China, Germany to unlock cooperation potential in digital economy

INGOLSTADT, Germany, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- Digital economy will bring more dynamics to cooperation between China and Germany, said officials and business leaders at the ninth Bavaria China Day event on Tuesday in Ingolstadt, a city in the southern German state Bavaria.

The event, launched in 2015, has evolved into a symbol of China-Germany collaboration, serving as a platform for the two countries' enterprises to engage in cooperative ventures, said Dorothea Deneke-Stoll, deputy mayor of Ingolstadt.

Deneke-Stoll also hoped that China and Germany could expand collaboration in automotive, digital and artificial intelligence industries to capitalize on the opportunities arising from structural transformation.

Ingolstadt, as the headquarters of German auto giant Audi, holds a substantial role in the local economy.

Juergen Unser, president of Audi China, said Audi is committed to cultivating the Chinese market and participating in local economic development, especially in green and sustainable projects.

This year's event was co-hosted by the eastern Chinese city of Nanjing, which sent a delegation to explore opportunities and promote economic cooperation.

"Nanjing and Jiangsu's industrial structure align well with Bavaria," said Ye Rongsheng, director of the Nanjing Industrial and Information Technology Bureau, adding that German companies could find more investment opportunities in Nanjing as the city is stepping up the transformation of the industrial sector.

Economic and trade cooperation has brought significant benefits to enterprises and people in both China and Germany since the two countries established diplomatic ties, said Yu Guangsheng, deputy director-general of the Investment Promotion Agency of Ministry of Commerce (CIPA), in a video speech.

The China-Germany relationship is a crucial driver of the city's economic development, said Christian Loesel, former mayor of Ingolstadt and managing director of AImotion Bavaria at the Ingolstadt University of Technology.

Cooperation with China spans various emerging fields from the automotive industry and education to areas such as big data and artificial intelligence, Loesel said, hoping that Germany and China could jointly find solutions to future challenges.