German chancellor lands in Beijing for inaugural China trip
Baku, February 25, AZERTAC
Germany's chancellor has touched down in China as German businesses sound the alarm about a yawning trade imbalance, according to BBC.
Imports into Germany from China were more than double the value of those exported back last year – according to federal statistics.
"We want a partnership with China that is balanced, reliable, regulated and fair," said Friedrich Merz, before leaving for Beijing.
Merz is also expected to press China to use its influence with Moscow to help end the war in Ukraine. However, the huge trade gap looms large over these talks as the chancellor takes along a sizeable business delegation.
China once again took the top spot as Germany's biggest trade partner in 2025, supplanting the US.
Behind that headline is a stark and worrying imbalance for Germany, the EU's largest economy.
In 2025, goods worth €170.6 billion (£148.8bn; $200.9bn) came from China into Germany - an 8.8% annual increase - while German exports to China fell by 9.7% to €81.3 billion.
The trade relationship with China "is eroding the core of German industry, especially in the car, machinery and chemicals sectors," warns Jürgen Matthes at the German Economic Institute (IW).
Matthes, the IW's head of International Economic Policy, believes distortions are chiefly down to "massive" Chinese subsidies and currency under-valuation.
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