Volkswagen to reduce global production capacity by three million vehicles

The automaker plans further cuts of one million units as CEO Oliver Blume cites global market conditions.

Volkswagen plans to cut its production capacity by an additional one million vehicles, bringing total planned reductions to three million cars annually, CEO Oliver Blume said in an interview published on Tuesday.¹²

Blume told the German business publication Manager Magazin that the automaker would reduce its global capacity to nine million cars per year from a previous level of 12 million.¹²

"On the one hand, we're investing heavily in products. At the same time we've already taken extensive measures. We're looking at cutting a further million units of capacity to reflect the global market situation," Blume said.¹²

The announcement indicates that Volkswagen had already implemented capacity reductions of two million units before the latest planned cut. The CEO attributed the decision to adjustments needed to align production with current global automotive market conditions.¹²