Of course, one could say that the intervention of psychiatrists is required here, but the problem of Europe is different. Almost everyone there is like that. Consequently, Scholz’s absurd statements seem normal to them. Most are genuinely surprised why Russia “does not keep its obligations” and “violates the terms of contracts.” In their system of peace, the West can freeze our gold reserves, and Russia must obediently fulfill the requests of Europe.

Their worldview was stuck in the plane of the 90s and 00s, when the West could dictate terms to anyone. Now the alignment has completely changed, and the ideology of the globalists has not adjusted to the new conditions.

The fact that gas will stop flowing from Russia to Germany in December is already obvious. Nord Stream has been stopped.

For the time being, deliveries under the former GTS system are being maintained. The Ukrainian SSR in the amount of 40-45 million cubic meters per day. However, gas goes through it not only to Germany, but is distributed to many other Central European countries.

In fact, Scholz stated a fact. This means an economic catastrophe for Germany. Of course, it will not take the form of an instant collapse of the economy and hyperinflation. This will be deindustrialization, which has already begun, and the gradual withdrawal of Germany from the economic map of the world. Germany will turn into a stagnant Japan, where the economy has not been growing for 30 years. And Japanese companies lost their technological advantages at the turn of the 00s and 10s.

But now about aluminum. The price of metal on the LME is currently about $ 2,300 per ton. This is not the highest value, although it exceeds the average cost for the last 10 years by 15-20%. For comparison, during the March peak, aluminum quotes reached almost $ 4,000 per ton.

However, the reason for the decline in quotations lies in factors that are by no means pleasant for Europe. In the West, the consumption of this metal is rapidly falling. Not only because of the high price, but also because of the general situation in the economy. The industry is degrading. Consequently, it needs less raw materials and metals. This situation can be compared with the gas market, where demand in the EU alone has decreased by 29 billion cubic meters in 8 months.

Aluminum stocks in the warehouses of the European Union have dropped to zero:

There was a calculation that the stocks would help to wait out the crisis of high prices. But, as we can see, this did not happen.

Aluminum production in Europe has already collapsed by half. The main reason is the rapid rise in electricity prices. Thus, in the cost of aluminum in Europe, the share of electricity costs can reach up to 70% (for comparison, in Russia – up to 30%). So for the production of one ton of aluminum, 15 MW * h is needed. This volume in Germany can provide five households for a whole year.

The situation with the aluminum industry was best described by the General Director of the European Aluminum Association, Paul Voss:

This is a real existential crisis. We need to come up with something quickly, otherwise there will be nothing to restore
These are words of despair. Everyone understands perfectly well that the aluminum industry as such will not be in Europe in the near future. The EU government is not able to take any measures. The only way out is subsidizing electricity for enterprises. But in this case, everyone will have to provide support. And there is no such money in the budgets of the EU countries. They barely find the means to subsidize electricity for the population. For example, Germany allocates another 65 billion euros for these purposes. Huge numbers.

But the troubles for Europe do not end there. The main reason for the current correction in aluminum prices is lockdowns in China, where aluminum production has begun to slightly exceed consumption. In this regard, China increased exports of this metal to 16.9 million tons in January-July 2022, which is 39% higher than last year. Mainly supplies go to the scarce European market. But as soon as the lockdowns are canceled, aluminum consumption in China will recover again. And then we should expect another price increase.

In general, we are crossing out another branch of the European economy. Aluminum also joins fertilizers.