Hanseatic-Japanese relations actually date back to the 19th century and Japan has had a Consulate General in Hamburg since 1883. The partnership with Osaka was sealed on May 11, 1989 by the then mayors Masya Nishio and Henning Voscherau. The ties between the cities now extend to trade, commerce, science and culture. Universities in Hamburg as well as the Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY) and the Max Planck Institute co-operate with institutes in Japan. Meanwhile, the election of a Cherry Blossom Queen as an ambassador of Japanese culture is now a firm biennial fixture in Hamburg. So far only two cities worldwide enjoy this privilege.
Hamburg's tradition of close cultural and economic ties with Japan
"Tomodachi" is the Japanese word for "friend". Close bilateral relations between the ports of Osaka and Hamburg date back to 1989 and are marked by friendship and economic co-operation. Both cities have plenty in common. Osaka is named after a castle similar to “Hamburg” which stems from the first permanent building in a place or castle, Hamburg News takes a closer look at Japan as a trading partner and the nature of German-Japanese trade relations.
Osaka and Hamburg - twinned for over three decades
From logistics to life science and hydrogen
In 1962, the Japanese electronics group Panasonic opened its first European sales office in Hamburg followed by Olympus a year later. Fast-forward to 2024 and Olympus Europe GmbH is now the largest Japanese employer in the Hamburg Metropolitan Region. Around 100 Japanese companies including 60 European or German headquarters are based in Hamburg and have created some 6,000 jobs. "There are many strong interfaces with various industries including logistics, life sciences and renewable energies in Hamburg and its metropolitan region," said Stefan Matz, Head of International Investments at Hamburg Invest. The many “talks and communication” centre in particular on wind energy and hydrogen.
Japan and Germany are both interested in decarbonising industry with green hydrogen. “We are receiving very positive feedback from Japanese companies about investment and expansion opportunities in northern Germany in the current phase of hydrogen market development. Thus, we and HY-5 are working intensely on this market and have attended the Smart Energy Week in Tokyo for the past two years,” said Heike Tipmonta, Head of Business Services at Hamburg Invest and Project Manager of HY-5 (Green Hydrogen Initiative of Northern Germany). Naturally, HY-5 will attend the Smart Energy Week in Tokyo next year.
The city is also attracting Japanese founders. The Yokohama-based Tsubame BHB, for instance, has secured a place in the Scaleup Landing Pad Hamburg and is preparing to launch on the German market, backed by Hamburg Invest, this year. To this end, the founders will be matched with established companies in Hamburg. The team behind the scale-up has developed a decentralised production system for ammonia based on an innovative catalyst technology for ammonia synthesis. This should make production more sustainable and without long supply chains.
Hanseatic companies in Japan
Around 440 companies have business links to Japan and 49 have branches in the country, according to the Chamber of Commerce. Jimdo, a Hamburg-based company offering a modular website system, has a branch in Tokyo. Seven companies have factories in Japan indicating the dynamic, Hanseatic commitment, a survey by the Chamber of Commerce has found.
Ports of Osaka, Yokohama and Hamburg
Ports are vital economic factors for Japan and Hamburg. Extensive hinterland links render Osaka and Hamburg gateways to the world. Hamburg's earliest partnership with Yokohama dates back to 1992 and a major part of the collaboration centres on a regular exchange of technical staff. Japan is one of Hamburg’s top trading partners in seaborne container handling. Around 130,000 20-foot standard containers were handled between Hamburg and Japan in 2023 - a rise of 1.3 per cent over 2022 making Japan its 15th strongest trading partner, according to Hafen Hamburg Marketing Reg. Assoc. In 2023, imports consisted mainly of machinery and household appliances as well as chemical products and vehicles while exports consisted mostly of wooden products, paper, cardboard, foodstuffs, metals and metal products. "The relationship between Japan and Hamburg continues to gain momentum," Matz confirmed and the EU-Japan Free Trade Agreement has also contributed to this since 2019.
Vibrant German-Japanese relations
The HamburgAmbassadors, Nikolaus Boltzei in Tokyo and Setsuo Kosaka in Kobe, are among the many movers and shakers who bring German-Japanese relations to life. The two are among 33 honorary ambassadors in 26 countries who endeavour to raise Hamburg’s international image. The City of Hamburg is home to more than 1,300 Japanese, according to the Statistics Office North (December 31, 2023). In 2021, the "Japamburg" business network was founded to boost German-Japanese ties and bilateral relations. The network co-operates with the Japanese-German Business Association (DJW), Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), Hamburg Invest and influencers from the start-up scenes in Hamburg, Düsseldorf, Berlin, Osaka and Tokyo.
Delegation trip to Expo 2025 in Osaka
Asked about the future of Japanese-German relations, Peter Tschentscher, Mayor of Hamburg, said: "Our 35-year city partnership is alive and well. We want to expand our co-operation in climate protection, digitalisation and mobility in future." A delegation from Hamburg will travel to Osaka for Expo 2025 (April 13 to October 13, 2025) during which Germany will host its own pavilion.
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