More than two years ago on the outskirts of a medieval German town, China’s biggest EV battery company placed a €1.8 billion ($2 billion) bet on the future of global trade.
The decision by Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd. (CATL) to open a sprawling factory in central Germany — its first outside China — symbolized President Xi Jinping’s recognition that protectionist impulses around the world are here to stay. The idea was simple: invest abroad, create local jobs and keep Chinese goods flowing into key markets. CATL — which this week started trading in Hong Kong after raising $4.6 billion — is a flagship example of that initiative.
"I see ourselves as a blueprint for Chinese companies who are looking to expand in Europe,” Matthias Zentgraf, the battery giant’s European president, said from his factory office outside the town of Arnstadt. With the EU slapping tariffs as high as 45% on Chinese EV exports last year, it’s a tactic being rolled out from Spain to Hungary by companies including BYD, Chery and Leapmotor.
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