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REUTERS/Phil Noble/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsFRANKFURT/MUNICH, Oct 26 (Reuters) - German technology groups have warned they are being hit by delays in getting China-bound exports through customs, following the introduction of a German government strategy to reduce economic dependence on demand from China. German chip-making kit supplier Suess MicroTec (SMHNn.DE) late on Wednesday cut its sales forecasts for the second time in three months, blaming tightened controls for exports to China. German customs and the Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control (BAFA) did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Lobby group Asia-Pacific Committee of German Business (APA) told Reuters the BAFA office was appearing to scrutinise export requests more closely or escalate requests to the economy ministry more often. Still, the German chamber of commerce said the political environment was hobbling exports to China.

Persons: Phil Noble, Suess, Friedolin Strack, Burkhardt Frick, Martin Wansleben, Alexander Huebner, Rene Wagner, Christian Kraemer, Thomas Escritt, Anneli, Ludwig Burger, David Holmes Organizations: REUTERS, Federal Office, Economic Affairs, Export Control, Pacific Committee, German Business, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Hamburg, Germany, FRANKFURT, MUNICH, China, Asia, Munich, Berlin, Duesseldorf, Frankfurt

☆ German startup Fernride raises $50 mln for self-driving freight trucks
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-20 | by ( Nick Carey | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Sept 20 (Reuters) - German self-driving startup Fernride said on Wednesday that it has raised $50 million in Series A funding to increase the use of its "human-assisted" autonomous freight trucks in customer's logistics yards. The Munich-based startup had initially closed the funding round with $31 million, but had extended it due to high investor interest, the company said. New investors include Munich Re's venture capital arm Munich Re Ventures, Bavarian venture capital firm Bayern Kapital and former Siemens Klaus Kleinfeld, who will become chairman of the board at Fernride. Existing investors, including strategic investors HHLA (HHFGn.DE) and Deutsche Bahn (DBN.UL) unit DB Schenker also participated in the funding round. Fernride's trucks currently operate autonomously around 80% of the time, then remote human operators to step in to help the remainder of the time.

Persons: Siemens Klaus Kleinfeld, Hendrik Kramer, DB, Kramer, Nick Carey, David Evans Organizations: Munich Re Ventures, Bayern Kapital, Siemens, Deutsche Bahn, DB Schenker, Volkswagen, Thomson Locations: Munich, Bavarian, Fernride, Hamburg

Containers are seen at a terminal in the port of Hamburg, Germany November 14, 2019. Under a deal between MSC and the city of Hamburg, MSC will make a cash offer of 16.75 euros ($17.99) per share to acquire all listed class A stock in HHLA. The city of Hamburg, which owns 69% of HHLA's A shares and all of its unlisted S-shares, would retain control of Hamburg port with a 50.1% stake via the S-shares. A source familiar with the deal gave an enterprise value of 2.6 billion euros, including 1.4 billion euros in debt. HHLA said its management board would review the MSC offer.

Persons: Fabian Bimmer, Klaus, Michael Kuehne, Lloyd, Kuehne, Marc Zeck, Stifel, Nikolas Mauder, Kepler Cheuvreux, HHLA, Andrey Sychev, Sabine Wollrab, Rachel More, Emelia Sithole, David Holmes Organizations: REUTERS, Kuehne, Reuters, MSC, Thomson Locations: Hamburg, Germany, BERLIN, Hapag, HHLA, Germany's, Gdansk, Frankfurt

Containers are seen at a terminal in the port of Hamburg, Germany November 14, 2019. Under the deal between Switzerland-based MSC and the city of Hamburg, MSC will make a cash offer of 16.75 euros ($17.99) per share to acquire all listed class A stock in HHLA. The city of Hamburg, which currently owns 69% of HHLA's A shares and all of its unlisted S-shares, would retain control of Hamburg port with a 50.1% stake via the S-shares. A source familiar with the deal gave an enterprise value of 2.6 billion euros, including 1.4 billion euros in debt. HHLA said its management board would review MSC offer.

