【By Observer Net, Wang Yi】Some of the recent "odd moves" by the German government have even made business people in Germany unable to tolerate them. Markus Kamieth, CEO of German chemical giant BASF, recently told media that the German government has not yet shown positive signals towards China and should actively seek to establish a good working relationship with China.

Foreign media such as AFP reported that on November 12th local time, Kamieth said in an interview in Berlin, "If you want to maintain growth in the chemical industry, you must develop in China".

He emphasized that China is not only "the largest chemical market in the world", but also "the most powerful manufacturing country in the world", "as long as China grows, the market will grow". Kamieth was previously a board member of BASF responsible for Chinese business.

According to reports, in recent years, due to factors such as high energy costs and cumbersome regulations, the German chemical industry has been in trouble. As the largest chemical company in terms of revenue scale, BASF has also implemented a significant cost-cutting plan, including layoffs at its headquarters in Ludwigshafen, Germany.

At the same time, BASF announced last week that its BASF (Guangdong) Integrated Base in Zhanjiang, China has officially started production, marking a major progress in this flagship project.

This base is the third largest production base of BASF globally, following the headquarters in Ludwigshafen, Germany and the plant in Antwerp, Belgium, and it is also its largest single investment project, with an estimated investment of about 8.7 billion euros (approximately 71.99 billion RMB), initially estimated at 10 billion euros.

BASF (Guangdong) Integrated Base, BASF Official Website

According to a report by the People's Daily in August, Lin Hanping, President of BASF Asia's large projects, introduced that "the Chinese market is of great strategic significance for BASF", and China will continue to be a key market for the chemical industry in the future. The integrated base in Zhanjiang will become an important platform for BASF to achieve profitability and sustainable growth in China, meeting the growing needs of customers.

It is known that since sending representatives to China in 1885 to engage in textile dye trade, BASF has had a presence in the Chinese market for 140 years, with sales in the Chinese market exceeding 13% of global sales. By the end of 2024, BASF and its partners will have invested approximately 17 billion euros in the Greater China region.

Lu Jianfeng, Chairman and President of BASF Greater China, said that according to forecasts, 70% of the global chemical industry's growth in the next 10 years will come from China. "Faced with such a huge market size, we will continue to deepen our presence in the Chinese market and expand our business layout in China."

Therefore, Kamieth also stated on November 12 that he would continue to "advise and promote the government to actively seek to establish a good working relationship with China". In his view, the current German government has not yet shown "clear positive signals towards China", and Mez has not visited China after taking office.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock had originally planned to visit China on the 26th of last month to pave the way for Mez's visit, but she postponed her trip at the last minute due to "scheduling issues", causing widespread concern in German society, worrying that this move would escalate tensions and harm the German economy.

Soon after, Baerbock proactively called the Chinese side, emphasizing that Germany highly values its relations with China and looks forward to visiting China as soon as it is convenient for China to discuss important issues such as bilateral relations in depth.

Subsequently, German Deputy Chancellor and Finance Minister, co-chair of the Social Democratic Party, Christian Lindner is scheduled to visit China in mid-November to attend the fourth Sino-German Senior-Level Financial Dialogue and participate in the second strategic dialogue meeting between the Chinese Communist Party and the German Social Democratic Party.

Germany is the largest economy in Europe, while China is the largest economy in Asia, and the two countries are closely connected economically. Between 2016 and 2023, China has been the top trading partner of Germany for eight consecutive years. In 2024, the United States overtook China to become Germany's largest trading partner. However, preliminary data from the German Federal Statistical Office show that from January to August 2025, China overtook the United States again to become Germany's largest trading partner.

After the news of Baerbock canceling her visit to China spread, the China-German Chamber of Commerce expressed regret about the cancellation of the trip, stating that companies need more clarity on bilateral issues.

Andreas Kroll-Pich, Managing Director of German Commodity Trade Company, was originally a member of Baerbock's delegation to China. He said he could not comment on the cancellation of the trip, but told reporters, "Trade conflicts and export restrictions motivated by political reasons destroy prosperity and must be resolved through constructive dialogue... further escalation does not serve the interests of the German economy."

Wang Yiming, Director of the European Union Research Center at Renmin University, recently analyzed for Hong Kong's South China Morning Post that Germany is facing a "dilemma" in its China policy, lacking a "mature and coherent" strategy towards China. On one hand, German companies have gained considerable profits in the Chinese market, which can offset losses in other markets. On the other hand, China is squeezing Germany's market share in areas such as robotics, and Germany faces competition in traditional advantage areas such as institutional influence and standard setting.

"At the same time, due to the high U.S. debt and (U.S. President) Trump's tendency to bully allies, the U.S. appears unreliable and unstable... Therefore, Germany still has expectations for China - whether in the Ukraine conflict or climate change issues, cooperation with China remains necessary," Wang said.

Cui Hongjian, Professor at the School of Advanced Studies on Regional and Global Governance at Beijing Foreign Studies University, said that Germany has the ability to separate political positions from economic needs, maintaining a more independent and flexible posture, but must realize that the relationship between Germany and China is the foundation of China-EU relations. China also hopes that its largest European trading partner can play the corresponding political and diplomatic role.

"If the two countries continue to be so misaligned, China may further lower its expectations of Germany... If Europe cannot demonstrate true independence in the context of Sino-U.S. competition, China's strategic confidence in the EU may also decline," he said.

Regarding the postponement of the German foreign minister's visit to China, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jia Kun previously responded that China has always viewed and handled Sino-German relations from a strategic height and long-term perspective. In the current situation, both sides should adhere to mutual respect, equality, and win-win cooperation, and promote the development of bilateral relations along the correct track.

This article is an exclusive contribution from Observer Net, and it is not allowed to be reprinted without permission.

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7572548071108641323/

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