German Car Industry Could Be Sold To Сhina

Maksim Oreshkin, the economic advisor to Russian President Vladimir Putin, said that the German car industry could be sold to China and cease to be European cars.

The top economic advisor to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Maksim Oreshkin, told Expert magazine in an interview that was published on Tuesday that China is quickly gaining market capitalization in the global auto industry while European automakers are becoming less competitive.

It is not good news for European automakers, according to Oreshkin, as China has already surpassed all other countries in the globe in automobile exports.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if companies like Mercedes and BMW fade into history in ten years. As brands they will probably remain, but will follow the fate of Volvo, which was sold to China. In other words, they will actually cease to be European cars,” the presidential aide predicted.

“European manufacturers now have neither the market nor the technological advantage that they had five to ten years ago,” according to Oreshkin.

Since Brussels began imposing sanctions on Russia in response to the situation in Ukraine, the EU as a whole—and Germany, its industrial powerhouse in particular—have been engulfed in an economic crisis for the past nine months. The bloc’s industry was heavily dependent on inexpensive energy from Russia, which was lost as a result.

Since Brussels began imposing sanctions on Russia in response to the situation in Ukraine, the EU as a whole—and Germany, its industrial powerhouse in particular—have been engulfed in an economic crisis for the past nine months. The bloc’s industry was heavily dependent on inexpensive energy from Russia, which was lost as a result.

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Rising energy costs are the reason why Germany “is losing dramatically its international competitiveness” as a location for the automobile sector, according to a warning issued earlier this year by Hildegard Muller, head of the country’s Association of the Automotive sector.

In the first quarter of this year, China overtook Japan as the world’s top automobile exporter, selling 1.07 million cars and taking the top spot. According to data from the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, the nation maintained its lead in the ensuing quarters, with the export volume recording a year-over-year gain of 59.7% in January-October at 3.92 million units.

In the meantime, sanctions forced the withdrawal of automakers from Europe, America, South Korea, and Japan; as a result, China surpassed all other suppliers to Russia in the auto industry in 2023. Based on the most recent data available, 92% of all Russian auto imports between January and August were Chinese brands.