General Motors announced today that it will temporarily stop production later this month at nearly all of its European assembly plants in response to dramatically decreased demand. The only GM plant that will be spared is the Rüsselsheim, Germany, facility that builds the Opel/Vauxhall Insignia, which was just introduced.
Production will stop from Oct. 20 to Oct 31 at every other GM assembly plant – including facilities that build Opel, Vauxhall, Saab and Chevrolet automobiles. Not surprisingly, union bosses and factory work councils were not delighted to hear the news. They were just informed of the temporary production halt.
According to Automotive News, demand for new cars in western Europe fell by 9.2 percent in Europe, mirroring decreased demand across the globe.
