Oliver Blume: “High discipline and willingness to perform” – VW boss praises Chinese deliberate financial system | EUROtoday

VW boss Oliver Blume sees the state-controlled financial system in China as a task mannequin for Germany. “The Chinese are very planning with so-called five-year plans and have clear priorities there,” he instructed “Bild am Sonntag”. “It is optimally structured. And what we experience very positively in China is a high level of discipline and motivation to implement the topics.”

It’s price trying over your personal backyard fence. “Looking at how other countries do it, and in China we can also learn a lot about how the country has developed,” stated Blume.

The European Union, alternatively, attributes the success of the Chinese car trade in Europe to authorities subsidies and thus distortion of competitors. The confederation of states due to this fact put import tariffs on electrical automobiles from China into power in October 2024. At the start of 2026, the EU Commission adopted up and proposed minimal costs for Chinese electrical automobiles.

With a view to Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s “car summit”, the VW boss stated: “Now it will be crucial to make decisions quickly and to make a concrete plan for implementation behind the ‌relevant topics.” It should be measured how progress is being made. “Now I’m really hoping that we’ll pick up the pace there.”

The group lately introduced a drastic reduce of fifty,000 jobs resulting from a pointy drop in earnings. Nevertheless, Blume needs to carry on to Germany as a location, however is looking for radical will increase in productiveness. “We will continue to put capacities to the test in the future,” Blume made clear with a view to international overcapacity.

In view of the decline in working outcomes, Blume emphasised that the world markets had utterly shifted: “Developing, building and then exporting vehicles in Germany no longer works.” ‌The totally different areas of the world have modified an excessive amount of.

Blume confirmed the aim of lowering jobs in Germany in a socially acceptable method by 2024. Regarding experiences of attainable manufacturing facility closures, he defined that overcapacity prices cash, which is why the factories have been linked to “clear factory cost targets”. This applies not solely to Germany and Europe, but additionally to China. According to Blume, “Made in Germany” will proceed to be worthwhile sooner or later, however the prices are too excessive. “We have a higher cost structure, including wage costs. And we have to compensate for that with higher productivity,” he demanded.

He additionally criticized the political framework: “We have energy costs that are too high and regulations that are too high.” Despite the present disaster, he sees vibrant spots: the order backlog has elevated considerably and the merchandise are being nicely acquired. Nevertheless, the message stays clear: “The renovation continues,” concludes Blume.