GERMANY VOWS HELP FOR BATTERED STEELMAKERS

Germany’s ruling coalition is backing calls from steel producers like Thyssenkrupp AG and Salzgitter AG to shield them from financial risks from the European Union’s revamp of the emissions trading system.

With signs emerging that the steel industry faces steeper carbon reduction bills from 2020, lawmakers in Berlin this week urged the government to dampen proposed changes to the emissions trading system that could bump up steel mill costs. Europe’s steel industry has been hurt by global overcapacity caused mainly by China and Russia exports and would suffer even more if carbon permits prices rise sharply, they said.

“Pour a glass of water on a man who has it up to his neck and you’ll risk drowning him,” said Social Democratic Economy and Energy Minister Sigmar Gabriel said in a speech on Thursday, referring to the risks that new costs might impose. “While steel dumping prices are the main problem, there’s a problem too with emissions trading.”