The AFIA president expects component exports to fall between 4.5% and 5% in November and December.
There are factory closures in Germany and Belgium, layoff plans at major construction companies and resignations of executives such as Portuguese Carlos Tavares, CEO of Stellantis.
The European auto industry is in trouble again after a collapse during the pandemic. Difficulties in the transition to electric mobility, increased Chinese competition and a decline in sales help explain this scenario. And Portuguese industry is unlikely to emerge unscathed, given 98% of cars in circulation in Europe have at least one component produced in Portugal.
“Any situation of low demand or even stagnation in the car market naturally means that parts suppliers will also see demand for their companies decrease. And this is one aspect of the situation, and Portugal has a very important parts industry that exports a lot to Europe,” said Helder Pedro ” he said. , general secretary Portuguese Automobile Association (ACAP)‘In his statements to Euronews.
The impact will be felt above all by the auto parts manufacturers represented in Portugal. Automobile Industry Manufacturers Association (AFIA). It is a universe of about 350 companies, but of economic importance: It employs 64,000 people and has a turnover of more than 14 billion euros in 2023.
After two consecutive months of negative changes, Portuguese automotive parts exports increased by 2.6% in October compared to the same period of the previous year, but the accounts are not expected to increase in this period. We ended this year on a positive note.
“There will be a decrease in exports in November and December, so there will be a decrease in our activity. This means we may face a crisis.” Decrease between 4.5% and 5% most. “With a more optimistic vision, we could be at 4%, which would be quite good, given the situation and expectations in Europe.”
The Chairman of Microplastik, a parts factory, also believes it would be impossible to maintain more than 60,000 jobs. “It will have to be readjustmentSo demand is clearly falling in European conditions. “Even if other markets are found, there will always be a loss of production capacity,” he admits.
Sales have not slowed down yet in Portugal
Although the Portuguese automobile market has not yet recovered its pre-pandemic sales levels, it has not hit the brakes for now, growing by approximately 4% compared to the previous year.
But the European Union wants Ending combustion car production by 2035 Sales of electric cars continue to be hampered by purchasing costs and charging infrastructure that does not yet meet requirements.
This is “one very rigid regulatory framework He criticizes José Couto “compared to our competitors in other countries, such as the United States or China” and argues that “the difference between the carbon footprint of European producers and that of producers in other longitudinal and latitudinal regions leads to unfair competition.”
Europe must react and invest in education to face the challenges of electrification and compete with China, which “already has an advantage over us in electric vehicle technology,” according to the AFIA president.
