Eurozone finance ministers commit to coordinate the respective “measures” against expensive energy in order to “maintain the conditions of fair competition and the integrity of the internal market, including the avoidance of harmful fiscal measures”. This is what the Eurogroup writes at the end of the meeting in Luxembourg. “We also need close coordination of broader economic policies to address the challenges we face,” the finance ministers add, stressing the need to “try to prevent the energy price shock from having secondary effects and a ‘ ‘Acceleration of inflation’ creates momentum”.
Eurozone finance ministers recognize that “as the eurozone is a net importer of energy, governments cannot fully shield their economies from the impact of unprecedented energy price increases,” the eurogroup’s final statement said. Ministers signal their willingness to “increasingly focus support on cost-effective measures, in particular exceptional, temporary and targeted income measures for the most vulnerable”.
The President of the Eurogroup, Paschal Donohoe, had invited the finance ministers of the Eurozone “to an exchange of views with US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on October 13 in Washington,” Donohoe announced at the end of the meeting. . “It is important to maintain and strengthen strong cooperation with an important and trusted partner like the United States,” he added, noting the success of the similar meeting held in Brussels last year.
“Measures taken at national level have a significant impact on other Member States, so coordinated action at European level is more important than ever,” said the EU Economic Commissioner, Paolo Gentiloni, at the end of the Eurogroup. “We must respond together to the current challenges, in a spirit of solidarity and unity among Member States to protect the internal market,” he stressed. “We were able to avoid the risk of fragmentation during the darkest weeks of the pandemic, and we must do the same today,” he added. “This is not the time to blame this or that effort ‘by individual member states’ to counteract expensive energy, this is the time to try to raise the level of our common solidarity,” Gentiloni added at a press conference that Germany’s maximum aid package of 200 billion euros.
Meanwhile, the European Council called on the Commission to “propose workable solutions to lower prices through a gas price cap”. We’ll read that Preliminary draft declaration of the informal summit of EU leaders in Prague. The text calls for “accelerated negotiations on mutually beneficial partnerships on security of supply and price cuts.”
The declaration may be subject to changes until Friday and it is not excluded that there will not even be a “declaration” at the end of the summit, considering that there is no progress compared to June on the issues of the energy dossier -Summit.
The text also calls on the European executive to “develop a more representative benchmark for LNG that more accurately reflects market conditions” and “accelerate work to ensure the proper functioning of financial markets and limit excessive price volatility.” “Besides addressing the near-term challenges, at our next meeting in October, serving our goal of European energy sovereignty and climate neutrality, we must discuss the next steps needed to achieve a comprehensive Energy Union,” the draft statement reads. “Tackling high prices for households and businesses, boosting growth and jobs, preserving the integrity of the internal market and protecting the most vulnerable remains our primary concern.”
Gas closes down 10% to 169 euros per megawatt hour
Significant fall in the gas price: The futures on methane, which expired in November, started at the end of the week in Amsterdam, the reference price list for Europe, by 10% to 169 euros per megawatt hour. Over the past three sessions, all of which have been bearish, gas has lost a total of 24%, returning to late July levels.