Merz calls for rebalancing of Germany’s ‘unhealthy’ trade ties with China – POLITICO

In advance of Merz’s trip, some German business leaders called on the chancellor to take a harder line on Chinese industrial policies that lead to price advantages for its companies — including subsidies, deliberate dumping and an undervalued currency.

Merz seemed to respond to that pressure, calling on China to level the playing field. “Competition between companies must be fair,” he said. “We need transparency, we need reliability, and we also need compliance with jointly established rules.”

The chancellor also said he aimed to shrink a trade deficit that has quadrupled since 2020.

“This dynamic is unhealthy,” Merz said. “We are therefore addressing it and want to find ways to reduce this trade deficit.”

At the same time, Merz hailed “the potential that still exists” in relations with China, saying that Chinese leaders had agreed to order up to 120 aircraft from Airbus. Merz is traveling with a delegation of some 30 executives and said other business deals are in the pipeline.

Although China’s importance to Germany as an export market has declined in relative terms in recent years, it remained the sixth-largest destination for German exports in 2025.

Merz said he also asked Chinese leaders to “use their influence” to end Russia’s aggression in Ukraine, including by halting the export of dual-use goods that the Kremlin could use to wage war.

“We also know that signals from China are taken very seriously in Moscow,” Merz said. “This applies to words as well as deeds.”