German Vice Chancellor and Economy Minister Robert Habeck will embark on a five-day working trip to South Korea and China on Wednesday, where he will hold talks on trade, climate protection and energy policy, his office said on Friday.
Habeck will make his first visit to China, where consultations are expected to be intense after the European Commission recently threatened to impose punitive tariffs on Chinese-built electric cars over unfair subsidies.
China’s close relations with Russia and its threatening stance towards Taiwan are also likely to be on his agenda.
“China is once again a very important sales and purchasing market for German companies,” said a spokesperson for the Ministry of Economic Affairs.
Last year, mutual trade volume amounted to €254 billion ($271 billion), equivalent to about 8% of total German goods trade.
The figure for South Korea is only 34 billion euros, although the country is reportedly Germany’s second most important export market in Asia, with goods exports worth around 20 billion euros.
In both countries, Habeck plans to meet politicians and business representatives, as well as members of German and European companies. He will be accompanied by business representatives and members of parliament.
