If anything, Sergio Marchionne is a man who speaks his mind – a bit too often, some might say. Still, the CEO of the Fiat-Chrysler group is deeply concerned about the drop in European car sales and he thinks something should be done about it.
Marchionne, who is also the head of ACEA, the European auto manufacturers’ association, is strongly endorsing the idea that there should be a European Union-led coordinated strategy if the industry is to survive.
“I am concerned that if we don’t find a collective will to resolve this at a European level, it is going to become a permanent crisis”, he said on Wednesday, October 10.
Currently, Marchionne is in Brussels to meet EU officials, including Industry Commissioner Antonio Tajani. He insisted that European governments should cooperate with carmakers in a radical restructuring of the business.
He also stressed that automakers like Fiat are not asking for financial, but political support and he also raised the issue of complying with EU regulation.
“If the French government were to help one specific carmaker and were not to help us or another carmaker, it would breach the rules of the European treaties”, said Marchionne. “It is better left to the European Commission, whose primary responsibility is the single market.”
New car sales in Europe have dipped for the fifth year in a row and this year’s decline is expected to be between 8 and 10 percent.
Renault-Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn, on the other hand, said last month that, in his opinion, there’s not a chance for a EU-led restructuring.
The problem is compounded by the fact that not all carmakers and countries are in the same state. Italian, French and Spanish vehicle manufacturers are operating well below their full capacity and face heavy losses, while German companies are prospering from increasing exports and higher profit margins.
Marchionne also wants the European Commission to delay signing a free trade agreement (FTA) with Japan.
According to ACEA data, in the 12 months following last year’s FTA with South Korea the value of its car imports rose by 53 percent, while the value of European carmakers’ exports to Korea fell by four percent…
By Andrew Tsaousis
Story References: Reuters
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