SPD fights for steel: Buy European strategy should save jobs!

SPD fights for steel: Buy European strategy should save jobs!

The pressure on the German steel industry is growing, and politicians are responding with a comprehensive package of measures. Loud sueddeutsche.de The SPD federal executive board is planning to support domestic steel production in order to stop the migration of added value abroad. The overarching goal: a “Buy European” strategy for Germany and Europe, which is intended to strengthen arms production in particular.

Yesterday, Federal Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil emphasized the strategic importance of the sector in a conversation with works councils from the steel industry. At a meeting on September 24, he stressed that the EU urgently needs to implement effective trade defense measures to create a level playing field. “State-subsidized overcapacity” in particular puts a strain on domestic industry and makes it difficult to compete in the global market.

Political impulses for the steel industry

The SPD also published a strategy paper in advance, which assumes that the infrastructure projects will increasingly be implemented using locally produced steel. In an article at tagesschau.de It becomes clear that representatives such as Lars Klingbeil and Labor Minister Bärbel Bas emphasize the importance of German and European steel in public contracts. “Steel production is critical to our industrial base and national security,” Bas said. The plan is to make a decision on the strategy “Strengthen the location, advance transformation, secure jobs” in the SPD presidium.

This also includes the demand for low energy prices and help for a climate-neutral transformation of the steel industry. A central concern is to enforce an EU import ban on Russian steel products and to prevent this ban from being circumvented via third countries such as Turkey or Serbia. To improve the situation, an agreement with the USA could be sought that would allow duty-free steel exports in appropriate quotas.

Challenges for the industry

The German steel industry is currently confronted with numerous challenges. A conclusion from the current discourse, like zeit.de writes, is that it is suffering from the crises in important customer sectors, especially the automotive industry. As if rising energy prices and cheap imports from China weren't enough, manufacturers are also struggling with high tariffs on steel imports into the USA and the enormous costs of climate-friendly production processes.

The SPD's other demands include robust trade protection instruments to significantly reduce steel imports. The urgency of implementing these measures by June 30, 2026 is high in order to create effective rules for the market. The upcoming steel summit in October, announced by Chancellor Friedrich Merz, is intended to reach agreement on these critical issues.