Germany benefited a lot from China. It used to be that most cars in China were German brands, for instance.
I think Germany has overly thought itself "superior" so to speak: perhaps Germany thought that China was a market to exploit forever because German products were, obviously, superior and China was, obviously, not able to produce many or to compete.
It seems to me that this "symbiotic partnership" is an euphemism for knowing your place...
https://archive.ph/vPSUz
IMHO: too little, too late.