Chongqing - In a recent interview with Bridging News, Kang Zhuang, Director of the Finance Institute at the Chongqing Academy of Social Sciences, remarked that the economic and trade exchanges between China and Germany are crucial to the world economy.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz embarked on a three-day visit to Chongqing on April 14, marking the beginning of his tour in China. Accompanied by cabinet ministers from the environmental, agricultural, and transportation sectors, as well as top executives from leading companies such as Siemens, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW, Scholz's visit underscores the deepening ties between Germany and China.

Kang emphasized that the presence of political and business leaders in Scholz's delegation underscores the strategic significance of Sino-German relations. This visit aims to enhance joint efforts in addressing global challenges and promoting concrete economic partnerships.

Logistics and advanced manufacturing expand economic ties

Kang credits Scholz's choice to begin his China visit in Chongqing to the city's strong manufacturing capabilities. Chongqing is actively pursuing digital transformation, boosting its scientific and technological research capabilities, and fostering an environment conducive to research and development.

Chongqing is focused on developing new, high-quality, productive forces, especially in modern manufacturing areas, such as new energy vehicles and intelligent, connected vehicles. Kang noted that Chongqing is entering a new stage of development in nationally advanced manufacturing, exerting a considerable impact on the global industrial scene.

Furthermore, Kang emphasized the significance of the China Railway Express (Yuxinou), a trailblazing freight train route connecting Chongqing with Duisburg, Germany. Kang believed this connection has matured, offering well-established trade and logistics frameworks and robust, large-scale logistics capabilities.

"The China Railway Express has laid a solid foundation for broadening practical economic interactions between China and Germany," he added, highlighting its role in fostering stable and expanded commerce between the two nations. 

Kang noticed that the business leaders accompanying Chancellor Scholz primarily represent industries in equipment manufacturing, automotive, chemical, and pharmaceutical sectors.

"These industries align closely with Chongqing's advanced manufacturing clusters," he explained. "Chancellor Scholz's visit is geared towards exploring potential and existing collaborations with Chongqing-based companies in these areas."

Acknowledged as a key modern manufacturing center and vital inland access point in China, Chongqing presents abundant and enduring collaboration prospects across various industries and supply chains with Germany, which is celebrated for its resilient manufacturing sector.

Moreover, Germany is globally acclaimed for its longstanding expertise, advanced technology, and influential market presence in the biofuel-powered vehicles sector.

Kang sees significant potential for Germany and Chongqing to strengthen collaboration, especially in the automotive sector. This may involve jointly establishing cutting-edge industrial standards and accelerating technological progress in intelligent sensing, machine recognition, embedded software, and remote data processing.

(Ma Manlin, as an intern, also contributed to this report.)