Bitkom warns of German economic risk due to digital import dependency

The German digital association Bitkom has warned that German companies could only survive for an average of 16 months without digital imports. This figure, presented during the federal government's Digital Summit in Berlin, represents a slight increase in resilience compared to 14 months in 2025.

A survey of 602 companies revealed that 96 percent of businesses rely on foreign digital technologies or services. Dependencies are particularly high for hardware such as smartphones and notebooks (94 percent), specialized components like semiconductors (79 percent), cloud services (73 percent), software (68 percent), and cybersecurity applications (62 percent). Bitkom President Dr. Ralf Wintergerst emphasized that while international division of labor is a strength, the goal is to reduce unilateral dependencies on providers, particularly from the USA and China, to ensure digital sovereignty and resilience.

However, some analysis notes that the 16-month figure is based on company self-assessments rather than measured resilience. While 93 percent of importing companies expect production or service disruptions if imports fail, only 40 percent have prepared to switch out critical providers or systems.