(Yicai) May 30 -- A delegation of about 40 political and business figures from Germany are visiting China to seek economic and trade cooperation opportunities.

The delegation, led by Stephan Weil, minister-president of Lower Saxony, kicked off its one-week trip to Shanghai and Anhui province on May 27.

"By leading this large delegation, I hope to enhance close cooperation with China," Weil said during his stay in Shanghai. “We don’t need trade protectionism and look forward to achieving win-win development under framework laws.”

Automobiles, environmental technologies, and vocational education are the key areas Weil is seeking cooperation on, a member of the delegation told Yicai.

The German delegation visited Cosco Shipping Holdings to discuss cooperation opportunities in the shipping, port, supply chain, and other areas.

The Jade Weser Port, a container port in Wilhelmshaven, Lower Saxony, is benefiting from Chinese electric vehicle exports, the above delegation member noted, adding that the port's parking is full of EVs from China. "I hope even more Chinese cars can be hosted at the Jade Weser Port after expansion," the person pointed out.

After Shanghai, the German delegation will visit Volkswagen's plant in Anhui. Given the digitalization and electrification trends of China's automotive industry, China has become quite a strong rival for Germany, Weil said before, noting that Volkswagen has to achieve digital development through cooperation with Chinese firms.

Germany's direct investment in China reached EUR11.9 billion (USD12.8 billion) last year. According to data from the German Federal Statistical Office, the bilateral trade between China and Germany totaled EUR253.1 billion (USD273.2 billion) last year. China has been Germany’s biggest trade partners for eight years in a row.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited China for the second time during his tenure last month, accompanied by senior representatives from many German firms, including Siemens, Bayer, Mercedes-Benz, and Zeiss. Scholz's trip in the country included the cities of Chongqing, Shanghai, and Beijing.

Located in Northwest Germany, the country's second-biggest state of Lower Saxony is an economic powerhouse, as many multinational companies are based there, including Volkswagen. More than 500 companies from Lower Saxony are investing or doing business in China, over 200 of which in Shanghai and nearby provinces.

The German economy is facing challenges, so China is crucial for the development of the German economy and trade, Zheng Chunrong, director of the German Studies Center at Tongji University, told Yicai. Keeping cooperation with China is particularly important for Germany, given its slowing economic growth, he added.

The new growth points of the economic and trade cooperation between China and Germany are mainly concentrated on green transformation, Zheng said. The two countries have even bigger cooperation potential, especially in new energy fields, such as photovoltaic power and offshore power generation, he noted.

Editors: Zhang Yushuo, Futura Costaglione