Two slaps in one morning are a lot of stuff even for the panzer car industry, the pride of German industry. And the Germany of the car ends up under fire. Confirmation has come from Washington that the US they don't have an eye for allies: the list of electric and hybrid cars eligible for $7.500 off the retail price is reduced to just eleven models, from the inexpensive Chevrolet Bolt to the Tesla. But there is no room for either the Germans or the Japanese. Washington has decided that the concessions will only apply to cars with at least 50% of the product made in the USA. Including batteries. So much for the efforts of Chancellor Olav Scholz or the commitment of Ursula Von der Leyen.
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Cars: US discounts but not for Europe. And in China the electric Byd wins
Luckily there is China. The ambassadors of German power can take comfort, strengthened by the recent agreements which, to the great irritation of the USA, have agreed on new strong investments by Volkswagen in the country of Drago where it already has 40 factories. But alas, the world is not what it used to be. From the Shanghai salon, the most important in the world, comes the news that Byd, the Chinese auto leader, he ousted Volkswagen from the market leadership of the Dragon, gaining an 11% market share. Not only. Despite the billionaire efforts, for now the Wolfsburg group has a very modest share (no more than 2%) in the electric segment. On the contrary, the Chinese groups are preparing to conquer the leadership in Europe thanks also to their supremacy in batteries, the key component of the e-car. Suffice it to mention the 5 plants that the Chinese Svolt is preparing to build for BMW.
Cars: Germany under fire
In short, from East to West there is no shortage of problems for the number one economy in the EU, so much so as to arouse a surge of nostalgia for the recent past, those formidable years ranging from the fall of the Wall to the long reign of Angela Merkel. Germany has experienced one season of prosperity lasting more than thirty years thanks to an extraordinary combination of factors: low-cost energy guaranteed by Russia; the opening of trade guaranteed by globalization: purchases by the Chinese customer, hungry for technology and good deals. An extraordinary fortune which, among other things, allowed Berlin to neglect the development of a common industrial policy within the EU, if anything, exploiting the advantages of a weaker euro, aided by the Mediterranean economies, compared to a domestic currency, in line with the old mark.
And the Zew index fails: disheartened investors
Advantages of the past that will not return. Hence the need to reshape the economy of what remains a formidable export machine but which now, in spite of the "schwarze nul" policy (ie zero debt). It can only aim at the growth of domestic consumption. It is not an easy transition as confirmed, among other things, by the Zew index data released this morning. German investor morale fell unexpectedly in April as financial market pundits expect tighter credit conditions in the coming months. L'economic sentiment index measured by the institute it fell to 4,1 from 13,0 in March. The assessment of the economic situation in Germany, however, improved, moving to -32,5 points from -46,5 the previous month and exceeding analysts' forecasts which indicated a figure of -40,0. Despite the improvement, the economic situation is considered negative, the report reads. Yet Berlin can count on quite a few trump cards. Even unsuspected.
Is the car suffering? Germany plays the Mittelstand ace
This is the opinion of Winfred Weber, professor of applied sciences at the University of Mannheim. The strength of the economy beyond the Rhine, it is his thesis, does not reside in the auto or chemical giants but in the "unknown samples”, the impact force of the Mittestand that is, medium-sized, high-quality industries. Germany, writes Weber, has only 28 large companies appearing in the Fortune 500. Against 134 Chinese, 130 American or 62 Japanese. Even France (40 units) beats Germany. But if you consider the niche productionsthe picture changes. Germany has more than a thousand companies that are placed in the first three places in the most unexpected product classifications. Any examples? Poeschl Tabak controls 5% of the world snus market, Flexi is the undisputed leader in retractable dog leashes. And so on in a crescendo of initiatives that enhance the Made in Germany. An army of professions that are worth 60% of the total employment across the Rhine.
Surprise: Berlin is the leader of SMEs
Not only. Small companies are growing (+20% in the last five years), also thanks to a profitable relationship with the local area. 70% of the Mittelstand is based in provincial cities, snubbing the big centers. But this does not mean that companies limit the horizon to the confines of the house. On the contrary. Often following the big ones, thousands of small businesses have opened offices in China or, as has also happened to many Italian companies, have evolved into pocket multinationals such as Herrenknecht AG, born in 1977 from a loan from Herr Martin's mother (20 thousand marks), today the world leader in excavation work, capable of drilling the 57 km of the Gotthard tunnel.
It goes from robotics life sciences strong in a school/work relationship that guarantees a certain advantage over the competition (even in Italy). And of one reputation for fairness which remains the best weapon to oppose the advance of Beijing's industry.
But more than the product category, an unspoken principle of loyalty to customers. And that's Berlin's real trump card.
