China ranks as Germany's top source of investment projects in 2025

Chinese companies became the largest source of foreign investment projects in Germany in 2025, overtaking the United States for the first time since 2017, an official report showed on Thursday.

Chinese firms launched 228 investment projects in Germany last year, up 14.6 percent from the previous year, according to the annual report by the federal agency Germany Trade and Invest (GTAI).

"We are pleased to see that, despite the challenging global economic climate, Germany remained a strong partner for foreign investors last year. And China once again took the top spot with 228 investment projects, a remarkable achievement after several years," said Achim Hartig, managing director of GTAI.

U.S. companies, by contrast, accounted for 206 projects, down 10 percent year on year. Meanwhile, Switzerland ranked third, with 174 projects after a 13.9-percent decline.

The report tracked greenfield investments and expansion projects but excludes mergers and acquisitions.

The number of foreign investment projects in Germany fell 9.3 percent overall to 1,564 in 2025, reflecting what GTAI described as a challenging global investment environment.

The agency noted that Germany remained relatively resilient compared with its European Union peers, where foreign investment projects declined by around 18 percent across the bloc.

Chinese investors showed the strongest interest in electronics and automation, transport and logistics, energy, and digitalization, the report said.

More than one in five Chinese investment projects involved production and research-and-development activities, above the overall average for foreign investment projects in Germany. This is a sign that Chinese firms are deepening their integration into the local industrial base, according to GTAI.

Thomas Bozoyan, a GTAI expert and the report's author, said Chinese companies were continuously expanding their footprint in Germany, in particular across industrial applications, cutting-edge and future technologies, as well as knowledge-intensive services.

China ranks as Germany's top source of investment projects in 2025

The hantavirus outbreak linked to the cruise ship, MV Hondius, has now reached 12 confirmed cases, with three reported deaths, World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Friday.

Speaking at a press briefing in Geneva, Tedros said the Netherlands had confirmed an additional case involving a crew member who disembarked in Tenerife, Spain, was repatriated to the Netherlands and has been isolating since then.

No deaths have been reported since May 2, when the outbreak was first reported to WHO, said Tedros.

He urged the affected countries to continue carefully monitoring all passengers and crew members for the remainder of the quarantine period.

More than 600 contacts continue to be followed in 30 countries, and a small number of high-risk contacts are still being located, according to the WHO chief.

He also thanked the countries cooperating in the international response and epidemiological investigation.

The cruise, operated by Oceanwide Expeditions, departed from Argentina on April 1, carrying around 150 passengers and crew members from more than 20 countries.

The ship arrived at the Dutch port city of Rotterdam on Monday for disinfection, ending a voyage that had drawn the attention of international health authorities over hantavirus infections on board.

Hantavirus cases linked to cruise ship rise to 12 after crew member tests positive: WHO