German automotive suppliers don’t anticipate the market returning to the pre-pandemic levels before 2022, according to survey results from by the German Association of Automotive Industry (verband der automobilindustrie-VDA).
Based on the survey, two-thirds of suppliers are working at 50-75pc capacity, out of which a quarter reported that 50pc of their employees are on short-term work schedules because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Around 60pc of the surveyed firms plan to layoff more workers, while the remaining 40pc had already intended to relocate out of Germany before the pandemic.
Many of the German companies reported having access to financial support from banks, SMEs, and ‘economic stabilization’ funds, while other stated their liquidity could run dry within three months unless they take drastic precautionary measures, according to the VDA survey.
VDA President Hildegard Muller said that, even before the pandemic, some firm planned to move out of Germany because production costs were too high. He added that trade unions, companies, and government officials should discuss measures to prevent the supplier exodus, and that COVID-19 should mobilize them to reform existing laws and regulations, which have been working against their interests.