15 June 2026 – The continuing subsidy spiral in steel is leading to downfall and reveals where the real problem lies: German steel depends on transfer payments. U.S.-Iran deal boosts Asian markets – base metals follow.
U.S.-Iran Deal Boosts Asian Markets – Base Metals Follow
The recently announced agreement between the United States and Iran, the ceasefire, and the expected reopening of the Strait of Hormuz have significantly boosted Asian stock markets and are also likely to have contributed to the further stabilization of metal prices.
Base Metals Follow
Base metals in Asia were correspondingly firm today: nickel gained around 1.5%, copper rose by approximately 1.3%, while aluminum moved sideways.
At the London LME, a positive reaction was also emerging at the start of trading, with slight gains in nickel, copper, lead, and zinc.
Steel Subsidy Spiral Leads to Downfall
The business magazine Capital provides an apt analysis of IG Metall’s “Boxenstopp Berlin” rally last Friday: hundreds of steelworkers demonstrated outside the Chancellery for job guarantees, import protection, and further electricity subsidies – paid for by the steel producers and organized by the trade unions. Shoulder to shoulder, as so often.
Core Problem Is Clear: Steel Depends on Transfer Payments
Capital clearly identifies the core problem: despite dozens of existing direct and indirect subsidy measures – billions for green steel, protective tariffs, volume restrictions, subsidized industrial electricity, compensation for CO2 costs, and possible preferential treatment in public procurement – the industry is not becoming more competitive, but increasingly dependent on transfer payments.
Wages and special payments continue to rise despite the “crisis,” while the number of employees is falling at the same time.
The magazine’s conclusion hits the nail on the head: a strategy that “leads to suicide in the long term” – and which hardly anyone in politics questions, while savings are supposed to be made elsewhere on widows’ pensions.
It is good when such diagnoses do not come only from us.
You can find the worthwhile article here >>>
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