BERLIN (AP) 鈥� Volkswagen’s CEO indicated in comments published Sunday that he’s trying to avoid closing plants as he seeks to turn around the .
The Wolfsburg, Germany-based company faces pressure to cut costs at home and increasingly intense competition in the , in particular.
Last week, Volkswagen said its had reached its next phase, announcing plans to streamline the model lineup by up to half.
It didn’t provide specifics, and questions remain over how else it will cut costs. There has been renewed speculation about the future of several plants in Germany.
鈥淭here are more intelligent solutions than closing plants,鈥� CEO Oliver Blume told the Bild am Sonntag newspaper.
He added that a cost-cutting program in Germany already is producing effects. 鈥淲e were able to improve our factory costs in Germany by an average 20% last year alone,鈥� he said, describing that as 鈥渟trong progress.鈥�
Blume argued that Volkswagen’s products are very popular, but 鈥渨e just earn too little money with them. So we must continue to reduce our costs. In all kinds of costs.鈥�
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