China-Germany post trade expansion in 2025 amid deepening ties

China and Germany have been expanding trade ties continuously since their establishment of diplomatic relations more than five decades ago, with their bilateral trade growing faster than China's overall foreign trade in 2025, official data showed on Wednesday.

In 2025, trade of goods between China and Germany totaled 1.51 trillion yuan (about 217.83 billion U.S. dollars), which was up 5.2 percent from the year prior, with a growth rate 1.4 percentage points higher than China's overall foreign trade expansion for the year, according to the General Administration of Customs.

Germany remained China's largest trading partner in Europe last year. Meanwhile, China regained its position as Germany's top trading partner following a one-year lapse.

Machinery and electrical products took the lion's share of these trade flows. Imports and exports of such goods between the two countries totaled 1.07 trillion yuan in 2025, rising 5.8 percent year on year and accounting for more than 70 percent of bilateral trade.

As the world's second and third-largest economies, China and Germany are all-round strategic partners that benefit from each other.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz arrived in Beijing on Wednesday, beginning an official visit to China that will continue through Thursday. He is accompanied by a business delegation comprising executives of approximately 30 major German firms covering industries such as automotive manufacturing, chemicals and pharmaceuticals. ■