Multinational auto giant Stellantis has reported a significant decline in both revenue and stock prices in 2024, as the automotive markets in Europe and the United States have entered a slump this year.
Italy, an important production base for Stellantis, is now facing challenges of reduced capacity and layoffs.
Stellantis' Atessa plant, located in central Italy, is the largest light commercial vehicle production base in Europe, producing around 230,000 vehicles last year.
The plant has been continuously reducing production this year, and a third of the employees have been on leave at home since June.
"From producing a maximum of 1,200 vehicles per day in the past, to producing less than 1,000 vehicles per day now, we are currently receiving guaranteed wages. This situation is expected to continue until January 2025," said an employee named Romeo Pasquarelli.
For the manufacturer's Cassino plant, also located in central Italy, it has experienced an even more severe reduction in production.
Data shows that in the first nine months of this year, the plant's output was less than 20,000 vehicles, a 50 percent decline compared to last year, marking a historic low.
In the first half of this year, Stellantis's profits were halved compared to the same period last year, with third-quarter deliveries in Europe and North America declining by 17 and 36 percent, respectively.
As a result, all of Stellantis's factories in Italy experienced reduced production this year.
At the same time, the production of passenger cars and commercial vehicles by Stellantis in Italy decreased by 40.7 percent and 10.2 percent, respectively in the Jan-Sept period this year.
Some analysts say that if Stellantis does not increase its production in Italy, some 25,000 people may face unemployment in the short term.
Stellantis announced on Dec 18 that it will increase investment in Italy in 2025, while promising that all Italian plants will have plans to produce new models by 2032.
"(Stellantis's plan) will not solve all the problems, but the Italian government places great importance on the automotive industry because it is one of the symbols of Italian manufacturing," said Mayor of Piedimonte San Germano Gioacchino Ferdinandi.
Stellantis reports disappointing 2024 performance amid European, US market slump
Stellantis reports disappointing 2024 performance amid European, US market slump
Stellantis reports disappointing 2024 performance amid European, US market slump
Li Li, a deputy to the National People's Congress (NPC) from southwest China's Guizhou Province, has made it her mission to preserve and promote the rich cultural heritage of the Buyi people, particularly their traditional clothing.
Born and raised in a village of Qinglong County, Qianxinan Buyei and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, Li began learning the intricate handicrafts of the Buyi people from her mother at a young age.
After spending over a decade working away from home, she felt a strong calling to return and safeguard her cultural roots. In 2015, she returned to her roots to start a business with the vision to revitalize Buyi clothing.
"Starting my own business was really tough in the beginning. If you want to make a Western-style suit, you could just buy some fabric and copy an existing design. But ethnic clothing is different. It requires constant innovation, and that takes a huge amount of time. Traditional fabrics tend to fade, and I spent months just trying to figure out how to fix the color. This problem had kept me up for a long time. But eventually, I tackled the challenges one by one," Li said.
Her persistence has paid off. This year, Li's team tapped into the cultural symbolism of the Year of the Horse, creating a range of horse-themed products that have quickly gained popularity.
"This year is the Year of the Horse, so we created a lot of horse-themed items. They are very popular and orders have been pouring in. Every year, we design our cultural products and clothing based on what the market wants. We started with a 300-square-meter workshop, and now we have our own intangible cultural heritage center. Over the years, we've trained more than a thousand embroiderers," she said.
As a grassroots NPC deputy, Li prioritizes listening to the voices of ordinary people. During work sessions with embroiderers, she takes time to listen to their concerns and offers flexible schedules for those with special needs.
The preservation of ethnic clothing and culture has always been at the heart of her work.
"During this year's 'two sessions', I will continue to focus on the preservation of ethnic clothing and culture. I want to encourage more young people to get involved in cultural inheritance. For example, I've been going to schools to teach students because I hope that intangible cultural heritage can take root in children's hearts from an early age. I want them to grow up knowing how remarkable our ethnic culture is and to develop a strong sense of cultural pride," Li said.
The "two sessions" refer to the annual meetings of the National People's Congress, China's top legislature, and the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Conference, China's top political advisory body,which usually convene in early March.
NPC deputy from Guizhou revitalizes Buyi culture through inheritance and innovation
