The layoffs come days after US President Donald Trump threatened 50 % tariffs on EU items.
Swedish automaker Volvo is ready to chop 3,000 white-collar jobs amid restructuring efforts as costs start to rise as a consequence of tariff-driven uncertainty.
The corporate introduced the information on Monday. The layoffs come because the Swedish automaker tries to resurrect its rock-bottom share value and drum up higher demand for its vehicles by restructuring a part of its enterprise and reducing prices.
CEO Hakan Samuelsson, who was lately introduced again to the position after heading the corporate for a decade till 2022, unveiled a programme in April to slash prices by $1.9bn (18 billion Swedish crowns), together with a considerable reduce to Volvo’s white-collar workers, who make up 40 % of its workforce.
“It’s white collar in virtually all areas, together with R&D [research and development], communication, human assets,” Samuelsson instructed the Reuters information company.
The layoffs characterize round 15 % of the corporate’s workplace workers, Volvo Vehicles mentioned in an announcement, and would incur a one-time restructuring price of $160m (1.5 billion crowns).
Volvo Vehicles’ new CFO Fredrik Hansson instructed Reuters that whereas all of its departments and places could be impacted, many of the redundancies will occur in Gothenburg.
“It’s tailor-made to make us structurally extra environment friendly, after which how that performs out may fluctuate a bit relying on the realm. However no stone is left unturned,” Hansson mentioned.
With most of its production based in Europe and China, Volvo Vehicles is extra uncovered to new United States tariffs than a lot of its European rivals, and has mentioned it may turn into unattainable to export its most reasonably priced vehicles to the US.
The corporate mentioned in a press launch that it will finalise a brand new structural setup by the third quarter of this yr.
Volvo withdrew its financial guidance because it introduced its price cuts final month, pointing to unpredictable markets amid weaker client confidence and commerce tariffs inflicting turmoil within the international auto business.
The layoff announcement comes solely days after US President Donald Trump threatened to impose a 50 % tariff on imports from the European Union from June 1. On Monday, nonetheless, he backed away from that date, restoring a July 9 deadline to permit for talks between Washington and Brussels.
In consequence, Volvo’s CEO mentioned the transfer would make it more durable for it to promote one among its electrical autos (EVs) — the EX30 EV that’s made in Belgium — within the US market.