Overview
- The chancellor gathers federal ministers, state leaders, industry chiefs and unions at the Chancellery to coordinate a response to Germany’s deep steel slump.
- Brussels has proposed cutting duty‑free import quotas to 18.3 million tonnes and levying 50% tariffs on over‑quota steel, with final details and approvals still pending.
- Berlin is preparing a subsidised industrial electricity price from 1 January 2026 subject to EU clearance, alongside extended power‑cost relief through network charge cuts and emissions‑trading compensation.
- Producers and labor call for tougher trade defenses, preferential use of EU steel in public procurement, and faster hydrogen and grid build‑out to unlock green‑steel investments; Thyssenkrupp backs higher China tariffs.
- Economic institutes say high power costs are the key competitiveness gap, estimate limited relief from the power‑price plan, and warn of significant jobs and resilience risks if primary steelmaking erodes.