Development of the voestalpine share
voestalpine AG vs. the ATX and international indices
Changes compared with March 31, 2024, in %
At the start of the 2024/25 financial year, investors focused primarily on inflation trends and the interest rate policies of the major central banks. After inflation in the European Union eased in the first half of the 2024 calendar year, the European Central Bank (ECB) was able to reduce the key interest rate in June 2024. Although lower interest rates are generally seen as positive for economic development, sentiment in Europe continued to worsen dramatically after the summer of 2024. Numerous profit warnings from well-known European industrial groups highlighted the deteriorating economic outlook, with Germany in particular seeing a series of negative leading economic indicators.
Ongoing restrictive and cost-intensive regulatory requirements from Brussels, further tightened by some EU member states through “gold plating” in national implementation, not only hindered competitiveness in the past financial year, but also led to reduced investment in Europe. This dynamic caused a decline in international investors’ participation in the European stock market.
In February 2025, the EU Commission introduced concrete measures to promote European industry through the Clean Industrial Deal. The initiative aims to reduce bureaucratic hurdles, strengthen the competitiveness of energy-intensive sectors, and foster European economic growth. This shift in economic policy increasingly restored investor confidence in the European capital market.
Following the election of Donald Trump as President of the United States of America in December 2024, Europe faced increased pressure to assume greater responsibility for its defense policy. In response to the war in Ukraine, the European Commission announced a major investment program for European security in March 2025. Towards the end of the financial year, the outcome of the early Bundestag elections in Germany also led to the announcement of a major investment programme to modernize Germany’s infrastructure.
Against this backdrop, the voestalpine share price, after an initial rise, came under pressure for much of the reporting period due to weak sentiment in the capital market. In the final quarter of 2024/25, the share price recovered significantly due to positive economic developments: the shift in communication from the European Commission, positive growth prospects for Germany, and, last but not least, speculation about a potential peace agreement in Ukraine boosted investor optimism. This led to a notable rise in the voestalpine share price within just a few weeks.
However, towards the end of the business year 2024/25, the US administration’s announcement of tariffs on steel and aluminum imports in February 2025, followed by tariffs on automotive imports, put renewed pressure on the voestalpine share price in the final days of the 2024/25 business year.
The closing price of the voestalpine share of EUR 22.50 on March 31, 2025 represents a decrease of 13.5% compared to the price at the start of the 2024/25 financial year. In comparison, the benchmark indices STOXX Index (Europe) and the Dow Jones Industrial Index each saw slight gains of around 5% in the same period, while the ATX increased by around 15% within twelve months.
On April 2, 2025, immediately after the end of the financial year, the announcement of comprehensive tariffs against practically all US trading partners on “Liberation Day” triggered a global capital market crash.