Stellantis warns of more tariff impacts as it reports US$2.7B loss

Global News

2 days ago

Stellantis expects more impact from U.S. tariffs on vehicles and auto part imports in the second half of 2025, the company said on Monday as it reported a preliminary 2.3 billion euro (US$2.7 billion) net loss for the first six months of the year.
The carmaker, which owns a sprawling portfolio of brands including Jeep, Ram, Peugeot and Fiat, said President Donald Trump's tariffs had cost it 300 million euros so far as the company reduced vehicle shipments and cut some production to adjust manufacturing levels.
But Chief Financial Officer Doug Ostermann told analysts that the 300 million euro impact was not representative of what the group expects for the second half, as tariffs only came into effect part way through the first half.
'We'll see significantly more in the second half unless things change … given the current outlook, I would expect to see that figure probably double in the second half or more,' he said, adding that Stellantis was seeing a total full-year impact of between 1 and 1.5 billion euros.
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Stellantis, which under new CEO Antonio Filosa faces the challenge of revamping its product ranges in Europe and the United States, said it also booked 3.3 billion euros in pre-tax charges for the first half.
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These were due to program cancellations, including a hydrogen fuel cell project and money set aside for fines linked to U.S. pre-Trump carbon emission regulation. It was also investing more in popular hybrid cars in Europe and large gasoline-powered models in the U.S. market.
Last year, more than 40 per cent of the 1.2 million vehicles Stellantis sold in the United States were imports, mostly from Mexico and Canada where Trump has imposed tariffs of 25 per cent. Imports from the EU face levies of 30 per cent, though these have been deferred to Aug. 1.
Earnings miss
In April this year, the company said it had reduced vehicle imports in response to tariffs and would calibrate 'production and employment to reduce impacts on profitability.'
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The automaker's first-half results were below consensus, according to analysts at Jefferies, Bernstein and Citi. But despite the earnings miss, restructuring steps taken by Stellantis 'suggest decisive actions,' Bernstein analysts said.
Milan-listed shares in the automaker closed up 1.5 per cent after falling as much as 3.9 per cent in morning trade. They are down 35 per cent since the start of the year.
In April, Stellantis suspended its profit forecasts for 2025 due to uncertainty about tariffs, but said on Monday it was publishing its unaudited preliminary financial data to align analyst forecasts with the group's actual performance.
Asked whether Stellantis' situation was similar to that of rival Renault's, whose shares fell as much as 18 per cent last week when it issued a profit warning on the back of softening demand for cars and vans in Europe, Ostermann said Europe was a 'very competitive environment.'
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'I won't disagree with our counterparts at Renault,' he said.
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Stellantis' first-half loss, versus a 5.6 billion euro net profit a year earlier, underscores the tough challenges for Filosa, who was appointed in May after a disastrous performance in the company's crucial U.S. market in 2024 forced the ousting of former boss Carlos Tavares.
In a letter to employees seen by Reuters the new CEO on Monday promised that 2025 would be 'a year of gradual and sustainable improvement' after a 'tough first half, with increasing external headwinds.'
Stellantis, which will publish its final results for the first half on July 29, said it burnt through 2.3 billion euros of cash in the January-June period.
–Additional reporting by Enrico Sciacovelli; Writing by Giulio Piovaccari and Nick Carey; Editing by Louise Heavens and David Holmes