VW CEO talks trade, tech with Chinese ministers in Beijing

BEIJING/BERLIN — Volkswagen CEO Oliver Blume discussed free and fair trade, the global economy and technology in meetings with China’s industry and commerce ministers on Friday, according to statements by ministries and VW.

“The global economic development was one of the central issues. Free and fair trade between open markets is of utmost importance in this phase of major challenges,” Blume said in a written statement.

The European Union and China are in tense negotiations over tariffs proposed by the European Commission on China-made EVs, with China opening up tit-for-tat investigations into other goods while also urging the EU to drop its measures.

Germany’s car industry, including Volkswagen, has vocally opposed the tariffs, fearing retaliation in one of their biggest markets. China welcomed VW to deepen its foothold in China, according to the ministry statement.

The two sides also spoke about framework conditions for technologies like autonomous driving and artificial intelligence, the statements said.

Germany and China last month signed a declaration of intent on how to discuss cross-border data transfers with the view of enabling carmakers to transfer data to Germany, a contentious issue because of security concerns in Europe and restrictions on foreign firms in China.

(Reporting by Victoria Waldersee and Beijing newsroom, editing by Thomas Seythal)