Persons: Fabian Bimmer, Klaus, Michael Kuehne, Hapag, Lloyd, Marc Zeck, Nikolas Mauder, Kepler Cheuvreux, Robert Habeck, HHLA, Andrey Sychev, Sabine Wollrab, Rachel More, Jason Neely, Mark Potter, Emelia Organizations: REUTERS, MSC, Reuters, Belgian, Thomson Locations: Hamburg, Germany, BERLIN, Switzerland, HHLA, Germany's, Swiss, China, Berlin, Gdansk, Frankfurt

☆ German exporters see decline in trade in 2023 - BGA
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

A crane lifts a shipping container at the HHLA Container Terminal Altenwerder on the River Elbe in Hamburg, Germany, March 31, 2023. REUTERS/Phil Noble/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsBERLIN, Sept 6 (Reuters) - Most German exporters see trade declining or even strongly declining in 2023, the Federation of German Wholesale, Foreign Trade and Services (BGA) said on Wednesday. The reasons for the pessimistic mood among exporters are linked to the weak economic situation in Asia and South America, according to the BGA. "It will be a burden for our small and medium companies," Jandura said, arguing that it will increase bureaucracy and legal uncertainties. "In Brussels, a weighty German voice for free trade is missing," Jandura said.

Persons: Phil Noble, Dirk Jandura, Jandura, Maria Martinez, Nick Macfie Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Federation of German Wholesale, Foreign Trade and Services, European, Thomson Locations: Hamburg, Germany, Asia, South America, Brussels

☆ German exports fall less-than-expected 0.9% in July
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Phil Noble/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsBERLIN, Sept 4 (Reuters) - German exports fell a less-than-expected 0.9% in July from a month earlier as global demand continued to falter, data from the federal statistics office showed on Monday. "Trade is no longer the strong resilient growth driver of the German economy that it used to be, but rather a drag," said Carsten Brzeski, global head of macroeconomics at ING. Imports rose 1.4% on the month, the data showed. German export expectations have deteriorated slightly due to weak foreign demand, an Ifo survey showed in August. "As long as the global economic environment remains weak, German exports will also remain depressed," said Thomas Gitzel, chief economist at VP Bank.

Persons: Phil Noble, Carsten Brzeski, Brzeski, Bastian Hepperle, Hauck Aufhaeuser Lampe, Thomas Gitzel, Maria Martinez, Friederike Heine, Alex Richardson, Christopher Cushing Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, ING . Supply, European Union, VP Bank, Thomson Locations: Hamburg, Germany, China, Hauck

The visit — the first by a G7 leader to China in roughly three years — comes as Germany slides towards recession. A spokesperson for Hamburger Hafen und Logistik (HHLA), the company operating the port terminal, told CNN Business on Thursday that it was still negotiating the deal with Cosco. “The restrictions are suffocating economic growth and heavily impact China’s attractiveness as a destination for foreign direct investment,” he told CNN Business. The ministry did not respond to a request for comment from CNN Business. He predicted that “the large majority will stay committed to the Chinese market and is expecting to expand their business.”Companies appear to be toeing that line.

