2024-11-24 06:14:00
Help refused
The steel industry is not systemically relevant for Swissmem
“There are more than enough opportunities to get steel abroad,” says Swissmem director Stefan Brupbacher in an interview. He thinks subsidies are expensive and don’t work in the long run.
Stefan Brupbacher, Director of Swissmem.
KEYSTONE
Swissmem director Stefan Brupbacher has rejected government support for the steel industry and individual companies. The steel industry is not systemically important, Brupbacher said in an interview with “SonntagsBlick”.
Subsidies are expensive and won’t work in the long run, said the director of the industry association in the interview published on Sunday. Global overproduction is a structural problem. Structural change cannot be stopped, said Brupbacher.
Even if the steel industry does very important work, it is not systemically relevant. “There are more than enough opportunities to get steel abroad,” said the association director. Swiss consumers would benefit from foreign countries subsidizing their export industry. “Switzerland should not take part in this nonsense,” he said.
The association is fundamentally against government support for individual sectors and companies. Measures such as short-time work are central. In addition, large electricity consumers such as steel companies should be allowed to waive the electricity surcharge for the winter reserve – analogous to the proposal from the National Council’s Commission for the Environment, Spatial Planning and Energy. In return, if there is a power shortage, they would have to commit to shutting down or stopping their production, said the association director.
Fair competition conditions
Brupbacher blew the same horn as the Federal Council before him. The state government rejected state funding and focused on better conditions. Economics Minister Guy Parmelin also does not consider the steel industry to be systemically important, as he told Swiss radio SRF in March.
Stahl Gerlafingen is currently waiting for political decisions at the federal level. The steelworks in the canton of Solothurn, which is part of the Italian Beltrame group, has never asked for subsidies, according to its CEO Alain Creteur. It’s about restoring fair competitive conditions.
Economy today
Get the most important news from the economy as well as the best background information and analysis.
More newsletters
SDA/aeg
Found an error? Report now.
1732476819
#Stahl #Gerlafingen #Steel #industry #systemically #relevant #Swissmem
How can the steel industry innovate and improve efficiency to adapt to global market demands without relying on government aid?
Conditions should be based on fair competition rather than subsidization, he emphasized. The steel industry must adapt to global market changes rather than rely on government aid, which he believes can create dependency and distort market dynamics.
Brupbacher argues that providing support to the steel industry might temporarily alleviate some pressures but would not address the underlying issues of overproduction and competition. He suggested that the industry needs to innovate and improve efficiency to remain viable in a competitive global landscape.
the Swissmem director advocates for a hands-off approach by the government when it comes to individual sectors like steel. Instead, he calls for policies that foster a healthy competitive environment, allowing companies to thrive on their merits rather than through state support.
