Germany blocks Chinese acquisition in its largest seaport

Submission Statement: Germany has blocked the Chinese acquisition of a logistics group in its biggest seaport, a decision underlining Berlin’s firmer stance against Beijing under Chancellor Friedrich Merz.

The decision, approved by the cabinet on Wednesday, follows a review of the planned acquisition by Chinese state-owned shipping group Cosco of an 80 per cent stake in Konrad Zippel Spediteur, a medium-sized logistics group operating in the North Sea port of Hamburg.

The move comes as Berlin is preparing new legislation designed to tighten investment screening. It also underlines a sharpening of Germany’s posture towards China, whose cheap electric vehicles and steel products have hurt German manufacturers at home and in their traditional export markets.

On Monday, Merz joined French President Emmanuel Macron in proposing the EU adopt a powerful trade instrument designed to deter countries from exerting economic coercion. The move was widely seen as a response to Beijing’s restrictions on rare earths and magnets last year, which brought some German car manufacturing plants to a halt because of shortages.

The decision to reject Cosco’s acquisition was “based on security concerns,” a spokesperson for the economy ministry said in an email to the FT.

“The acquisition would have deepened dependencies and jeopardised the resilience of Germany’s and the EU’s supply chains,” he added.