Germany's Scholz visits Vietnam as manufacturers eye shift from China
Sun, November 13, 2022 at 7:02 p.m.
By Francesco Guarascio
HANOI (Reuters) - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz discussed energy and trade ties with Vietnam's Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh during a visit to Hanoi on Sunday, the first for a German leader in more than a decade.
Scholz's stop in Vietnam on his way to the G20 leaders' summit in Indonesia, highlights Vietnam's growing role in global supply chains as many German firms consider diversifying their manufacturing operations by expanding their presence beyond China, their main hub in Asia.
At a joint news conference with Chinh, Scholz said Berlin wanted deeper trade relations with Vietnam and would support the country's transition to a greener economy, including through the expansion of the metro system in Hanoi, Vietnam's capital.
The Hanoi visit follows Scholz's trip to China last week, the first by a Western leader in three years since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. He will next visit Singapore before heading to the G20 summit on Nov 15-16.
Vietnam and Singapore are the only countries in Southeast Asia that have a free trade agreement with the European Union. As a result, they are the EU's biggest trading partners in the region.
Germany is Vietnam's second-largest trading partner among EU states after the Netherlands, with exchanges worth $7.8 billion last year, according to law firm Dezan Shira - far less however than the United States, China, Japan and South Korea.
About 500 German firms operate in Vietnam, of which around 80 have manufacturing plants in the country, according to the German chamber of commerce in Vietnam, AHK.
Among them are engineering giant Bosch, energy firm Messer, and several smaller companies involved in the global automotive supply chain.
Many more are looking to diversify some of their activities away from China where about 5,000 German companies operate, AHK head in Vietnam, Marko Walde, told Reuters.
Over 90% of German firms planning such a move look at Southeast Asia as their preferred choice, Walde said, noting that Vietnam and Thailand were favourites in the region.
(Reporting by Francesco Guarascio; additional reporting by Sarah Marsh in Berlin)
Translation
河內（路透社）- 德國總理舒爾茨在週日訪問河內期間, 與越南總理范明正討論了能源和貿易關係，這是十多年來德國領導人首次訪問河內。
舒爾茨在前往印度尼西亞參加 G20 領導人峰會的途中在越南停留，這突顯了越南在全球供應鏈中日益重要的作用，因為許多德國公司正在考慮通過將業務擴展到亞洲主要樞紐 -中國- 以外的地區來實現製造業務多元化。
在與范明正的聯合新聞發布會上，舒爾茨 表示，柏林希望與越南建立更深層次的貿易關係，並將支持該國向綠色經濟轉型，包括通過擴建越南首都河內的地鐵系統。
河內訪問是舒爾茨繼上周訪問中國之後進行的，這是自 COVID-19 大流行開始之後三年來,西方領導人的首次訪問。他接下來將訪問新加坡，然後前往 11 月 15 日至 16 日舉行的 G20 峰會。
越南和新加坡是東南亞唯一與歐盟簽訂自由貿易協定的國家。因此，它們是歐盟在該地區最大的貿易夥伴。
根據 Dezan Shira 律師事務所的數據，德國是歐盟國家与越南的第二大貿易夥伴, 僅次於荷蘭，去年的貿易額為 78 億美元，但遠低於美國、中國、日本和韓國。
據越南德國商會 AHK 稱，約有 500 家德國公司在越南開展業務，其中約 80 家在該國設有製造廠。
其中包括工程巨頭Bosch、能源公司Messer以及參與全球汽車供應鏈的幾家較小的公司。
AHK 在越南的負責人 Marko Walde 告訴路透社，還有更多的人希望將他們的一些活動從中國轉移到中國以外的地方，在中國有大約 5,000 家德國公司。
Walde 說，超過 90% 的德國公司計劃採取這樣的行動，將東南亞視為他們的首選，並指出越南和泰國是該地區的最愛。
So, about 5,000 German companies
are operating in China and some people has estimated that over 90% of German
firms plan to diversify their activities away from China to Southeast Asia and
that Vietnam and Thailand are their favorite locations. I am wondering how this
will affect China’s production activities.
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