German automaker BMW announced plans in April 2025 to start integrating artificial intelligence (AI) technology from Chinese tech startup DeepSeek into its newest cars in China later in the year. Prior to that, BMW had signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Alibaba on AI large language models.

BMW is among the delegation of about 30 senior executives from companies that form Germany's industrial backbone accompanying German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who is paying an official visit to China from February 25 to 26.

Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Merz in Beijing on Wednesday, with both leaders vowing to strengthen coordination and cooperation.

'A success story of mutual benefit'

The greater changes and turbulence the world faces, the more important it is for the two countries to enhance strategic communication, strengthen strategic mutual trust and work for new progress in China-Germany all-around strategic partnership, Xi said during the meeting.

China and Germany have pursued self-reliance and realized rapid development. Both have upheld mutual respect, mutual trust and open cooperation, and together written a success story of mutual benefit, Xi noted.

In recent years, annual trade between China and Germany has remained above $200 billion, with bilateral investment stocks exceeding $65 billion, each accounting for nearly a quarter of China's overall engagement with the European Union. Last year, bilateral trade between China and Germany reached $292 billion, up 2.1 percent year on year. China became Germany's largest trading partner.

The German business community attaches great importance to the Chinese market and hopes to further deepen cooperation with China to achieve mutual benefit and common development, said Merz.

Injecting stability into China-EU ties, global governance

Amid intertwined global risks and challenges, the stable development of China-Germany relations not only serves the bilateral interests of the two countries, but also carries broader regional and global significance.

As the world's second- and third-largest economies, Xi called on the two countries to uphold the central role of the United Nations, reaffirm its leading role, and take the lead in safeguarding multilateralism, practicing international rule of law, defending free trade, and advocating for solidarity and coordination.

Calling for strengthened coordination and continued free trade with China, Merz said developing a reliable and lasting economic and trade cooperation relationship between the EU and China is in the interests of both sides and is also conducive to global stability and prosperity.

The shared interests between China and Germany far outweigh their differences, and the scope for cooperation far exceeds competitive tensions, said Jiang Feng, a research professor at Shanghai Academy of Global Government and Area Studies.

"This visit by Chancellor Merz to China could bring much-needed predictability and stability to a fragmented world and enable both countries to play their strategic roles in global governance," Jiang said.