By Marie Mannes and Anna Ringstrom STOCKHOLM (Reuters) -Volvo Cars will cut 3,000 mostly white-collar jobs as part of a restructuring announced last month as it grapples with high costs, a slowdown in electric vehicle demand and trade uncertainty, it said on Monday. The layoffs come as the Swedish automaker tries to resurrect its rock-bottom share price and drum up better demand for its cars by restructuring part of its business and cutting costs. CEO Hakan Samuelsson, who was recently brought back to the role after heading the company for a decade until 2022, unveiled a programme in April to slash costs by 18 billion Swedish crowns ($1.9 billion), including a substantial cut to its white-collar staff, who make up 40% of its workforce. "It's white collar in almost all areas, including R&D, communication, human resources," Samuelsson told Reuters on Friday, "So it's everywhere, and it's a considerable reduction." "I think it will be very healthy, and will save us money and give space for people to (take on) bigger responsibilities." Volvo Cars' new CFO Fredrik Hansson told Reuters that while all of its departments and locations would be impacted, most of the redundancies will happen in Gothenburg. "It's tailored to make us structurally more efficient, and then how that plays out might vary a bit depending on the area. But no stone is left unturned," Hansson said. The layoffs represent around 15% of the company's office staff, Volvo Cars said in a statement, and would incur a one-time restructuring cost of 1.5 billion crowns. With most of its production based in Europe and China, Volvo Cars is more exposed to new U.S. tariffs than many of its European rivals, and has said it could become impossible to export its most affordable cars to the U.S. The company said in a press release that it would finalise a new structural set-up by the autumn of this year. Handelsbanken analyst Hampus Engellau said the number of staff to be laid off was in line with expectations, and that the company's move to streamline its operations was positive. The group withdrew its financial guidance as it announced its cost cuts last month, pointing to unpredictable markets amid weaker consumer confidence and trade tariffs causing turmoil in the global auto industry. On Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to impose a 50% tariff on imports from the European Union from June 1, but on Monday he backed away from that date, restoring a July 9 deadline to allow for talks between Washington and Brussels. Story Continues Volvo Cars' shares were up 3.6% by 1339 GMT on Monday, with most of the rise coming before the layoff announcement. They are still down 24% year-to-date. ($1 = 9.4829 Swedish crowns) (Reporting by Anna Ringstrom and Marie Mannes, editing by Terje Solsvik and Jan Harvey) View Comments
Volvo Cars to slash 3,000 jobs in white-collar cutback
You are reading a free article with opinions that may differ from the recommendation given by Kalkine in its paid research reports. Become a Kalkine member today to get access to our research reports, in-depth technical and fundamental research. Learn more
Start Your Free Trial Now!Download Free Report – Explore 3 Stock Ideas & Industry Insights
Unlock 3 stock ideas and key industry insights in our free report. This information is general in nature and does not consider your personal objectives, financial situation, or needs. It is not financial advice.
All investments involve risk—consider independent advice before making any investment decisions.
View 3 Research ReportsThis information, including any data, is sourced from Unicorn Data Services SAS, trading as EOD Historical Data (“EODHD”) on ‘as is’ basis, using their API. The information and data provided on this page, as well as via the API, are not guaranteed to be real-time or accurate. In some cases, the data may include analyst ratings or recommendations sourced through the EODHD API, which are intended solely for general informational purposes.
This information does not consider your personal objectives, financial situation, or needs. Kalkine does not assume any responsibility for any trading losses you might incur as a result of using this information, data, or any analyst rating or recommendation provided. Kalkine will not accept any liability for any loss or damage resulting from reliance on the information, including but not limited to data, quotes, charts, analyst ratings, recommendations, and buy/sell signals sourced via the API.
Please be fully informed about the risks and costs associated with trading in the financial markets, as it is one of the riskiest forms of investment. Kalkine does not provide any warranties regarding the information on this page, including, without limitation, warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose or use.
Please wait processing your request...