Is the entry of the Chinese state-owned company Cosco in the port of Hamburg a danger for Germany and Europe? The Kiel Institute for the World Economy points out that it is not the question of the amount of the stake that is decisive, but the disposal of customer data.
The Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW) warns that if the Chinese state-owned company Cosco enters a terminal in the Port of Hamburg, there will be a growing technological gap to the People's Republic. "Cosco is already way ahead in the digitization of global sea transport," said IfW trade expert Rolf Langhammer. "The Chinese are already way ahead of us here." They could rush further if they were to be able to use more customer data from Hamburg in the future.
According to the expert, more and more containers are being fitted with sensors that automatically check the condition of the loaded goods throughout the journey. Upon arrival at the destination, the next processes can be automated, from customs clearance to payment. "The resulting amounts of data are then in the hands of Cosco, which can make full use of artificial intelligence and blockchain technology," said Langhammer.
Accordingly, by entering the Hamburg terminal, Cosco could gain an even stronger position and, in cooperation with other Chinese tech companies, achieve a dominant market position at the expense of its competitors. The leadership in Beijing could also use this to enforce a digital yuan as a currency.
The federal government should therefore only approve a possible participation by Cosco under verifiable conditions that enable permanent control of the Chinese group's business conduct, said Langhammer. Above all, the conditions should include a guarantee that the Hamburg Senate has insight into the digital infrastructure used by Cosco to process trade and can influence it. This infrastructure must be kept open to competitors.
Cosco is heading towards the controversial entry into a container terminal in the port of Hamburg. According to information from informed circles, after the federal government agreed on a compromise to only allow the Chinese to hold a stake of 24.9 percent in a terminal operating company, the logistics group HHLA is trying to reach an agreement with Cosco. The shipping company had originally wanted to acquire a 35 percent stake, but this was met with resistance within the federal government.
According to information from government circles, the departments involved see the limit to 24.9 percent as an "emergency solution" to prevent Cosco from also getting a managing director and the right to object. The negotiations have not yet been fully concluded, but this solution is probably the way to go, it said.
DIW President Marcel Fratzscher also criticized the planned compromise for the entry of the Chinese state shipping company. "The federal government is repeating the mistakes of many previous federal governments and is putting short-term economic interests above long-term prosperity and stability," said the head of the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW). "Through the participation in the terminal company, Cosco gains an indirect influence and important information about a critical infrastructure in Germany and Europe."
Germany and the EU should follow the example of the USA and not only strictly prohibit any participation of non-European companies in important infrastructure, but also reverse it. This should not only apply to companies in autocratic countries, but to companies in all non-EU countries.
"I suspect that the federal government does not want to jeopardize the economic agreements planned before the Chancellor's visit to China and has caved in to Chinese pressure," said Fratzscher, referring to Olaf Scholz' planned trip to the People's Republic at the beginning of November. "Instead of pursuing a value-oriented foreign trade policy, as promised in the coalition agreement, the federal government is continuing to pursue a mercantilist foreign trade policy aimed at short-term profits and not long-term competitiveness." In doing so, Germany and Europe compromised their long-term competitiveness and much of their economic prosperity. The EU and Germany should put the symmetry of economic relations at the center of their economic policy with China.
European and German companies do not have the same access and rights in China as Chinese companies do in the European Union. "With this policy, Europe is making China strong and creating major competitive disadvantages for its own companies in the long term - as long as this asymmetry is not remedied," said Fratzscher.
