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Germany will host an auto summit on Oct. 9 to discuss ways to boost the competitiveness of the German auto market amid rising competition from the US and China, according to a statement.

The summit will be attended by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and auto industry representatives, manufacturers, suppliers, and union representatives in Berlin, said Steffen Meyer, first deputy spokesperson, in a recent statement.

Vice-Chancellor and Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil and other Cabinet members will also attend, while the premiers of the countries where German automaker factories are located are also invited.

Meyer said the two-hour summit will focus on finding common solutions to position the auto industry for future technologies, while discussing securing jobs and achieving climate targets.

The summit is expected to be a platform to discuss the plan to phase out new gasoline and diesel cars in EU countries starting in 2035.

Speaking on Sept. 9. at the opening of Munich’s International Motor Show Germany, Merz said the German auto industry would continue to be a key sector for the country’s prosperity but it needs a serious overhaul and the right policy framework,.

The German government wants the EU to relax carbon emissions reduction targets and reconsider banning new gasoline and diesel cars to be sold.

German automakers are struggling with high costs of shifting to electric vehicles (EVs), while being pressured to reduce costs and maintain competitiveness amid weak demand from China and Europe, all the while losing ground to Chinese and American competitors.

The US and China became major players in the auto industry with the emergence of recent technologies, while German auto companies have had to restructure and lay off workers. Most recently, Bosch, the world’s largest auto parts supplier, announced plans to lay off 13,000 more workers by 2030.

The crisis in the German auto sector was led by a combination of overlooked trends, structural problems, and geopolitical risks, while the sector was once the backbone of the country’s economy.

The auto sector accounts for 5% of the total added value in Germany, while providing 3% of the employment and generating the largest revenue compared to other sectors.

German auto exports totaled €262 billion ($307.8 billion) in 2024, making up 17% of the country’s total exports.

Around 772,900 workers were employed in the German auto industry, except for suppliers, as of the end of 2024, while auto sector employment fell 0.1% versus 2023.

Around 14% of German auto sector employees are industrial workers, making the second-largest industrial sector, following mechanical engineering, which employs 952,000 workers.

Five new needle bins have been installed across a city to help crack down on discarded drug paraphernalia.

Peterborough City Council said it worked with organisations including Cambridgeshire Police, the drugs support group Aspire and local campaigners to tackle the littering and was confident that the new bins would help keep communities safe.

There were now 15 needle bins across the city, which have had more than 2,600 needles deposited in them since 2019.

Harry Machin from Peterborough Litter Wombles, who has picked up discarded syringes across the city, welcomed the news and said the project “has made a difference” in some of the areas.

The five bins have been installed in:

• Boulevard cycle path near Taverners roundabout
• Bourges Boulevard near English Street
• Gladstone Park
• Lincoln Road subway
• Embankment area, following a successful Safer Communities Fund application.

The bins were marked with stickers stating ‘sharps disposal’ and were emptied by the council’s waste contractor, Aragon Direct Services, around every two months.

Councillor Zameer Ali, cabinet member for communities, poverty and public health, said: “Discarded needles are not a problem unique to Peterborough, but they continue to be a common sight in some areas of the city.

“We have installed these new bins as part of our work to develop strong and sustainable communities and help ensure public safety.

“Our needle bins continue to be well-used, preventing dangerous drug paraphernalia from ending up on the streets, potentially coming into contact with children or vulnerable residents.”

Mr Machin said: “They [council] are getting the problem sort of under control… something is making a difference.

“I have found needles in these locations in the past, so I think the council health team is on it and are trying to deal with the issue. But I also think they need to put more actual litter bins around the city.

“We have been working on identifying locations that are desperately in need of a bin…it is taking a while to get the message across, but hopefully we will see something in due course.”

Tokyo, October 3, 2025 – Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Thermal Systems, Ltd. (President: Yoshihiro Ito; Headquartered at Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; hereinafter referred to as “MHI Thermal Systems”), a member of the MHI Group, has announced the newly developed the ETI-W, a centrifugal heat pump effectively using waste heat, for Japanese market.

This announced ETI-W effectively utilizes the heat emitted at factory production processes as a heat source water, achieving a maximum hot water supply temperature of 90℃ and a large capacity of up to 640 kW. This enables its use in high-temperature applications that were traditionally handled by conventional boilers. The “ETI-W” is expected to be utilized in a wide range of applications, including processes in electronics, automotive, food, chemical, and pharmaceutical factories, as well as heating and hot water supply in commercial facilities and accommodations.

ETI-W has high energy-saving with COP(Note1) of 4.01 when this supplies hot water temperature of 90℃. The compressor features centrifugal compressors with a proven track record in our centrifugal chillers, optimally designed for refrigerant characteristics and high compression ratios. It is also capable of handling a large capacity suitable for industrial applications, equivalent to a 1-ton boiler with a maximum capacity of 640 kW. Despite this capacity, it achieves high performance and a compact size by incorporating an inverter starter panel within the main unit and utilizing a shell-and-tube(Note2) heat exchanger, similar to our ETI-Z series centrifugal chillers. Environmentally, it features a model that uses the low-environmental-impact, non-fluorocarbon refrigerant “HFO-1233zd(E),” which has a global warming potential (GWP)(Note3) of 1 and does not deplete the ozone layer, thus achieving both high efficiency and environmental performance.

With the launch of this product, our lineup of industrial and commercial heat pump utilities, which includes heat recovery heat pumps and commercial heat pumps, will be further expanded across a wide range of hot water supply coverages and capacities, contributing to energy savings for our customers.

MHI Thermal Systems has supplied numerous centrifugal chillers for regional air-conditioning systems, factory air conditioning, besides other applications, achieving the top market share in Japan. The company will continue to focus on developing greener and higher-performance products, contributing to conserving the global environment and reducing CO₂ Emissions.

• 1 Abbreviation for Coefficient of Performance. This refers to the performance coefficient calculated based on JIS standards, where the higher the value, the greater the energy efficiency.
• 2Shell-and-tube refers to a system where numerous tubes are arranged within a cylindrical shell, enabling heat exchange between both the fluid in the shell and in the tubes.
• 3Abbreviation for Global Warming Potential. A coefficient with CO₂ set to 1, where the lower the value, the greater the environmental performance.

Tokyo, October 3, 2025 -NEC Security, a subsidiary of NEC Corporation (NEC; TSE: 6701), has been awarded a contract to provide cybersecurity services for GREEN×EXPO 2027 (International Horticultural Expo 2027, Yokohama, Japan).

GREEN×EXPO 2027, organized by the Japan Association for the International Horticultural Expo 2027, Yokohama, is an A1 International Horticultural Exhibition that is scheduled to take place for approximately six months from March 19, 2027, to September 26, 2027. A1 is the highest category for horticultural exhibitions approved by the International Association of Horticultural Producers (AIPH) and recognized by the Bureau International des Exhibitions (BIE). Under the theme of “Scenery of the Future for Happiness,” the event is expected to attract approximately 15 million visitors, including 10 million paid visitors.