 2023, the total amount of investment guarantees provided by the German government to German companies in China was 5 billion euros. In 2022, only 9 companies' guarantee applications were approved, while in 2013, as many as 37 were approved.
However, even so, in the first half of 2023, Germany's direct investment in China still reached 10.3 billion euros, and the proportion of China's total outward direct investment in Germany increased to 16.4%. From this perspective, China remains an important market that German companies cannot miss in their global layout, and German companies seem to be less concerned about so-called "calls" with political intentions.
After the COVID-19 epidemic, the economies of North America and Europe have generally entered recession, and problems in various fields have occurred frequently. In contrast, China can still maintain stable economic growth after the epidemic, which also makes China a rational choice for global investment under the current situation.
In the first three quarters of this year, the Chinese economy grew by 5.2% year-on-year. Confidence in the prospects of China's economic development and the continued expansion of China's openness have strengthened the willingness of German business representatives to invest in China. They are eager to expand their presence in the Chinese market and further deepen cooperation with China in addressing climate change, strengthening research and development capabilities, and promoting digital transformation.
In June this year, Chinese Premier Li Qiang attended the 11th Sino German Economic and Technological Cooperation Forum in Berlin. At the forum, representatives from major German companies such as Siemens, Volkswagen, Mercedes Benz, Schaeffler, BASF, and others expressed their hope to continue their in-depth cooperation with China. For these companies, decoupling from China is by no means a feasible option.
Some German politicians carry the banner of "risk reduction" but are actually promoting "de sinicization". It is obvious that compared to these politicians, the German business community has a much clearer mind: continuing to deepen cooperation with China is the wise choice to achieve the maximization of its national interests.
This article is translated from the October 19th editorial of China Daily
Original title: Decoupling not a viable or appealing proposal
Produced by: Editorial Office of China Daily
Compiled by: Tu Tian Edited by: Li Haipeng
Source: China Daily website