China
Michelle Bachelet's China track record + Delays at Cariad
Dear reader,
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, surprised everyone on Tuesday with an announcement: She will not seek a second term, the Chilean announced. She is not the first High Commissioner to quit after just one term. But the timing Bachelet chose for her announcement raises questions. Is there a connection to the UN representative's visit to China, which was strongly criticized internationally?
Marcel Grzanna does not give Bachelet a particularly good performance review before she leaves office: The long-awaited report evaluating China's human rights violations in Xinjiang is still pending. Thus, critics see themselves vindicated that the former Chilean President was never interested in investigating China in the first place – and rather wanted to avoid potential troubles with an important trading partner of her home country.
In recent years, Volkswagen's business in the People's Republic has continued to set new records, but the market is undergoing major changes. When it comes to electromobility and digitalization, software strategy will play a decisive role in determining whether VW and other German carmakers will remain ahead in China in the future. A study showing that Volkswagen could face billions in losses due to delays at its software subsidiary Cariad will leave more than a bitter taste for Wolfsburg. The China offshoot is supposed to help solve the problem of declining sales in the People's Republic, writes Christian Domke-Seidel. Customer-oriented development – which VW lacked up to now – is also to become decisive.