☆ China says U.S. has 'no right' to interfere in Hamburg port deal
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BEIJING, Nov 3 (Reuters) - The U.S has "no right" to interfere in Chinese cooperation with Germany, China's foreign ministry said Thursday, after Washington cautioned against Beijing getting a controlling stake in Hamburg's port terminal. U.S. interference is symptomatic of its practice of coercive diplomacy, foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told reporters at a daily briefing in Beijing. Chinese shipping giant Cosco made a bid last year to take a 35% stake in one of logistics firm HHLA's (HHFGn.DE) three terminals in Germany's largest port, but Germany's coalition was divided over the deal. Last week the German cabinet approved a 24.9% stake investment by Cosco in what an economy ministry source described as an "emergency solution" to approve the deal but mitigate the impact. Reporting by Eduardo Baptista, Writing by Martin Quin Pollard; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky and Kim CoghillOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ U.S. cautioned Germany against a Chinese controlling stake in Hamburg port
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Humeyra Pamuk | Lewis Jackson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Cargo ship 'Cosco Shipping Gemini' of Chinese shipping company 'Cosco' is loaded at the container terminal 'Tollerort' in the port in Hamburg, Germany, October 25, 2022. REUTERS/Fabian BimmerMUNSTER, Germany, Nov 2 (Reuters) - The United States cautioned Germany against allowing China to obtain a controlling stake in a Hamburg port terminal, a senior U.S. State Department official said on Wednesday, in a deal that has been seen as a gauge of how far Germany is willing to toughen its stance on its top trading partner. By pushing the stake under 25%, the deal no longer officially requires Cabinet approval, which would have been hard to muster from the Greens and liberal-run ministries. The document points to "considerable risks that arise when elements of the European transport infrastructure are influenced and controlled by China - while China itself does not allow Germany to participate in Chinese ports." Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk in Munster, Germany; writing by Daphne Psaledakis in Washington; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ U.S. 'strongly suggested' there be no controlling interest by China in Hamburg port terminal
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Humeyra Pamuk | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Cargo ship 'Cosco Shipping Gemini' of Chinese shipping company 'Cosco' is loaded at the container terminal 'Tollerort' in the port in Hamburg, Germany, October 25, 2022. REUTERS/Fabian BimmerMUNSTER, Germany, Nov 2 (Reuters) - The United States “strongly suggested” that there be no controlling interest by China in a Hamburg port terminal, a senior U.S. State Department official said, adding that the final deal was adjusted in the end with a smaller share for Beijing. “The embassy was very clear that we strongly suggested that there’d be no controlling interest by China, and as you see when they adjusted the deal, there isn’t," a second senior State Department official said. The document points to "considerable risks that arise when elements of the European transport infrastructure are influenced and controlled by China - while China itself does not allow Germany to participate in Chinese ports." Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk in Munster, Germany Writing by Daphne Psaledakis in Washington; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ COSCO Shipping says to buy $2.7 bln port assets from parent, in $2.9 bln ship building deal
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Oct 31 (Reuters) - COSCO Shipping Holdings Co Ltd said on Monday it has agreed to buy port assets from its parent for an aggregate 19.7 billion yuan ($2.7 billion) as it aims to build a global digital supply chain for its customers. The Chinese shipping group said it would buy 14.9% of Shanghai International Port (Group) (600018.SS) from its indirect controlling parent China COSCO Shipping Corp Ltd for 18.9 billion yuan, and a 3.2% stake in Guangzhou Port (601228.SS) for 778.7 million yuan. COSCO Shipping Holdings (601919.SS) also said it had entered into shipping contracts with China COSCO Shipping's Dalian COSCO KHI Ship Engineering to build five vessels for a total of $1.2 billion. Its unit Orient Overseas (International) Ltd (0316.HK) has entered into ship building contracts with Nantong COSCO KHI Ship Engineering to build seven vessels for a total $1.7 billion. read more($1 = 7.2499 Chinese yuan renminbi)Reporting by Donny Kwok; Editing by Kim CoghillOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Germany allows China's Cosco to take 24.9% stake in largest port -sources
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, Oct 26 (Reuters) - The German cabinet approved on Wednesday an investment by China's Cosco for a 24.9% stake in one of logistics firm HHLA's (HHFGn.DE) three terminals in Germany's largest port in Hamburg, government sources told Reuters. This is less than the initially planned 35% stake that the Chinese shipping giant had aimed for and comes a week before Chancellor Olaf Scholz is due to travel to China. The compromise was negotiated after significant political resistance against the deal. Economy minister Robert Habeck was among the politicians that said that Germany should avoid Chinese investment in critical infrastructure if possible. Reporting by Andreas Rinke, Writing by Rachel More, editing by Kirsti Knolle and Maria SheahanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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