German coalition eyes more relief as fuel prices surge
Investing.com -- German Economy Minister Katherina Reiche said the coalition may introduce additional measures to help alleviate the impact of surging fuel prices after lawmakers approved an initial package.
Reiche, a member of Chancellor Friedrich Merz's conservative Christian Democratic Union, said she was open to raising an allowance to help commuters and said her ministry would look at further options to reduce power prices. The current measures may prove insufficient if the US-led war on Iran drags on, she said.
The minister spoke in German parliament after lawmakers passed a package that included a once-per-day limit on price increases at the pump and a change in antitrust rules to place the burden of articulating price increases with energy companies.
Merz's CDU-led bloc and the Social Democrats aim to reach an agreement by Friday on further measures. The Finance Ministry, led by SPD co-leader Lars Klingbeil, is considering options for a windfall tax on oil companies that would capture a share of profits driven by surging crude prices.
