The German Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DIHK) sees a gradual relocation of production from German industrial companies abroad. This is increasingly happening for cost reasons, the DIHK announced on Thursday in Berlin, referring to a survey. Of the industrial companies with investment plans abroad, 32 percent named cost savings as a motive. This is a sharp increase compared to the previous year, when 26 percent of the companies said so. The “Handelsblatt” reported about it first.
“Almost every third company that wants to invest abroad is reacting to the deteriorating cost structure in Germany,” said Volker Treier, DIHK foreign trade chief. “That should be a wake-up call to politicians to improve the location conditions in Germany”. According to DIHK findings, industrial companies that invest abroad to save costs have fewer domestic investment and employment plans than the average industrial company. “This sets them apart from companies whose motives for investing abroad are market development or sales.”
High energy costs, lengthy approval procedures, a shortage of skilled workers and an often inadequate infrastructure weighed on the position of companies in Germany. “Politics must address these structural problems, otherwise the industrial foundations in Germany will begin to crumble.”
Overall, however, German industrial companies are currently investing less abroad. The companies were hit particularly hard by the Russian war in Ukraine and the significant rise in energy prices, but also by the difficult years of the corona pandemic. “These current crises have put a strain on investment budgets overall and are having a major impact on foreign investments,” said Treier.
