Volkswagen China top executive criticizes using tariffs against free trade

A top Volkswagen China executive criticized using tariffs against free trade and pointed to the solid fundamentals in the Chinese market as the 2025 Shanghai International Automobile Industry Exhibition, or Auto Shanghai, kicks off on Wednesday.

Stefan Mecha, CEO of Volkswagen China Passenger Cars Brand, pointed out that tariff is not the correct answer to "free trade, good exchanges, and open market" in an interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN) in Shanghai on the sidelines of Auto Shanghai.

"What we advocate as a global company is fair trade, open trade, open markets, rule-based systems. So, we really hope that we'll get back to a truly globalized economy. Tariff is not the answer to free trade and to good exchange and open market," he said.

Mecha said he is upbeat about the potential of the huge Chinese market, noting that its fundamentals are still solid.

"In the first quarter, if you just look at the numbers, automotive sales have grown year on year, passenger cars by around five percent, so over five million cars in the total market. So this first of all speaks for itself. So the market is growing. Now when you look into the GDP of the first quarter and also in China, 5.4 percent for such a sizable economy. We truly believe that we are here in a good spot because the market is growing, consumption is still strong and what we really see the Chinese market, that the government has put very decisive measures on the road and to support consumption and this helps us in the automotive industry big time. So I think from this end, the overall circumstances in a very difficult environment, we know this also in our industry, I would say from the macroeconomic factors are still very solid and very good," he said.

Volkswagen China top executive criticizes using tariffs against free trade

The death toll from a landfill collapse in the central Philippine city of Cebu has risen to eight by Monday morning as search and rescue operations continued for another 28 missing people.

The landfill collapse occurred on Thursday as dozens of sanitation workers were working at the site. The disaster has already caused injuries of 18 people.

Family members of the missing people said the rescue progress is slow, and the hope for the survival of their loved ones is fading.

"For me, maybe I’ve accepted the worst result already because the garbage is poisonous and yesterday, it was raining very hard the whole day. Maybe they’ve been poisoned. For us, alive or dead, I hope we can get their bodies out of the garbage rubble," said Maria Kareen Rubin, a family member of a victim.

Families have set up camps on high ground near the landfill, awaiting news of their relatives. Some people at the site said cries for help could still be heard hours after the landfill collapsed, but these voices gradually faded away.

Bienvenido Ranido, who lost his wife in the disaster, said he can't believe all that happened.

"After they gave my wife oxygen, my kids and I were expecting that she would be saved that night because she was still alive. But the night came and till the next morning, they didn't manage to save her," he said.

Death toll in central Philippine landfill collapse rises to eight