14 September 2023 – Nearly 23 million small and medium-sized enterprises have played a subordinate role in the European Union for almost 30 years. Why EC President Ursula von der Leyen only now wants to have recognised this remains a mystery. It is more than doubtful whether her SME envoy, who is to be appointed, will change anything, since the EC actively ignores its own impact assessments on SMEs – even when it is pointed out to them. And the Asian SHFE is in a positive mood, base metals are rising.
SHFE in positive mood
Data from the SHFE points to a positive underlying sentiment in the market, and a majority of Asian-traded commodities closed higher today (Thursday). Iron ore (+0.82%), aluminium (+0.62%), zinc (+1.48%) and coke (+1.56%) in particular have moved more significantly, but stainless steel futures (+0.23%) have also gained today.
SMEs ignored by European Commission for decades
EC President Ursula von der Leyen announced in yesterday’s State of the European Union speech that she wants to appoint a commissioner for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) reporting directly to her.
“Whatever it takes?”
Strictly speaking, the EU leader announced that she would examine the consequences for competitiveness before any new EU law. To this end, she will appoint an SME envoy who will report directly to her, and commission former ECB President Mario Draghi with a report. As once with the euro, Europe will do “whatever it takes“.
Clear signal from politics: We have failed…
With this, politics has once again delivered a clear signal that if you have already failed in national politics as a federal minister, and then you are sent away to Brussels, it won’t get any better.
We find it simply ridiculous that there is still no such representative for small and medium-sized enterprises in the almost thirty-year history of the EU. And it shows that so far only the interests of large corporations have been heard by the EU.
EC ignores own impact assessments
Just one look at the EC’s impact assessment with regard to the introduction of the Carbon Border Tax CBAM shows that the EC simply ignores the assumed impacts on SMEs or simply does not take the results seriously. Even when the responsible EC staff are thumbed in the nose, they would rather give campaign gifts to outgoing EC Vice-Presidents than do anything for SMEs.
The EC President’s announcement simply seems questionable and ridiculous in view of the fact that 23 million European small and medium-sized enterprises have been passed over and ignored for decades. Because you don’t make mistakes at the EC, right?
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