Major Taiwanese news network Liberty Times Network (LTN) recently reported that Jorg Wuttke, former president of the EU Chamber of Commerce in China, just published a commentary titled “China Illusion”.
The commentary pointed out that the idea that China could replace the United States and become a reliable partner of Europe in the near future is “ridiculous.” A glance at the trade data will make everything clear: in terms of exports, German companies’ exports to Poland alone have exceeded their exports to China; and since November last year, the entire EU has exported more to Switzerland than to China. “The trend is so clear that there is no need to deceive ourselves anymore,” Wuttke wrote. “Our exports to China have peaked and will only decrease. Chinese leaders want to achieve self-sufficiency, and foreign companies will become less and less welcome. At the same time, China’s competitiveness is increasing rapidly. Many of the products we used to sell to China are now being sold back to Europe from China.”
The commentary said that, another important aspect of foreign trade relations is investment, and the data on investment is even more shocking. Europe’s direct investment in the United States is US$3.5 trillion per year, while its investment in China is only about US$10 billion a year. “In a 430-page position paper I published as president of the EU Chamber of Commerce in China, the Chamber listed thousands of shortcomings of the Chinese market, but ultimately there was only one fundamental problem: the Chinese market is not open. Only selected foreign companies are allowed to enter China,” Wuttke wrote. The idea that China will open up to the outside world on a large scale in the future is purely wishful thinking. China is a closed society. This hurts Chinese companies too, because their profits are so slim.
Wuttke further indicated that, currently, the United States is trying to stem the flood of cheap Chinese goods, but these products will inevitably flood into European and other markets. And all countries, whether Thailand, Russia or Turkey, will eventually establish trade protection mechanisms, which will mean the end of free trade.
Wuttke served as a long-time chairman of the EU Chamber of Commerce in China until 2023. And he has lived in China for 35 years.
Source: LTN, June 8, 2025
https://ec.ltn.com.tw/article/breakingnews/5067949