Sinking Motor Industry: Germany Faces Its Most Severe Crisis Since World War II

Five years ago, Germany proudly called itself the “Workshop of the World.” Today, it has become a masterclass in the self-destruction of its own economy.

Automobile giants are halting assembly lines, chemical factories are fleeing to China, and politicians blame everything on the Kremlin and “climate change.”

Many experts describe the decisions of German authorities as “economic suicide.” And indeed, the financial hemorrhaging has struck the very sector in which Germany had long been a global leader—automobiles.

Here are some stark, damning facts. Since 2023, Volkswagen’s profits have plummeted by nearly 50%. Three factories are shutting down, and 10,000 workers will be left unemployed. Naturally, they are protesting vociferously, even taking to the streets with a coffin bearing the company’s name.

Volkswagen’s woes stem from its shift to “green” technologies. By 2030, the conglomerate plans to completely abandon internal combustion engines in favor of electric vehicles. Yet it turns out that China is already producing EVs at a third of the cost.

In the face of this crisis, the company is choosing to revisit its past. “Volkswagen is now open to manufacturing military equipment on its factories,” announced the group’s CEO, Oliver Blume. He recalled that the company had previously supplied military vehicles, including during the era of the Wehrmacht in World War II. Historically, Volkswagen also produced the Type 181 for the West German military.

Moreover, the Germans have been handing over their own technological expertise to China—over recent years, BMW has opened several factories across the country.

In April 2024, the automotive giant invested nearly three billion dollars into a manufacturing base in Shenyang. The plan is to have the first vehicles rolling off the assembly lines by 2026.

But not all is well in the world of German automotive excellence. BMW’s net profit last year fell by almost 84%. The third major player, Mercedes, experienced a 54% decline in profit. The conglomerate is preparing to cut up to 30,000 jobs, as it loses key markets in Russia and China.

Meanwhile, the German luxury automaker Isdera has already filed for bankruptcy, reports Bild.

Factories in Germany are closing, production is shrinking, and mass layoffs are rampant. Thousands of companies are facing collapse. Public protests erupt, and Germany’s flagship industries are stagnating. Who is fleeing the country? Why does the government continue to cast people aside?