March 23, according to foreign media reports, in order to cut costs and improve efficiency, the global automotive giant Stellantis Group will lay off about 400 employees in its engineering, technology, and software departments in the United States. It is reported that the layoffs will start on March 31, and the layoffs will affect about 2% of the employees in the above-mentioned departments. As of the end of 2023, Stellantis had a total of 81,341 employees in North America, compared to 88,835 in the same period, a decrease of 7,494.
In an e-mail statement, Stellantis said that in view of the unprecedented uncertainty and global competitive pressure in the automotive industry, Stellantis will continue to make necessary structural adjustments throughout the organization to improve work efficiency and optimize the cost structure.
As of the time of publication, Stellantis has not announced the exact number of layoffs, but insiders have confirmed that it is about 400 employees. It is worth mentioning that this is not Stellantis’ first round of layoffs.
In January this year, a Stellantis spokesperson said that due to weak market demand, the Mirafiori factory of Stellantis Group in Turin, Italy, will lay off about 2,250 workers. Earlier in December 2023, Stellantis Group said in a statement that the company is adjusting the operating model of two US factories, which could lead to layoffs. At that time, it was reported that the Detroit factory will temporarily change from a three-shift system to a two-shift system, and the Toledo factory will change from an alternative work arrangement to a traditional two-shift operation according to the agreement reached during the labor negotiation. Part of the reason for this decision is to comply with California’s emission regulations.
Stellantis Group was established on January 16, 2021, and was jointly formed by the PSA Group and the Fiat Chrysler Group (FCA). The two sides hold shares in a ratio of 50:50. It owns many brands such as Fiat, Maserati, Jeep, Dodge, Ram, Peugeot, Citroen, Opel, and DS. At its inception, it was the world’s fourth-largest automotive group after the Volkswagen Group, Toyota Motor, and Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi, but Stellantis Group’s development in the Chinese market has not been smooth.
In the Chinese market, Stellantis Group once had two joint venture auto companies, Shenlong Automobile and GAC Fick, but with the failure of GAC Fick in China, Stellantis Group now has only Shenlong Automobile as a joint venture brand in China. According to the disclosed data of Dongfeng Motor Co., Ltd., in 2023, the sales of Shenlong Automobile were 80,345 vehicles, a year-on-year decrease of 35.81%. Among them, Dongfeng Peugeot was 45,780 vehicles, Dongfeng Citroen was 28,180 vehicles, and Dongfeng Fukang was 6,385 vehicles. Among them, Shenlong Automobile is the joint venture brand with the largest decline under Dongfeng Motor Co., Ltd.
It should be noted that although Stellantis does not have much presence in the Chinese market and only Shenlong Automobile is struggling to support it, it does not affect its making a lot of money in other markets. Stellantis’ financial report shows that in the 2023 fiscal year, Stellantis Group’s net revenue increased by 6% year-on-year to 189.5 billion euros; net profit increased by 11% year-on-year to 18.6 billion euros ; adjusted operating profit increased by 1% year-on-year to 24.3 billion euros; the adjusted operating profit margin was 12.8%; in terms of new car sales, Stellantis Group said that if the sales data of its joint ventures is not included, the group’s car sales in 2023 were 6.168 million vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 7%. Among them, the sales of pure electric vehicles and low-emission models increased by 21% and 27% respectively year-on-year, and the sales of plug-in hybrid vehicles and low-emission models ranked first and second in the US market.
Stellantis Group’s global CEO, Carlos Tavares, said, “Even though Stellantis Group encountered various extremely unfavorable factors in 2023, the group’s record-breaking financial performance in 2023 shows that it has become a global leader in the automotive industry, and it is ready to face various 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 within this year, and by the end of 2024, it will have a total of 48 pure electric vehicles on the market. Among them, the starting price of the new Citroen e-C3 model of 23,300 euros makes this model the most price-competitive B-class electric vehicle made in Europe. In addition, Leapmotor will produce small electric vehicles at Stellantis Group’s Tychy factory in Poland. It is reported that the production of the Leapmotor T03 small car will start in the second quarter at the earliest, and the semi-knocked down (SDK) kits of some assembled T03 electric vehicles will be shipped from China to the Tychy factory, which will have a large amount of idle capacity.
