The rising political and economic tensions between Germany and most Northern European countries have now spilled over to the automotive sector as the Volkswagen Group threatened to quit the ACEA due to comments made by the head of the European automakers association and CEO of the Fiat-Chrysler Group, Sergio Marchionne.
On Thursday, the New York Times and the International Herald Tribune quoted the Italian born CEO accusing German automakers and in particular, the Volkswagen Group of waging a price war and not allowing the European Union to make it easier for carmakers to shut down underused factories.
"I’ve never seen it this bad," Marchionne told the New York Times. "All the unresolved issues that have been plaguing the industry for a number of years have all come forward."
According to some estimates, the European car industry as a whole is reportedly operating at only about 60 to 65 percent of capacity, when as a thumb of rule, plants need to be working at least at 75 percent to be profitable.
Read more »
