Germany wants 'fair, open' auto competition, Chancellor Scholz says in China visit

ANKARA

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz arrived in Shanghai Monday on the second leg of a three-day visit to China, urging "fair and open" competition in the auto industry, local state media reported. -

Scholz, who had moved on to the commercial hub from the southwestern city of Chongqing together with three ministers and leading corporate representatives from his country, spoke with students at Tongji University and visited German company Covestro's Asia-Pacific Innovation Center, Beijing-based Xinhua News reported.

This was Scholz's second visit to China since taking office in late 2021. His last visit was in November 2022.

Talking to students at the university's Jiading Campus, Scholz called for an "open and fair" European market for Chinese cars but not at the cost of "dumping, overproduction and intellectual property infringements."

At some point, there will also be Chinese cars in Germany and Europe, he added, but the only thing that "must always be clear" is that competition must be fair.

"And that's why whenever I'm in China and I say 'level playing field,' of course we want our companies to have no restrictions," he maintained.

Without naming China, Scholz said small nations should not have to live in fear of bigger counterparts and that borders should not be changed by force.

Germany's economy has benefited from Chinese demand for investment and manufactured items from cars to chemicals, but growing rifts over issues including Chinese trade practices and support for Russia, have frayed commercial ties between the two global economies.

For the eighth consecutive year, China maintained its position as Germany's top trading partner in 2023, with a trade volume of $271 billion.

Beijing has refused to criticize Russia's war on Ukraine, which started more than two years ago, and has maintained trade relations with Moscow.