PARIS--The French government is expected to announce later
Wednesday a plan to support the country's automotive industry by
expanding state-financed schemes to boost purchases of electric and
low-carbon-emissions cars and introducing around 600 million euros
of financing for investments, French business daily Les Echos
reports, citing unspecific sources.
The government is to announce that the subsidy to buy an
electric car will be increased to EUR7,000 from EUR5,000 initially
while the subsidy to buy a low carbon emission car, such as a
hybrid vehicle, will be increased by EUR100-EUR150, the newspaper
also reports.
The French government, which is seeking to fight the decline of
the country's automotive industry, which is plagued by low
competitiveness and a challenging European economic environment, is
also expected to announce that at least 25% of its own orders would
be for electric or hybrid vehicles, a sector in which French car
makers are well positioned.
Among other measures, the French state and the publicly owned
bank for small and medium-sized companies Oseo will make EUR600
million available to automotive companies for investments and
potential cash needs, Les Echos also reports.
Newspaper Web site: http://www.lesechos.fr
-Write to Geraldine Amiel at geraldine.amiel@dowjones.com
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