{"text":[[{"start":10.68,"text":"Chinese carmakers expanding into Europe will offer a lifeline for manufacturers hit by local producers’ cuts, according to the chief executive of steelmaker Voestalpine."}],[{"start":20.86,"text":"European auto groups have been knocked by a weaker Chinese domestic market and increased competition from brands such as BYD, leaving suppliers scrambling for fewer contracts. Chinese carmakers are now shifting some production to the EU as the bloc restricts imports."}],[{"start":35.64,"text":"“When [the Chinese] come in and produce cars it can be a positive,” said Herbert Eibensteiner, chief executive of Austria’s Voestalpine, which draws a third of its revenues from the automotive industry."}],[{"start":47.04,"text":"Chinese carmaker BYD is one example, he said. “They are really close to us in Hungary . . . and it’s logical that we see them as a new customer.”"}],[{"start":56.86,"text":"About 12mn cars are produced in Europe annually, down from 15mn in 2017, according to industry body ACEA."}],[{"start":65.48,"text":"The region’s car sales are still below pre-pandemic levels, forcing carmakers and their suppliers to shut down or cut production lines in Europe. Volkswagen ended vehicle production at its site in Dresden late last year and is weighing the shutdown of four plants in Germany in the face of high energy and labour costs."}],[{"start":84.04,"text":"Stellantis is also partnering with Chinese rivals such as Leapmotor and Dongfeng to share production at its underutilised plants in Europe."}],[{"start":91.32,"text":"China, meanwhile, is on track to export more than 10mn cars this year, up from 7.1mn last year, as Beijing urges manufacturers to use excess capacity."}],[{"start":102.56,"text":"Chinese carmakers are also expanding European production as sales grow and the EU prepares to introduce stricter local content rules as soon as 2027."}],[{"start":111.24,"text":"BYD is set to start producing vehicles in Hungary this year and is considering a second facility in Spain or France."}],[{"start":118.56,"text":"Spain has courted Chery and MG owner SAIC to set up factories, while Ford plans to share its Valencia plant with Geely. Xpeng builds vehicles at Magna Steyr’s Austrian plant and is seeking further European facilities."}],[{"start":129.16,"text":"Under proposed EU rules, cars benefiting from public subsidies or procurement must have at least 70 per cent of components by value produced in Europe, excluding batteries. Brussels also wants to boost demand for domestically produced low-carbon steel by allowing carmakers to use it to offset emissions."}],[{"start":148.68,"text":"However, divisions over decarbonisation have weakened the low-carbon steel proposals following a deal between France and Germany last month."}],[{"start":158.08,"text":"The agreement caused rifts within Germany’s coalition, with the centre-left SPD fearing further job losses in the country’s struggling steel sector, which could have benefited from the rule, according to people familiar with the discussions."}],[{"start":171.76,"text":"Voestalpine, which is investing €1.5bn in greener steel production, has been restructuring its automotive division as European carmakers battle cheaper Chinese models, high manufacturing costs and US tariffs."}],[{"start":186.06,"text":"Its German plants would form a “joint production network” as the company focuses on “internationalisation” to protect jobs, it said in 2024."}],[{"start":194.92,"text":"Eibensteiner expects annual European car production of about 12mn vehicles to become “the new normal”. “I think so far the market in Europe is healthy,” he added, despite the steel plant closures, after the European Commission introduced trade protection measures earlier this year."}],[{"start":211.84,"text":"Voestalpine, the world’s leading producer of railway turnouts that shift trains from one track to another, has also benefited from increased government spending on rail infrastructure, particularly in Germany."}],[{"start":223.4,"text":"Deutsche Bahn, notorious for ageing infrastructure and delays, was both a blessing and a curse, Eibensteiner said."}],[{"start":230.12,"text":"“In Germany, there is a lot of repair work to do in the years to come. On the one hand, that’s positive for our railway business.”"}],[{"start":238.4,"text":"But the struggling railway network had also complicated the transport of raw materials from Rotterdam and Hamburg to Austria, he said."}],[{"start":250.24,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1794467252_9856.mp3"}