- Xinjiang problem of VW & Co.
- Hardly anyone wants German EVs
- European politician Lange warns against decoupling
- Honduras turns its back on Taiwan
- Joint maneuver with Russia and Iran
- Foxconn reports profit decline
- Opinion on return of coal funding
German automakers currently do not have an easy time in China. On the one hand, there is the Xinjiang risk: Although VW, in particular, has been assuring for months that none of its suppliers is involved in the human rights violations by the Chinese state against Uyghurs, a new study nevertheless identifies prison and internment work in the supply chains of German carmakers in China.
Our authors Christian Domke Seidel and Marcel Grzanna also spoke to managers at German automotive brands who – contrary to conflicting claims by their respective boards of directors – confirm: It is, in fact, simply not possible to audit every step and every branch-out of supply chains in China. On the German end, no one is able to definitively assess the quality of proof provided by Chinese contractual partners.
At the same time, the business prospects of German automakers no longer look rosy either. In the booming market for EVs, VW, BMW and Mercedes lead a miserable existence in the Chinese car market, writes Christian Domke Seidel in his Feature.
The actions of VW & Co. in the Middle Kingdom are likely to become even sharper in the course of the debate about a German China strategy. The outcome is not yet known. However, one thing is already certain: The boardrooms in Wolfsburg, Stuttgart and Munich will no longer be able to afford to bury their heads in the sand.
Felix Lee
Feature
The Xinjiang problem of German automakers
Steel, aluminum, copper, rare earths – according to a study, China’s manufacturers of industrial metals are closely involved in human rights violations in Xinjiang. The findings of the study by the British University of Sheffield Hallam also put German automakers under pressure. Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes-Benz are directly or indirectly supplied by numerous companies in these sectors.
When asked by Table.Media, all three manufacturers deny any knowledge of human rights violations in their supply chains and affirm their sincerity in trying to get to grips with the problem. But the question is how closely they actually see through their supply chain.
Inspections are ‘all lies’
The explosiveness and relevance of these issues are currently increasing rapidly. Both the drafts of the German China strategies and the EU Supply Chain Act provide for much stronger ethical components in trade policy. Companies face business risks and loss of reputation if they operate in a way that is unclean in terms of human rights.
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