Scholz touched down in the southwestern megacity of Chongqing on Sunday morning, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said, accompanied by a large delegation of ministers and business executives.
As Western allies are cranking up pressure on Beijing, Scholz is expected to underline that Germany remains committed to doing business with the world's second-largest economy and rejects US-led calls for "decoupling".
His friendly overtures towards China risk sparking ire among Washington and EU partners, which have been pushing back against Beijing's heavy subsidies for industries.
"China remains a really important economic partner," Scholz told journalists on Friday, adding that he would try to level the playing field for German companies in China.
On the geopolitical front, Scholz will also use his visit to persuade Chinese President Xi Jinping to exert his influence to rein in his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and help bring an end to the war in Ukraine.
"Given the close relations between China and Russia, Beijing has the possibility to exert its influence on Russia," said a German government source in Berlin.
The three-day tour through Chongqing, Shanghai and Beijing is Scholz's second trip to China since he took office.
His first in November 2022 took place under intense scrutiny, as it came swiftly after Xi strengthened his grip on power, and marked the first post-pandemic visit by a G7 leader to China.
Stung then by painful supply chain disruptions during the health crisis as well as by China's refusal to distance itself from Russia despite Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, Western allies had been scrambling to reduce their reliance on Beijing.
- 'Position of strength' -
Scholz's visit comes as many of Germany's Western allies confront China on a range of trade issues.
A slew of probes into state aid for Chinese solar panels, electric cars and wind turbines are ongoing in Brussels.
The United States is meanwhile investigating national security risks posed by Chinese technology in cars.
With tensions rumbling over Taiwan, US President Joe Biden this week made defence pledges to Japan and the Philippines, while describing behaviour by Beijing in the South China Sea as "dangerous and aggressive".
Two days before his visit, Scholz held talks with France's President Emmanuel Macron, whose office said the leaders "coordinated to defend a rebalancing of European-Chinese trade relations".
But China is a vital market for Germany, where many jobs depend directly on demand from the Asian giant.
Both economies also badly need a boost.
The German economy shrank by 0.3 percent last year, battered by inflation, high interest rates and cooling exports, and for this year, the economy ministry expects just an anaemic growth of 0.2 percent.
Beijing has set an annual GDP growth target of around five percent for this year, but exports plunged more than expected last month.
German MPs and analysts urged Scholz to take a firm line.
The Green party's Deborah Duering warned Scholz against viewing China just as an economic opportunity.
"Those who ignore long-term risks for short-term profits risk repeating the mistakes of the past, misguided Russia policy," said Duering, in reference to past dependency on Moscow for cheap energy supplies.
Max Zenglein of the Mercator Institute for China Studies said Germany should not hesitate to be more assertive.
"As countries such as the USA and Japan are positioning themselves much more sharply against China, Germany has an important role to play," he said, adding that Germany was "in a position of strength".
China's chides 'protectionist' Europe as Macron and Scholz call for re-balancing trade
Milan (AFP) April 12, 2024 - China's commerce minister on Friday accused the European Commission of pursuing "protectionist" actions at the expense of green initiatives by launching investigations into Chinese subsidies.
"We can't understand how the European Commission on the one hand carries the flag for green sustainable development and on the other hand undertakes protectionist operations," Wang Wentao said at an Italy-China economic forum in Verona.
Brussels this week opened an inquiry into Chinese wind turbine suppliers, looking into the development of wind parks in Spain, Greece, France, Romania and Bulgaria.
The European Union and United States have accused China of flooding the global market with low-cost products from various industries which hurt domestic growth.
The Chinese minister said he found it "perplexing" that the EU commission on sectors like electric cars, solar panels or wind turbine had "taken some actions that are going to block them".
The commission "creates subsidies for European companies while on the other hand opens investigations into subsidies given by China", Wang said, according to an Italian interpreter at the meeting.
"This clearly can undermine Chinese companies' confidence in cooperation."
A spokeswoman for China's foreign ministry on Wednesday slammed EU "protectionism" that "protects backwardness".
"China is highly concerned about the discriminatory measures taken by the European side against Chinese enterprises and even industries," she said in Beijing.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said Thursday his government wanted to strengthen trade ties with China despite Rome's withdrawal in December from Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative.
Italy joined the huge maritime and land infrastructure project in 2019, becoming the only G7 country to participate, but Tajani said membership had not delivered the hoped-for economic benefits.
Macron and Scholz call for re-balancing China trade
Paris (AFP) April 12, 2024 -
French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called on Friday for a "re-balancing" of trade relations between Europe and China on the eve of the German leader visiting Beijing.
In a video call between the two European leaders, they also discussed the impact of the war in Ukraine on European security, officials in Macron's office said.
Scholz travels to China this weekend for a delicate three-day trip at a time when the West is sharpening its tone towards Beijing, both about its trade practices and its closeness to Moscow.
The European Union has accused China of inundating Europe with subsidised goods sold at below-market prices.
The European Commission on Tuesday opened a probe into Chinese wind turbine suppliers, following investigations into state aid for solar panels, electric cars and trains.
In their call, Macron and Scholz also underlined the need to "spur European competitivity", notably by deepening pan-European capital markets, a project that would require harmonising financial rules across the bloc, but which has been held up by disagreements between Paris and Berlin.
The two also reaffirmed their "unwavering and long-term support for Ukraine" and "discussed European initiatives to provide military support for Ukraine," Macron's office said.
The French president has been expected to visit Ukraine for several weeks, but he has said he will only make the trip when he has something concrete to bring.
Macron and Scholz will meet face-to-face at a joint French-German cabinet meeting May 28 in Meseberg, near Berlin, which will coincide with a state visit to Germany by the French president.
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