BERLIN (AP) — In comments published Sunday, Volkswagen’s CEO indicated he is trying to avoid plant closures as he strives to improve the automaker’s performance.
The German company, based in Wolfsburg, faces pressure to cut costs at home and, in particular, growing competition in the lucrative Chinese market.
Volkswagen said last week that its “fundamental overhaul” over the past three years had reached the next stage, announcing plans to streamline its model range by almost half.
He did not provide details, and questions remain about how else it would cut costs. There has been renewed speculation about the future of several plants in Germany.
“There are smarter solutions than closing plants,” CEO Oliver Blume told the Bild am Sonntag newspaper.
He added that Germany’s cost-cutting program is already producing results. “Last year alone we managed to improve our production costs in Germany by an average of 20%,” he said, calling it “significant progress.”
Blum argued that Volkswagen products are very popular, but “we simply make too little money on them. So we have to continue to reduce our costs. Across all types of costs.”
Associated Press
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