June 2019
The German-Australian Chamber of Industry and Commerce recently joined forces with the European Australian Business Council (EABC) to send a high-level delegation to Germany for discussions with key political, business and finance representatives in Europe.
German-Australian Chamber of Industry and Commerce Chairman and Siemens Australia CEO, Jeff Connolly, Federal Finance Minister, Senator Mathias Cormann, former NSW Premier, Nick Greiner and Austrade CEO, Dr Stephanie Fahey, joined the delegation which aimed to deepen Australia’s understanding of global trade and economic developments and the impact of Brexit.
German-Australian Chamber Executive Director, Alexandra Voss, said “our meetings with German Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy, Peter Altmeier, and leaders in German industry and finance were very productive. We had a number of important opportunities to discuss the German-Australian bilateral trade and investment relationship, especially the current EU-Australia Free Trade Agreement.
'A comprehensive FTA between Australia and the EU will be an important milestone to boost the trade and investment relationship. The Chamber has been an active participant in the ongoing discussions in order to contribute to the successful completion of this process.'
'Another high priority topic on the delegation’s agenda was the German Industry’s Industrie 4.0 Strategy which is being adopted all around the world because it effectively addresses the automation and data exchange issues many industries are facing at the moment.'
The Australian delegation included representatives from a range of key industries including the energy sector, automotive manufacturing, agriculture, education and the arts.