Merkel pushing for EU-China investment deal at state visit | DW News

Germany's chancellor Angela Merkel wants to embark on a new phase in the European Union's relations with China.

While the US continues to hike tariffs on Chinese products, Merkel is pushing for a European investment deal with Beijing. Not only that, she's banging heads together, reprimanding the American and Chinese on their trade war.

In a first meeting with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang at Beijing's Great Hall of the People, Merkel said the dispute is affecting the whole world and hopes they'll resolve it soon. Li didn't seem too focussed on his country's problems with the US, but with Germany, telling the Chancellor he hopes Germany will accept more Chinese companies and loosen export rules for certain goods. He went on to say that China promises to further open up its economy.

China is becoming an even more important trading partner for the European Union. Since 2000, two-way trade has almost tripled, according to data from the European statistics office.

Last year the total trade volume between the EU and China was 605 billion euros. The European Union exported products worth more than 200 billion euros to China and imported nearly 400 billion euros of goods.

Leaders of Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement have also called on Merkel to show solidarity with their cause while in Beijing. But a meeting with protest leaders is not on Merkels agenda.

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