Friday, November 29, 2019

"Wary of China, Germany plans rapid state intervention to protect key industries"

Well duh.
First up, Reuters, November 29:
Germany set out plans on Friday to create a government committee to step in quickly to protect companies against foreign takeovers, a sign of concern about China and others acquiring its technology.

The finalised industrial strategy outlined by Economy Minister Peter Altmaier is also intended to prevent the erosion of Germany’s manufacturing base, on which much of its wealth is built.
The new standing committee would, as a last resort, have powers to take stakes in German companies that produce sensitive or security relevant technologies.

The government stakes, which would be acquired by state development bank KfW, would be held temporarily. This can already be done in some cases under German law, but Altmaier said the process was too slow....MUCH MORE
Way back in 2012 we mentioned this, when China made a move on one of the world's premier crane manufacturers:
The Invisible Hand Touches Germany in No-no Place: China Grabs Putzmeister

Six years later I felt bad about that headline and tried to explain myself in the introduction to:
"Sizing up Chinese Investments in Europe
Germany in particular is very sensitive about this. And if the target of Chinese affection is one of the family-owned Mittelstand companies, well, I get to channel the tabloids with headlines such as 2012's "The Invisible Hand Touches Germany in No-no Place: China Grabs Putzmeister"
Ahem.....
*****
The German concern for their small and medium sized enterprises goes back quite a ways. Here's an old-timey pic via Wikipedia:

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fb/Mittelstand.jpg
Representation of the supporting
role of the Mittelstand in Walter Wilhelms
„Mission des Mittelstandes“ (Mission of the Mittelstand, 1925)

Without the Mittelstand you are without Germany's export engine and without exports (and with Mutti's recent comments on free speech, yikes!) you are left with a Teutonic Belarus.
But without the charm.

If interested see also: "China’s strategic investments in Europe: The case of maritime ports"