VOLVO TO LAY OFF 2,500 EMPLOYEES

STOCKHOLM, OCTOBER 23 /SRNA - RIA Novosti/ - Swedish passenger car manufacturer Volvo has announced plans to cut its workforce by 2,500, mainly in Sweden, after reporting a loss in the third quarter due to adverse external factors.

The company said it wanted to reduce indirect and variable costs by an additional $500 million.

"These actions will result in a structural reduction of approximately 2,500 jobs worldwide, of which 2,000 are in Sweden," the statement said.

The full financial impact of the measures introduced will be realized by the end of next year, resulting in a reduction of approximately 25 percent in total indirect expenses compared with 2024.

"We continue to operate in a very difficult environment, facing major external challenges: deglobalization, hypercompetition and climate change," Volvo CEO Håkan Samuelsson said.

According to the financial report released, Volvo's quarterly sales in China recorded the steepest decline, falling by as much as 43 percent compared with the same period last year.

Sales fell by 13 percent in Canada, nine percent each in the United States and Germany, and one percent in Sweden. Quarterly sales in Turkey rose by 35 percent, in the Netherlands by 15 percent, in Spain by seven percent, in the United Kingdom by six percent and in Belgium by five percent.

Volvo is a Swedish car manufacturer founded in 1927 and is now owned by China's Geely. As of the end of last year, the company employed a total of 42,600 people.