Following the news that the boards of PSA Group and Fiat-Chrysler (FCA) have signed off on plans to combine operations and create a leading global group; David Leggett, Automotive Editor at GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company, offers his view:
PSA Group and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) have confirmed plans for a merger, with a final agreement expected in the coming weeks. Both businesses have unanimously agreed to a 50:50 merger resulting in a company that will be the fourth largest auto-maker in the world, selling more than 8.7 million vehicles each year.
Vehicle manufacturer PSA Groupe is introducing a new winter tyre range via its Eurorepar brand. It’s called the Eurorepar Reliance Winter and will be available in a number of European markets. So far PSA hasn’t said the range will be sold in the UK alongside the Reliance Summer. The Eurorepar Reliance Winter is produced in 26 sizes for 14- to 18-inch rim diameters – PSA says that the five most popular sizes cover 75 per cent of vehicles in the market.
In a deal designed to make PSA Group the second largest carmaker in Europe, the Peugeot-Citreon brand owner has bought GM’s long-term lossmaking Opel and Vauxhall brands and production bases for 2.2 billion euros. This figure includes a joint venture with BNP Paribas on the GM Europe auto financing operations (valuing these transactions at 1.3 billion euros and 0.9 billion, respectively). But what does it mean for the tyre sector?
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