The European Supply Industry

Fewer bankruptcies than expected; private equity may target suppliers further down the food chain

No matter how challenging and disruptive the last two years have been, the automotive supplier industry in Europe has fared considerably better than the gloomy expectations which predicted a mortality rate of some ten times that as would normally have been experienced in such turbulent circumstances. The impact of the crisis and the magnitude of its effects on European suppliers were more limited than experienced in the US due to a number of factors. The welfare provisions typical of the European nation states certainly played an important role in limiting job cuts and the closures of suppliers’ and OEMs’ factories. These measures provided for the state assistance to facilitate supposedly temporary layoffs.