AutoBeta(AutoBeta.net)03/25 Report--

According to foreign media reports, the global automotive giant Stellantis Group will lay off about 400 employees in its engineering, technology and software departments in the United States in order to cut costs and improve efficiency. It is reported that the layoffs will begin on March 31 and will affect about 2 per cent of employees in the above-mentioned departments. At the end of 2023, Stellantis employed 81341 people in North America, compared with 88835 in the same period, a decrease of 7494.

Given the unprecedented uncertainty and global competitive pressure facing the automotive industry, Stellantis will continue to make the necessary structural adjustments throughout the organization to improve productivity and optimize the cost structure, Stellantis said in an emailed statement.

The job cuts came after the company offered exit plans to US employees twice last year, including a financial compensation package for 6400 US employees in November 2023. However, as of press time, Stellantis officials did not announce the exact number of layoffs, but people familiar with the matter confirmed that it was about 400 employees. It is worth mentioning that this layoff is the third round of layoffs carried out by Stellantis in nearly a year.

In January, a spokesman for Stellantis said that about 2250 workers would be laid off at Stellantis's Mirafiori plant in Turin, Italy, due to weak market demand. Earlier, in December 2023, the Stellantis Group said in a statement that it was adjusting the mode of operation of two US plants, a move that could lead to layoffs. It was reported at that time that the Detroit plant would temporarily change from three shifts to two shifts, and that the Toledo plant would change from alternative work arrangements to traditional two-shift operations in accordance with the agreement reached during the labor negotiations. the decision was made in part to comply with California's emissions regulations.

Stellantis Group was established on January 16, 2021, jointly formed by Peugeot Citroen Group (PSA) and Fiat Chrysler Group (FCA), with a shareholding ratio of 50:50 respectively. It owns many brands such as Fiat, Maserati, Jeep, Dodge, ram, Peugeot, Citroen, Opel and DS. At the beginning, it was the world's fourth largest automobile group after Volkswagen, Toyota and Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi. However, the development of Stellantis Group in the Chinese market is not smooth.

In the Chinese market, Stellantis Group used to have two joint ventures, DMC and GAC Fick, but with the defeat of GAC Feike in China, Stellantis Group has only one joint venture brand in China. According to data disclosed by Dongfeng Motor Co., Ltd., DPCA sold 80345 vehicles in 2023, down 35.81% from the same period last year, including 45780 Dongfeng Peugeot, 28180 Dongfeng Citroen and 6385 Dongfeng Fukang. Among them, DPCA is the largest joint venture brand of Dongfeng Motor Co., Ltd.

It should be noted that although Stellantis does not have much sense of existence in the Chinese market, leaving only DPCA struggling to support, it does not affect its profitability in other markets. According to the Stellantis financial report, the net income of Stellantis Group in fiscal 2023 increased 6% year-on-year to 189.5 billion euros; net profit increased 11% year-on-year to 18.6 billion euros (about 142.7 billion yuan); adjusted operating profit increased 1% to 24.3 billion euros; adjusted operating profit margin was 12.8%. In terms of new car sales, Stellantis Group said that excluding sales data from its joint venture, its car sales in 2023 were 6.168 million, up 7% from a year earlier, of which pure electric vehicles and low-emission models were up 21% and 27%, respectively, and plug-in hybrids and low-emission models ranked first and second in the US market, respectively.

Carlos Tavares, global CEO of the Stellantis Group, said that even if the Stellantis Group encountered various extremely adverse factors in 2023, its record-breaking financial performance in 2023 showed that it had become a global leader in the automotive industry and was ready to face all possible new situations in order to continue to achieve the phased goals of the Group's' Dare Forward 2030 'strategic plan. "

According to the plan, Stellantis Group will launch 18 pure electric vehicles this year, and by the end of 2024, it will have 48 pure electric vehicles on the market. Among them, the starting price of the new Citroen e-C3 model is 23300 euros, making it the most price-competitive B-class electric car made in Europe. In addition, Zero will produce small electric cars at the Stellantis Group's Tihei plant in Poland. It is reported that the production of Zero's T03 compact car will begin as early as the second quarter, and the SDK kits of some assembled T03 electric vehicles will be shipped from China to the Tihei factory, which will have a lot of spare capacity.

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