Container port in Hamburg: exports to Great Britain are already suffering
Photo: DPA
The recently intensified Brext dispute could cost the German economy billions, warns the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DIHK).
Without a trade agreement with Great Britain, the automotive industry alone could face tariffs of at least two billion euros, said DIHK Managing Director Martin Wansleben of the "Augsburger Allgemeine".
According to him, the automobile business accounts for the largest share of the trade volume between Germany and Great Britain.
The tariffs would make vehicles more expensive and lead to a decline in demand, which would mean that production of around three million vehicles would have to be stopped in the next five years, said 23 EU associations of the auto industry in a joint statement.
Johnson wants to change the Brexit treaty
"There is growing concern in the economy that the Brexit negotiations will fail," said Wansleben.
There is a "new uncertainty".
The government of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson surprisingly announced a few days ago that it would unilaterally change the Brexit treaty that was passed with the EU in January.
Among other things, it concerns the suspension of customs regulations in the trade in goods for the province of Northern Ireland.
London and Brussels are currently unable to agree on the concrete implementation of the exit agreement and a treaty on economic relations from 2021.
In the event of a hard break, supply chains and long waiting times at the borders are to be feared, as there is still no functioning infrastructure for customs clearance on the British side, said Wansleben.
Great Britain left the European Union on January 31st.
At the moment, however, there is still a transition phase until the end of the year in which future relationships are to be regulated.
Without a trade agreement, a chaotic Brexit threatens with the establishment of customs and other barriers.
20 billion euros less German exports to Great Britain since the Brexit referendum
Wansleben said that the Brexit uncertainties of the past had already left "clear marks" on economic relations.
Since the Brexit referendum in 2016, German exports to Great Britain have fallen noticeably - from 89 billion euros in 2015 to 79 billion euros in 2019. As a result, the UK slipped from 3rd place to 5th place among Germany's most important export markets.
The trend will continue this year and will be exacerbated by the corona crisis, said the DIHK managing director.
For example, German exports to Great Britain fell by almost 22 percent between January and July compared to the same period last year.
Some party colleagues also reject Johnson's course
It is all the more important for companies that future relations between the EU and Great Britain are regulated with clear priorities: "Keeping the EU internal market together, avoiding tariffs, maintaining transport routes and keeping the bureaucracy in the exchange of goods as low as possible," demanded Wansleben.
The House of Commons in London begins this Monday with deliberations on the government's plan to unilaterally change the January Brexit treaty.
The debate about the corresponding bill is likely to become heated, as some MPs from Johnson's Conservative Tories oppose this approach.
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