(Reuters) – BMW’s strong ties with China are a “win-win” as the car industry shifts towards greener, more connected vehicles, said CEO Oliver Zipse after Chinese Premier Li Qiang visited the German carmaker’s headquarters in Munich on Wednesday.
Accompanied by a high-ranking delegation, Li met with Zipse and other company executives as part of a four-day visit to Germany – his first official trip abroad since becoming premier – that included talks with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and other top politicians.
“The BMW Group has deep and long-standing ties with China,” said Zipse in a statement, noting shared aims in areas like electric mobility, decarbonisation and intelligent connected vehicles.
“Strong partnerships between BMW Group and Chinese partners will continue to deliver a win-win during the transformation of our industry,” he added.
Li had told the CEOs of several top German companies on Tuesday, including Mercedes-Benz, that a lack of cooperation between the two nations was a major risk.
China is BMW Group’s largest product development location outside Germany and is a core sales market for the company, with over 791,000 vehicles delivered to Chinese customers in 2022.
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(Reporting by Anna Mackenzie; Editing by Miranda Murray)