By Request, Merkel Is Returning to China for Economic Talks
|
Version 0 of 1. BERLIN — Continuing a fast pace of international diplomacy, Chancellor Angela Merkel is visiting China on Thursday and Friday for the second time in seven months, acting as a conduit both for German business and the European Union. Accompanied by seven ministers and the most influential business delegation of her six trips to date to China, Ms. Merkel is expected to explain the current state of the euro crisis to a curious Chinese leadership, and perhaps to seek Chinese investment in Europe’s bailout funds. Both countries — two of the world’s biggest exporters — have weathered the economic crisis relatively well to date, but China’s growth is now sputtering while debt is crippling some European countries and even German growth is slowing markedly. Since Ms. Merkel returned from a vacation in the Alps two weeks ago, she has visited Canada and Moldova; played host to President François Hollande of France and the Greek and Italian prime ministers for talks on the euro crisis; and met several domestic obligations as well. Germany’s status as the economic powerhouse in Europe appears to be lending her increasing weight as an effective spokeswoman for the 17-nation euro zone and the 27 members of the European Union. The trip is her second in seven months, although such consultations normally take place only once a year. German officials said that Prime Minister Wen Jiabao — who himself has visited Germany six times — had requested the chancellor’s return before a Chinese leadership turnover that will see him hand over power early next year. “It was very important to the prime minister that these governmental consultations took place again, before the change of leadership in the party, to institutionalize them,” a German official told reporters in Berlin. Such high-level government exchanges have been a way for postwar Germany to deepen relations with allies like France, Israel, Poland and Russia. The consultations with China, which began in June 2011 when Mr. Wen and 13 of his ministers visited Berlin, have resulted in a significant increase in trade between the two countries, which reached $169 billion in 2011, an 18.9 percent increase from 2010. Nearly half of all exports from the European Union to China now come from Germany, with machines and luxury cars especially in demand. The European Union is also the biggest destination for Chinese exports. But recent figures show the Chinese economy cooling down; growth for 2012 is projected to be about 8 percent, against 9.2 percent in 2011. In Germany, where the economy is largely driven by exports, there are indications that the euro crisis, now into its third year, is beginning to take a toll. The Chinese prime minister has indicated a willingness to invest in Europe’s bailout funds, and Ms. Merkel may seek firmer commitments on this front. The German economy posted 0.3 percent growth in the second quarter of 2012, and a leading survey of business sentiment by the Ifo Institute showed German companies beginning to express greater pessimism. In China, Mr. Wen has been visiting coastal factories to better manage a downturn that some analysts fear could lead to huge layoffs and social unrest. Keeping trade between two of the world’s biggest exporters buoyant seems to be high on the agenda. Following a day of meetings in Beijing with Mr. Wen and other officials, including his designated successor, Li Keqiang, the chancellor will head to Tianjin, where she is to hold talks with business representatives and visit an Airbus factory where A320 airliners are assembled. Although government officials say Ms. Merkel’s visit will involve a tour and private talks, the German news media have reported that Airbus’s parent company, European Aeronautic Defense & Space, is hoping to secure an order for 100 of the planes from China during the trip. Beijing is holding back, demanding that it be excluded from an E.U. system designed to curb carbon transmissions. The Chinese, along with other Asian nations, are pushing the European Union to wait for a global system, but the Europeans are insistent on pushing through the curbs. Such differences cut to the crux of the problems between the two nations, which are trade rivals as much as they are partners. Critics charge that closer German-Chinese ties pose a danger for Europe, coming as it struggles to develop a more strategic approach to China. Chinese companies were the largest investor in Germany last year, with 158 projects, or almost 20 percent of the total, according to Germany Trade and Invest, the government’s economic development agency, surpassing the United States for the first time. The 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries will be Oct. 1. Fans of the Berlin Zoo can hope that Mr. Wen might note this anniversary with a special gift, after the panda Bao Bao died this month at age 34. The panda was a gift from Hua Guofeng, the Chinese leader at the time, to the West German chancellor Helmut Schmidt. <em>David Barboza contributed reporting from Shanghai.</em> |