The French government promises to support the two major French car builders PSA and Renault in these very difficult times for them as well.
French auto groups can count on loan guarantees and deferred payments on outstanding accounts, Automotive News Europe reports. France announced earlier this week that it would come up with a package of measures worth € 300 billion to save the economy. A large part of that amount is intended for small entrepreneurs, but now the government would have promised that automakers would also be eligible for the aid. “The situation is clear, we cannot allow industrial French icons to disappear,” said French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire.
The fact that the car industry is also severely affected by the coronavirus in France is of course no surprise to those who regularly visit this site, as reports of production stops and factory closures have been raining for the past few days. PSA, which includes Peugeot, Citroen, DS and Opel, was already forced to close all its European production facilities until at least March 27. Production at Renault is also largely halted.
Incidentally, the French state itself also has a concrete interest in its car builders. At PSA that share is 14 percent, at Renault 15 percent. Reuters reports that the government still keeps all options open when it comes to helping large companies. Increasing the share is therefore also an option.