German industry before the challenge: China overtakes in export!

German industry before the challenge: China overtakes in export!

A hotly discussed topic in the domestic economy is the gradual decline in the competitiveness of German industry, especially in the context of global rivalry with China. As the Nordbayerischer Kurier that German exports in 2024 dropped by 1.7 % to around 1.65 trillion euros. In comparison, Chinese exports have growth of 7.1 % and exceeded the 3 trillion euro mark. The situation is worrying: it is the eighth year in a row that China grows in the export area, while Germany had to accept a decline in 2023.

Especially in the automotive industry it looks bleak. Volkswagen, once a giant, reduced its deliveries from 10.1 million cars to only 8.6 million in 2024 in 2018. This slump is largely attributed to failure in the Chinese market. Chinese e-car manufacturers have made impressive progress in recent years and are now facing German manufacturers.

market conditions and challenges

The challenge for German industry is reinforced by a number of factors. High energy prices, especially after the Russian attack war against Ukraine, increase many companies. In addition, the German economy has to fight with an aggressive subsidy environment and a global race for key technologies, such as chips. Current technology and industrial policy shows approaches to improvements, but the implementation often remains inconsistent and complex, as is the German Society for Foreign Policy

in a country like Germany, which is considered one of the most globalized economies, fragile supply chains and geopolitical tensions are also a challenge. In the digital world in particular, Germany has difficulty creating value in rapidly growing markets such as cloud and edge infrastructures. Studies indicate that access to digital top technologies will be decisive for the country's competitiveness.

the view of the future

Last year Germany exported worth 1,562 billion euros, with about half of the export to four product groups: motor vehicles and power car parts (17.2 %), machines (14.3 %), chemical products (9.0 %) and data processing devices, electronic and optical products (8.6 %). Despite these figures, China holds the position as the most important trading partner for Germany, followed by the USA and other European countries, which further underlines the country's dependence on international markets. The Federal Center for Political Education shows that export to the USA and China remains in particular for the German economy.