By John O’Donnell and Victoria Waldersee FRANKFURT/BERLIN (Reuters) – Chinese officials and automakers are eyeing German factories slated for closure and are particularly interested in Volkswagen’s sites, a person with knowledge of Chinese government thinking told Reuters. Buying a factory would allow China to build influence in Germany’s prized auto industry, home to some of…
In the U.S., General Motors said this month it was taking $5 billion in charges related to its China business. In Germany, Volkswagen is planning to close factories and cut tens of thousands of employees. One of the underlying causes is the hit to VW’s profits from lost market share in China. Three fundamental facts…
Executives of those companies scoff at all this. Many say they now struggle to justify investing in the country and talk instead of cutting staff. In a recent survey by the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, less than half of respondents said they were optimistic about the prospects for their business in China over…
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Volkswagen and labour representatives will hold a fourth round of talks over wage cuts and possible plant closures, in what has become an increasingly bitter standoff that will be flanked by strikes at the carmaker’s main German sites on Monday. The latest round of negotiations, which initially kicked off in September, comes…
As the world hurtles towards four more years of geopolitical chaos, it is often said in EU capitals that Europe is at a crossroads. The facts at hand suggest that the intersection is much more complicated, and Europe is on a slip road towards a spaghetti junction. At a moment of intense geopolitical upheaval and…
SHANGHAI — Volkswagen will exit its controversial plant in China’s Xinjiang region, after years of investor pressure to abandon its presence in the region, where rights groups have documented abuses including mass forced labor in detention camps. Volkswagen and its Chinese partner agreed to sell the asset to a Shanghai government-owned buyer, the German car…
1. Chinese EV makers Nio, Xpeng, Geely’s Zeekr and Leapmotor face do-or-die moment amid overcapacity and tariff woes China’s electric-vehicle manufacturers face a critical juncture as overcapacity and high tariffs force unprofitable companies to cut costs and launch new models to survive in a fiercely competitive market. Only self-sustaining firms will endure, analysts predict, as…
Earlier this year, Volkswagen and Rivian announced the establishment of a strategic partnership. At the time, Volkswagen Group CEO Oliver Blume explained that the purpose of the joint venture was “to create a leading technology architecture” for upcoming EVs from both companies. Now, as Autoweek‘s Jay Ramey reports, that collaboration has made its formal debut….