The prognosis for the European car producing industry is extremely pessimistic and it is possible for some major companies to prove unable to survive the crisis, the European Commissioner for Industry, Gunter Verheugen, declared on Friday. Representatives of the EU states discuss in Brussels the measures that may be taken to save the industry segment.
"The prognosis for the European car producing industry is brutal. We saw a 20% decrease of sales in the past quarter and we expect another 20% drop in 2009. Hundreds of thousands or even millions of workers will be affected", said the EC official.
"There is no guarantee that all major companies will survive the crisis. We need a series of measured fitted to these circumstances. One of the plausible programs is the discount for new cars in exchange for giving up old vehicles", Verheugen added.
