Main focus of Friday, May 29, 2009

Europe meets to discuss Opel's future

The EU Commission has convened an emergency meeting in Brussels to deliberate on the future of Opel and the survival of Opel plants and jobs in Europe. For the time being crisis talks in Berlin have failed to produce a workable solution.

Dagens Nyheter - Sweden

The daily Dagens Nyheter sees the hour of truth approaching in the debate over Opel's future: "When the European ministers meet today they must ask themselves: should the ailing firm be helped, or are we willing to let it go bankrupt and disappear? If they answer the first question with a no, the next step has to be sharing the burden. The car industry in Europe has overcapacities, and not all plants can be helped. Closures will be unavoidable, and European funds must assist the phase-out of unsuccessful plants. ... The crisis in the car industry is an ordeal for many people across Europe. It is also a test of European cohesion. State aid that only serves to erect new borders will jeopardise the successes achieved with the common market." (29/05/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Corporations, » Sweden, » Europe

Cinco Días - Spain

According to the Spanish daily Cinco Días the EU must ensure that the rules of free competition are adhered to in the Opel rescue operation: "It's a little late. But some European governments seem surprised - even shocked - by the possibility that Germany could try to set tough conditions for rescuing Opel. This has prompted the EU to convene a meeting in Brussels. There is concern that the Opel bidders may try to impress German Chancellor Angela Merkel by promising to keep the GM subsidiary's three German plants open. This would mean sacrificing jobs in the UK, Spain, Belgium and Poland instead. … The role of the EU should be limited to ensuring that any solution that emerges is in accordance with the principles of free competition. No more, but certainly no less than that." (29/05/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Corporations, » Economic Policy, » Germany, » United Kingdom, » Spain, » Poland, » Belgium
All available articles from » Pierre Briançon

Frankfurter Rundschau - Germany

Writing on the failure of the Opel talks in Germany the left-liberal daily Frankfurter Rundschau comments that the negotiations were conducted on an extremely childish level: "Completely unexpectedly and after hours of haggling at the chancellor's office the Americans let the cat out of the bag and asked for another 300 million euros as a temporary cash injection. A disaster because this is not a child's game. It's about the future of a company that could soon run out of money and plunge into bankruptcy with all the unforeseeable consequences that entails. … [But] first of all the German government should not be held responsible for the temporary breakdown of the Opel rescue talks. The envoy of the US government was obviously overburdened with his task and can hardly be fully satisfied. But European boss of General Motors Enrico Digirolamo can. He sits on the Opel supervisory board, must be aware of the company's precise financial situation and know that you can't snub the German government by demanding up front an extra 20 percent of the 1.5-billion-euro aid package on the spur of the moment." (29/05/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Corporations, » Economic Policy, » Germany, » U.S.
All available articles from » Frank-Thomas Wenzel

La Repubblica - Italy

For the liberal daily La Repubblica the EU Commission's intervention in negotiations over Opel's future is conditioned by the fear "that the jobs of the Opel plants in other EU countries could be sacrificed at the alter of German electoral interests. ... Everything hinges on the advance payment that Berlin is ready to pay on the loan guarantee package of 1.5 billion euros. Berlin seems willing to pay 100 million, while Detroit is asking for 450 million. ... One thing is clear: if electoral considerations are causing the Germans to push for an emergency solution that will allow them to survive the electoral test in September, for Detroit and Washington June 1 is a far more pressing date. On that day the White House must decide on the plan of the former number one in Detroit in a bid to avert a declaration of bankruptcy which experts see as unavoidable." (29/05/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » Corporations, » Economic Policy, » Germany, » Italy, » Europe, » U.S.
All available articles from » Salvatore Tropea

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