China's Premier Li visits BMW, Siemens on final leg of Germany trip

China's Premier Li Qiang visited carmaker BMW and manufacturing giant Siemens on Wednesday in the southern German state of Bavaria.
At the carmaker in Munich, Li met chief executive Oliver Zipse. Last year alone, BMW sold almost 800,000 vehicles in the People's republic, as part of what Zipse referred to as the firm's long-standing relations with China.
Siemens also received the delegation from Beijing. Chief executive Roland Busch took part in a meeting with the Chinese premier in Berlin on Tuesday.
One of the topics of the visit to Siemens was artificial intelligence (AI).
Siemens had announced further investments in China only a few days ago. In 2022, the People's Republic would account for about 13% of the firm's sales, it said.
China is one of Bavaria's most important trading partners. Last year, imports of €36.5 billion ($40 billion) were far greater than from any other country. As a destination for Bavarian exports, China ranked third with €18.4 billion, behind the United States and Austria.
Bavaria's state premier Markus Söder emphasized the economic importance of China. A complete withdrawal from China would not be "at all feasible" for sectors such as the car industry, electronics or chemicals.