German Chancellor Friedrich Merz (second from left) visits Unitree Robotics in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, on Feb 26. [Photo/IC]

Zhejiang's trade with Germany reached 162.4 billion yuan ($23.69 billion) in 2025, up 8.3 percent year-on-year and hitting a record high, according to data released by Hangzhou Customs.

Germany remains Zhejiang's largest trading partner among European Union member states. In 2025, 29,000 Zhejiang enterprises recorded import and export activity with Germany, meaning one in every five foreign trade firms in the province was engaged in Germany-related business.

High-tech products accounted for nearly 30 percent of Zhejiang's total imports from Germany. In 2025, imports of mechanical and electrical products reached 17.85 billion yuan, up 6.5 percent, while imports of high-tech products totaled 9.11 billion yuan, up 10 percent.

Imports of instruments and meters, biomedicine products, and high-end machine tools increased by 14.0 percent, 33.3 percent, and 22.5 percent, respectively. Consumer goods imports reached 5.72 billion yuan, up 6.6 percent, mainly including alcoholic beverages, milk powder, and cosmetics.

Exports of mechanical and electrical products to Germany totaled 72.14 billion yuan, up 8.1 percent, accounting for 55.1 percent of Zhejiang's total exports to Germany. Exports of electrical equipment, auto parts, lighting products, and vehicle-use lithium batteries rose by 12.3 percent, 15.4 percent, 13.1 percent, and 1,270 percent, respectively.

Zhejiang Longhu Forging Co said its exports to Germany nearly doubled in 2025, with orders from German clients in January 2026 rising 36 percent year-on-year.

At the Hangzhou manufacturing facility of US pharmaceutical company MSD in Qiantang district, some pharmaceutical raw materials are imported from Germany. To protect temperature-sensitive products, customs authorities have adopted a controlled inspection model that allows goods to be transported to qualified facilities for unpacking rather than being opened at the port. In 2025, the facility's imports of biopharmaceutical products from Germany reached 277 million yuan, nearly tripling year-on-year.