Troubled automaker group Stellantis records a 9% year-on-year fall in first-quarter global shipments, down to 1.2 million vehicles.
The drop for the automaker still looking for a new CEO after the ousting of Carlos Tavares last autumn follows a 12% fall in vehicle shipments in 2024.
The first-quarter drop is being blamed mainly on production in North America hit by extended holiday downtime in January on top of product transitions and lower light commercial-vehicle sales in Europe.
The weakening shipment figures are likely to worsen in the face of U.S. tariffs on imported vehicles and raw materials used in auto production such as aluminum and steel.
In the first three months of 2025, Stellantis' shipments were down 20% in North America and 8% in its Enlarged Europe area, the company says in a statement on its corporate website.
In Europe, shipments declined by about 47,000 vehicles with two thirds of the decline in certain A- and B-segment vehicles replacing older models discontinued in the first half of 2024. The rest of the decline was seen in LCV volumes. However, shipments to the group’s “Third Engine” markets of South America were up 19%.
Looking to future growth, Stellantis says new and refreshed models in the first quarter include the Citroën C3 Aircross, Opel Frontera, Fiat Grande Panda, Ram 2500 and 3500 heavy-duty trucks, “helping to drive positive momentum in order intake, while maintaining normalized dealer inventory levels.”
