Time to yank the dragon's tail?

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We don’t need to tell you that China is a pretty big deal these days. The People’s Republic’s economy has grown fourteen-fold since the turn of the century; it took over the US as the world’s major trader years ago. China is now a superpower.

But for Germany, China is above all a place to make money. Lots of money. Anyone who has visited Beijing in recent years can hardly have failed to spot the armada of Volkswagens and Mercedes drifting through its smoggy streets.

Volkswagen taxis in China © TonyV3112 / shutterstock