Components suppliers and manufacturers situation in Europe

The global COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent recession like global economic slowdown has left governments and markets stumbling in directionless chaos and uncertainty. In the midst of a lurking global recession catalyzed by the uncontrolled spread of the Coronavirus, companies, and leaders invariably fall short of prompt decision making subsequently missing out on potential opportunities during such times of great distress.

Although COVID-19 is no longer so acute and threatening, component suppliers and manufacturers are still facing difficulties and the consequences of a pandemic.

MAHLE

German automotive supplier Mahle said on Wednesday it was seeking to reduce its workforce by 7,600 people as it accelerates its restructuring in response to the industry slump caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Management will now enter talks with labour representatives on the 7,600 “excess” positions it has identified across its worldwide operations. Of that total, Europe accounts for around 3,700 jobs, of which roughly 2,000 are in Germany.

CONTINENTAL

German auto-parts maker Continental would expand its vast restructuring programme to affect 30,000 jobs, as the coronavirus pandemic ravages global vehicle production. Continental aims to save more than €1 billion annually from 2023, doubling a previously announced savings target, it said in a statement. More than 30,000 jobs worldwide -- around 13 percent of its workforce -- will be "modified, relocated or made redundant," the company said, with about 13,000 of those in Germany. Continental does not expect vehicle production to return to the pre-crisis levels of 2017 before 2025. In August, it said net profit plunged 41 percent to €485 million in the second quarter.

SCHAEFFLER

Schaeffler will cut 4,400 jobs and close or sell several German plants as the automotive supplier joins peers in reeling from the coronavirus pandemic. Most of the reductions will take place at a dozen facilities in Germany and two sites elsewhere in Europe, the maker of engine, transmission and chassis components said in a statement Wednesday. Factories in Wuppertal, Eltmann and Clasthal-Zellerfeld will be shut or shopped to other companies, with the cuts expected to save Schaeffler as much as 300 million euros ($354 million) a year. The company will take a one-time charge of 700 million euros ($826 million) for the restructuring.