Renault plans to cut 3,000 jobs in support functions, French newsletter reports

PARIS (Reuters) -French carmaker Renault plans to cut 3,000 jobs through a voluntary redundancy offer for staff in support functions, French newsletter L'Informe reported on Saturday. Under a cost savings plan dubbed "Arrow", Renault wants to cut staff numbers in support services such as human resources, finance and marketing by 15%, which is expected to lead to about 3,000 job cuts at the carmaker's headquarters in the Paris suburb of Boulogne-Billancourt and other locations worldwide. The newsletter quoted a source familiar with the matter as saying that a final decision should be made by the end of the year. Renault confirmed it is considering cost cuts, but that at this stage it has no figures to report as no decisions have been made. "Given the uncertainties in the automotive market and the extremely competitive environment, we confirm that we are considering ways to simplify our operations, speed up execution, and optimize our fixed costs," a Renault spokesperson said. At the end of 2024 Renault employed 98,636 staff worldwide. Renault reported in July a 11.2 billion euro ($13 billion) first-half net loss, including a 9.3 billion euro write-down on partner Nissan. Excluding the write-down, net income plunged to 461 million euros, less than a third of the year-earlier level, due to a weaker van market, costs associated with electric vehicles and commercial pressures in a more competitive environment. New CEO Francois Provost – appointed in July after Luca de Meo left for Gucci-owner Kering – needs to restore margins, get Renault's credit rating back to investment grade, and find ways for the relatively small carmaker to deal with the impact of U.S. tariffs and intense competition from Chinese carmakers, analysts say. (Reporting by Geert De Clercq; Editing by Susan Fenton)

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