Made in Europe: Think global, Act global

Do people still recall of the dismantling of the French company Alstom, sold to the American company General Electric in 2014, a European industrial flagship sacrificed on the altar of (lack of) political expediency? Or how about the systematic destruction of the textile industry, or the hijacking of electronic chips by Asia? Despite the repeated warnings of parts suppliers, their companies could yet be methodically dismantling in the same way. How could this be possible? Looking at the figures, it is easy to understand the general panic: for the first time in history, the EU has bought more cars from China than it has sold to it. The trade balance is in the red for new cars (€2.3 billion in 2025), whereas it was still positive to the tune of €15 billion in 2022. Sales of parts to China are in free fall (€3.4 billion), while imports of Chinese components have exploded by 67% since 2021. The death knell has already sounded for some suppliers, with 76,000 lost jobs since 2024. The social haemorrhage is far from over. Foreign acquisitions of European suppliers on their last legs are accelerating: $16 billion in assets have been bought up by Chinese or American companies. Added to this are Chinese industrial facilities springing up like mushrooms across the country, with seven new factories confirmed – six under negotiation – and production capacity of 1.1 million vehicles per year by 2028. 
So this European label, which is nothing more or less than a replica of the local content requirement that exists in China, India or the United States, is urgently demanded by the six organisations of the Liaison Committee of Automotive Supplier Industries* which represents 3,600 companies, 240,000 employees and a total turnover that still amounts to €52 billion. Today, one in four cars manufactured in Europe must already comply with preferential rules of origin requirements to be exported to more than 25 countries (85% of the content of vehicles produced, all engines combined, and 77% for parts). The idea of a slightly lower but mandatory threshold for everyone would contain European supply and prevent massive relocation to Asia. 

*CLIFA: spare parts, body parts, mechanical industries, forging and foundry, plastics and rubber industry trade association

Although the Commission is introducing a local content requirement into its Automotive Package, only small electric vehicles are affected, and even then, only if they receive public financial support. Larger electric models, as well as combustion engine and hybrid vehicles, are excluded. Yet another EU-made bureaucratic nightmare with negligible impact! Quite a threat to industrial sovereignty... "Can we really believe that the market will once again espouse the values that have made Europe, in the name of illusory nationalism, the most expensive continent in the world? Especially given the current political situation in Europe, not to mention compatibility with the WTO, which Europeans, unlike everyone else, scrupulously respect. Our message is simple: let's support European industry by all means possible! And let's not forget the open, competitive and innovative aftermarket. The IAM must not be the poor relation of industrial policy", says Fotios Katsardis (Temot International). "Closing European factories to open new ones in Asia is something I don't criticise because it's undoubtedly a decision that makes sense for the manufacturer. But if a European vehicle is a product assembled with Chinese machines and components controlled by China, that's a definition of “local” that I'll leave to everyone's own judgement. Is it local to buy parts from a European supplier who itself has more factories in Asia than in Europe?" asks Stéphane Antiglio (PHE). 

It took Brussels a mere ten years to bring the European automotive industry to its knees. We can always reignite the penitent subject of Dieselgate and raise the topic of  the urgent decarbonisation of the planet... only to be overlooking the fact that for more than twenty years, manufacturers and equipment suppliers have invested more than any other industry in new technologies to reduce polluting emissions while supporting the mobility – and economy – of the entire planet, including people and goods - whatever the diehards may say. "The radical nature of political decisions, far removed from the reality on the ground and in businesses, has forced manufacturers to take a direction where the price to pay is now commensurate with these indiscriminate injunctions, with hundreds of thousands of jobs lost in 2025. We are going to dismantle electric vehicles factories that have barely been completed because there is no demand for EVs, and manufacturers are fleeing Europe for Asia. Our European leadership is unable to rise to the challenges we face", says Gaël Escribe (Nexus Group). Note for later: remember that we happened to elect these politicians.