Some idea of the impact the onslaught of new Chinese models is having on the European car industry has come from a statement from Volkswagen. The German company citing economic pressures and high costs associated with manufacturing could force the closure of its German production facilities for the first time in the history of the company. Volkswagen Group CEO Oliver Blume suggesting the European automotive industry is in a very demanding and serious situation – new competitors are entering the market and Germany in particular as a manufacturing location is falling further behind in terms of competitiveness. Volkswagen had already gone to great lengths to cut costs last year, but the emergence of Chinese brands is making it difficult to compete. Volkswagen has 300,000 employees in Germany and there are fears that job losses are inevitable if the company restructures. I’m David Berthon.

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