2025 will be a crucial year for the Stellantis group
- Formed from the merger of the PSA group (Peugeot-Citroën) and the FCA group (Fiat-Chrysler), the Stellantis group, created in 2021, just after the Covid crisis, has never been able to reach the cumulative sales and production levels of the years 2010-2019 when the PSA and FCA groups were independent. While the PSA+FCA group had reached all together 8 million vehicles per year in 2018 and 2019, the volumes reached after these two years fell to 6 million vehicles on average (6.15 million in 2020, 6.38 million in 2021, 5.70 million in 2022 and 5.97 million in 2023). The results for 2024 are not yet known, but it is likely to being even lower.
- When we compare Stellantis' volumes to those of the world's top three carmakers (Toyota, Volkswagen, Hyundai-Kia), we see that Toyota has largely exceeded its pre-Covid levels and that Volkswagen and Hyundai-Kia have lost less volume than Stellantis. Stellantis has just done better than GM, which collapsed, going from 10 million vehicles produced and sold in 2016 to 6 million in 2023, with the sale of Opel/Vauxhall to PSA in 2017 only partly explaining this collapse.
- The decline in Stellantis' volume is the consequence of the strategic choice to prioritize the search for high margins to the detriment of volumes, coupled with a policy of standardizing platforms and engines within the entire Stellantis range. It has generated significant overcapacity in Stellantis factories, especially since the carmaker's management had refused to close any factories.
- The year 2025 will be crucial. A strong recovery is indeed unlikely. Choices will have to be made, particularly regarding the closure of factory(ies).