Ferrari Mailing List: NFC: P-Bugs halt Production for 8 days

[Rich (Rich355]

http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssAutoTruckManufacturers/idUSLP56414020081125
UPDATE 1-German carmakers make fresh move to cut output
Tue Nov 25, 2008 11:41am 

 Porsche schedules 8 days of production stops at main plant
* Volkswagen may stop production in Wolfsburg for 3 weeks

* Audi says production halts are a precaution

* BMW says will cut further 400 temporary jobs in Leipzig

* Porsche shares down 8.8 pct, VW down 17.7 pct

(Adds Audi production stops, BMW temporary job cuts)

FRANKFURT, Nov 25 (Reuters) - German carmakers made another move to cut output 
levels towards the end of the year to offset slumping demand as the global 
economic crisis prompts consumers and companies to closely monitor their 
finances.

Sports car maker Porsche (PSHG_p.DE: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) 
halted production at its headquarters in the southern German town of 
Zuffenhausen, for one day on Nov. 21, and planned to stop assembly for another 
seven days until end-January.

The company said on Tuesday it no longer saw its financial year unit sales to 
end-July reaching the previous same period's level of 98,652 vehicles.

The German car industry accounts for about one in eight jobs in the country, 
according to German auto industry association VDA. The downturn in car sales 
has also started having an impact on other sectors such as chemicals and 
electronics.

Volkswagen (VOWG.DE: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), in which Porsche 
holds 42.6 percent of the shares, earlier said it was also considering 
suspending production, eyeing a three-week halt at its main Wolfsburg plant 
from Dec. 18 until Jan. 11.

VW luxury vehicle unit Audi followed suit. A spokesman for the company said the 
carmaker's orders have been stable, and the production halts were preventative 
measures.

Domestic peer BMW (BMWG.DE: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) had suspended 
production at its factory in Leipzig for a week last month and is currently 
operating only one shift a day there.

The company now plans to cut 400 further temporary workers in Leipzig, in 
addition to previously announced plans to cut 8,100 full-time jobs around the 
world, a spokesman for the company told Reuters on Tuesday.

At 1559 GMT, shares in Porsche were down 8.8 percent to 51.07 euros. Volkswagen 
had slipped 17.7 percent to 271.38 euros and BMW was down 2.4 percent to 19.245 
euros. The DJ Stoxx European autos index was down 6.3 percent. (Reporting by 
Maria Sheahan, Jan Schwartz, Irene Preisinger; Editing by Andrew Macdonald)