Press Release

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz takes part in German-Japanese Business Dialogue in Tokyo

2022/04/28

First trip to Asia leads to economic partner Japan

28/04/2022 | Tokyo - At the start of his visit to Japan, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz reaffirmed the importance of economic policy cooperation between the two countries at the German-Japanese Business Dialogue in Tokyo. The event held to mark the 60th anniversary of the German Chamber of Commerce & Industry in Japan (AHK Japan) together with the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK), brought together the Chancellor's high-ranking business delegation with Japanese executives and top representatives of German business in Japan.

In his speech to around 200 German and Japanese managers, Chancellor Scholz emphasized the special role of German-Japanese economic relations in the Indo-Pacific region and announced an intensification of German-Japanese cooperation in important future fields. The German-Japanese Business Dialogue on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of AHK Japan had been opened earlier by Marcus Schürmann, CEO of AHK Japan, Peter Adrian, President of Association of German Chambers of Commerce and Industry, and Toshiaki Higashihara, Vice-Chair of Keidanren (Japan Business Federation).

Chancellor Scholz' visit comes at a time of international challenges and political tensions. "The fact that the first trip to Asia of the German Chancellor leads him and his business delegation to Japan is an important signal of the solidarity and the common values and interests that both countries share," said Marcus Schürmann, CEO of AHK Japan and Delegate of German Business in Japan at the start of the Business Dialogue.

The fact that national security and economic performance are increasingly linked is well known to Japan because of the complex relationships in East Asia. "Japan recognized the importance of economic security early on and drew conclusions from it. We in Germany can learn from this," said Schürmann.

"Japan is a stable partner for German companies in Asia and more important than ever as a reliable high-tech partner for German business," said Schürmann, referring to the global challenges. "In surveys, over 90% of German business representatives based in Japan regularly confirm the fundamental stability and long-term nature of business relations with Japanese partners."

Tokyo is openly committed to free trade: The partnership agreement that has linked Japan and the EU since 2019 assures German companies in Japan of fair business conditions. "In addition, cooperation with Japanese companies in third markets offers great opportunities for German companies, also in terms of securing supply chains," said Schürmann.

AHK Japan was founded in Tokyo in March 1962 and today, with 470 member companies, oversees the largest German-Japanese network in Japan. With a trade volume of 41.7 billion euros, Japan is the second most important market in Asia and Germany in turn is the most important target market for Japanese products in Europe.

Since its foundation, AHK Japan has been committed to intensifying German-Japanese economic relations and supporting a wide range of initiatives for economic exchange, such as the recent German-Japanese Energy Partnership, export promotion of German food products and cooperation in future fields such as 3D printing.

The German-Japanese Business Dialogue in Tokyo was jointly organized by the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Japan (AHK Japan) and the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK), represented by State Secretary Udo Philipp. The discussion that followed the Chancellor's speech impressively underscored the fact that Germany and Japan are pulling together in the face of current conflicts and challenges, and that companies from both countries want to deepen their cooperation in many sectors.