Germany returns to St. Petersburg: German industry reopens in Moscow in defiance of politics

31 May 20261 week babelfish

In St. Petersburg, the International Economic Forum (SPIEF) marks a quiet turning point. After years of official silence due to the conflict in Ukraine, the German business community returns to the most important economic event hosted by Vladimir Putin. These are not marginal figures: we are talking about Thomas Bruch, CEO of Globus Holding, dairy producer Stefan Dürr, and Matthias Schepp , president of the German-Russian Chamber of Commerce.

While Berlin's politicians, led by CDU leader Friedrich Merz, maintain a stance of total and rigid closure toward Moscow, the real economy is taking stock. And, as often happens, numbers dictate the outcome more than diplomacy.

Capital Defense and the Specter of China

German industrial pragmatism is openly clashing with political attitudes. As Schepp points out, the West cannot afford to permanently hand over a vast market rich in raw materials to Asia. While Europe retreats due to sanctions, China is making great strides: in the first quarter of this year alone, Beijing opened 1,400 new companies on Russian soil.

At stake are figures that German industry, currently struggling with dangerous stagnation, cannot ignore:

Assets to protect: Over €100 billion in German investments still present in Russia.
Local presence: Around 1,600 German companies continue to operate locally.
Turnover: In 2023, the turnover of these companies reached 20 billion euros .
Trade: Dropped below 10 billion euros, a drop from 59.7 billion in 2021.

What businesses are asking for (and the economic implications)

Surveys conducted by the Chamber of Commerce among 750 members reveal a stark picture. Although two-thirds of respondents admit that sanctions are severely impacting the Russian economy, there is solid operational resilience. In fact, 75% of companies say they are satisfied with their local operations, despite the many challenges.

But the most sobering finding regarding the implications for our continent is the perceived damage. Over half of the companies believe the sanctions are affecting Germany and Russia equally, while a full third believe Berlin is the one suffering the most. Energy remains a sensitive issue: without low-cost gas flows, German manufacturing industry sees its ability to generate wealth and maintain jobs eroded. It's no coincidence that 65% of the companies surveyed would like to immediately resume imports of Russian hydrocarbons, while another 31% would do so as soon as the fighting ends.

Are conditions changing?

The presence at the Forum of figures such as Jörg Urban (AfD), as well as figures from the publishing and cultural worlds, signals an increasingly clear divide. On one side, the strongly anti-Russian positions of Merz and the federal government; on the other, companies are moving forward with an eye on the future. German business appears to have realized that permanent isolation only means ceding irrecoverable market share to Asian competitors. Will German politics sooner or later have to deal with an economy clamoring for a return to realism? Or will it first have to witness a complete overhaul of its ruling class?

The article Germany returns to St. Petersburg: German industry reopens in Moscow in defiance of politics comes from Scenari Economici .

This is a machine translation of a post published on Scenari Economici at the URL https://scenarieconomici.it/la-germania-torna-a-san-pietroburgo-lindustria-tedesca-riapre-a-mosca-sfidando-la-politica/ on Sun, 31 May 2026 15:36:33 +0000.