Falling demand forces Michelin to halt some French tyre factories

Michelin has paused production of some specialty tyres at its French factories as demand falls, the company said Tuesday.

A plant in northeast France making tyres for farm equipment and another one in the centre of the country supplying civil engineering vehicles will close for several weeks, the company said, confirming a report in Le Parisien newspaper.

The French company said its factories making tyres for passenger cars remain open even as demand also falls, but it is in talks with unions "to look for solutions".

The slowing activity is linked to an "overall softening of the world economy, especially in the automobile industry where manufacturers' sales are down 20 to 25 percent," chief executive Florent Menegaux told the Parisien.

"Obviously, that impacts us and we are forced to adapt," Menegaux said.

The group, which employs 132,300 people, announced a series of voluntary job cuts in 2021.

Over the past year it has also closed a factory in western France and another in southern Germany.