Honda to build fewer car in UK on weak growth outlook
Honda is to further cut production in Britain. The Japanese carmaker said that was because sales growth in Europe is disappointing and it does not see that changing in the next couple of years.
Its plant at Swindon, in southwest England, will go from three shifts a day to two, with an estimated 340 job losses – just over 10 percent of the workforce.
Swindon – Honda’s hub for European car manufacturing .. will reduce production to about 120,000 cars this year, less than half its full capacity of 250,000 vehicles.
In 2013 the plant turned out 140,094 vehicles, which was a decrease of about 15 percent from the previous year.
Honda has been making cars at Swindon since 1992, building the Civic, Civic Tourer, CR-V and Jazz (also known as the Fit) models for the British and European markets.
The cuts come as European carmakers struggle to reverse dwindling sales of the past six years as consumers, particularly in austerity-hit countries, hold back spending.
Industry figures for January showed European car sales rose 5.2 percent, boosted by demand from countries which were previously crisis hot spots such as Italy, Portugal and Greece.
Its plant at Swindon, in southwest England, will go from three shifts a day to two, with an estimated 340 job losses – just over 10 percent of the workforce.
Swindon – Honda’s hub for European car manufacturing .. will reduce production to about 120,000 cars this year, less than half its full capacity of 250,000 vehicles.
In 2013 the plant turned out 140,094 vehicles, which was a decrease of about 15 percent from the previous year.
Honda has been making cars at Swindon since 1992, building the Civic, Civic Tourer, CR-V and Jazz (also known as the Fit) models for the British and European markets.
The cuts come as European carmakers struggle to reverse dwindling sales of the past six years as consumers, particularly in austerity-hit countries, hold back spending.
Industry figures for January showed European car sales rose 5.2 percent, boosted by demand from countries which were previously crisis hot spots such as Italy, Portugal and Greece.