Stellantis is one of the world’s largest conglomerates, created by the merger of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and the French PSA Group, which owns 14 car manufacturers, and according to the latest information, it could happen that some of them will be shut down in the near future.
In an interview with Reuters, Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares said that the company cannot afford to have brands that are not profitable. “If they’re not making money, we’re going to shut them down.” Speculations have already begun about which brands within the Group are at risk, while some are considered to have no reason to worry, such as Fiat, Opel, Peugeot, Citroen, Jeep and Ram. Lancia and DS have the best chance of being shut down in the near future.
Some believe that Stellantis could sell some of the brands and thus avoid a negative financial risk. This primarily refers to Maserati, Dodge, and Chrysler.
This way of thinking in the company is not surprising since the business results in the first half of the year are devastating. Since the beginning of the year, Stellantis shares have fallen by over 20%, net revenues are down 14 percent, and net profit is down 48 percent. Also, operating income fell by 40 percent. The reason is bad sales results in North America, where 18 percent fewer vehicles were delivered in the first six months than in the same period in 2023.
In some markets, such as the Middle East and Africa, sales of Stellantis vehicles increased (+3%), but this can be attributed primarily to good demand for Fiat cars.
Source: Reuters