Kärcher CEO Warns of a 'Perfect Storm' for European Industry

Kärcher chief executive Hartmut Jenner said Germany and Europe face a "perfect storm" in an opinion piece published by Euronews on November 1, 2026. He warned that deindustrialisation "is happening right now", pointing to lost industrial jobs and falling production.

Jenner named two external pressures. Unpredictable US trade policy threatens tariffs and trade barriers without warning, he wrote, while China has become "a highly aggressive technological competitor". He said Chinese state subsidies and currency policy create overcapacity and market distortions that make fair competition "almost impossible" for privately owned companies such as Kärcher.

He also blamed domestic conditions. Rising structural and labour costs make new production sites and jobs in Germany and Europe barely viable, he wrote, and described forecast German growth of 1.3% as "borrowed growth" driven by public debt, defence orders and subsidies. He called for cuts to bureaucracy, incentives for additional work and a firm EU trade policy towards the US and China.

Jenner has led the family-owned company since 2001. Kärcher generated almost EUR 3.5 billion of turnover in 2025, 86% of it outside Germany, and employs 17,000 people. More than 1,000 employees work in research and development, including on cleaning robots and battery technology.