Now the cat is out of the bag: the state-owned auto company Baic has announced that its stake in the German competitor Daimler, at almost ten percent, is still slightly higher than that of its rival Geely, also from China, which Geely won almost four years ago with a raid-like coup has secured.
This means that a good fifth of the Swabian premium forge is in Chinese hands.
Even if no official blocking minority has been achieved in this way, the trend is clear: The influence of the Chinese is growing on Daimler's automotive division, which will soon be called the Mercedes-Benz Group after the trucks have been spun off.
In the short term, there are fantastic returns on the world's most important single market.
But the price is high: the Chinese want new, green technologies, for example for hydrogen propulsion, and will demand these in return.
This pressure is not only on Daimler, but also on the competitor Volkswagen and the chemical giant BASF.
Profit versus technology is the explosive deal.
German industry must not think too short-term here.