Stellantis to pause production at southern Italian plants

ROME (Reuters) – Stellantis (NYSE:) on Wednesday announced new temporary stoppages for two of its plants in southern Italy as the automaker continues to suffer from weak demand for its products.

The company said in two separate statements it informed unions about a pause in production at the Termoli engine plant on Dec. 16-22 and at the Cassino auto factory on the day of Nov. 29. During the stoppages, workers will be furloughed.

Stellantis, whose Italian brands include Fiat (BIT:) and Alfa Romeo, said it was determined to “ensure the continuity” of its Italian operations, but noted it was facing “a challenging path requiring difficult choices and offering no easy solutions.”

The company is facing industry-wide challenges such as low demand for more expensive electric cars and competition from China. It is also grappling with bloated inventories that have led it to cut profit and cash-flow forecasts.

In Italy, it has repeatedly paused production this year, including at its historic Mirafiori plant in Turin, but last week Stellantis pledged not to close factories in the country or make mass redundancies.