Michelin Reports ‘No Urgent Need’ For Funding

The French government has offered to pump up to six billion euros into the nation’s battered automotive industry, but Michelin says it doesn’t require state assistance. Despite being hard hit by declining global vehicle sales, the tyre maker said on January 20 that its debt financing needs were for the time being covered.

“We have no urgent needs,” Jean-Dominique Senard, managing partner and finance chief, told Reuters during a summit of government and industry executives in Paris. “Our next debt repayment deadline (470 million euros, in April) is already covered by bridge loans that allow us to refinance in a serene fashion.”

The government’s offer of funds is conditional on companies safeguarding employee’s jobs. France’s automotive industry provides jobs for almost 10 per cent of the country’s workforce.