$246 billion in trade exchange .. Why Germany reduces its economic relations with China

Germany seeks to gradually reduce its dependence on China, but the consequences of this step are not easy.

  German Finance Minister Christian Lindner said: “Germany should gradually reduce its dependence on China because decoupling from the Chinese market will lead to job losses in Europe's largest economy”.

Reduce dependence on Asia

Germany is working on a new strategy towards China that looks at relations more realistically and aims to reduce dependence on the economic superpower in Asia, which has been the country's first trading partner since 2016.

Lindner was quoted as saying by "Welt am Sonntag" newspaper that "separating our economy from the Chinese market will not be in the interests of jobs in Germany."

Welt said that other world regions and markets should gradually become more important to German business in the coming years and decades.

"The political conditions must be improved for this," he added.

Germany's largest trading partner

China is Germany's largest trading partner for the past six years, with trade volumes reaching more than 245 billion euros ($246 billion) in 2021.

But the center-left government is taking a tougher line on Beijing than its center-right predecessor, concerned about Germany's dependence on Beijing.

Last September, German Economics Minister Robert Habeck said that the government was working on a new trade policy towards China

Germany is seeking to reduce dependence on Chinese raw materials, batteries and semiconductors, pledging that there will be "no more naivety" in business dealings with Beijing.