Ford Europe will be slashing thousands of jobs, exit unprofitable markets and discontinue loss-making vehicle lines as part of a turnaround effort aimed at achieving a 6 per cent operating margin in Europe.
Ford also said it will seek to exit the multivan segment, stop manufacturing automatic transmissions in Bordeaux in August, review its operations in Russia, and combine the headquarters of Ford UK and Ford Credit to a site in Dunton, Essex.
“We are taking decisive action to transform the Ford business in Europe,” Steven Armstrong, group vice president, Europe, Middle East and Africa, said in a statement.
Ford isn't ruling out the closure of factories as it plans thousands of jobs cuts around Europe https://t.co/iGLhPSrdpu
— Bloomberg (@business) January 10, 2019
The carmaker is under pressure to restructure its European operations after archrival General Motors raised profits by selling its European Opel and Vauxhall brand to France’s Peugeot SA.
Ford’s announcement on layoffs came as Britain’s biggest carmaker Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is also set to announce “substantial” job cuts in the thousands, a source told Reuters.
Ford Europe, which currently employs 53,000 people, has struggled to turn a profit, reporting a 245 million euro (£221.5 million) loss before interest and taxes in the third quarter, equivalent to a negative 3.3 percent EBIT margin.
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