Auto suppliers in crisis: “Four million cars will not be built”

“We are short of almost four million cars a year that are not built in Europe,” calculates Zinkl. The result: The manufacturers’ orders are well below plan.

Bitter closures

The bankruptcies and factory closures speak for themselves: at the beginning of January 2026, the Styrian supplier Wollsdorf Leder Schmidt & Co GmbH., which produces leather for automobiles, slipped into bankruptcy. A total of 365 employees are affected and the debts were estimated at 32 million euros.

In mid-January 2026, the Lower Austrian automotive supplier Eitek, which supplies complete interior systems to car manufacturers, went bankrupt. 442 employees are affected, the registered claims: 24.1 million euros.

Major job cuts

The automotive supplier Nemak is closing its factory in Herzogenburg by the end of the first quarter of 2027, 330 jobs will be cut. Nemak produces aluminum components for the automotive industry. The company took over the plant in Herzogenburg from the Swiss industrial company Georg Fischer just a few months ago.

The automotive supplier ZKW will cut 600 jobs in Lower Austria by the end of 2027. The site in Wieselburg is affected, where around 570 jobs will be lost. Another 30 jobs at ZKW in Wiener Neustadt are also affected.

5,000 jobs lost

Between 2024 and 2025, the industry lost almost 5,000 jobs in this country. “That was the first time that we actually had to cut staff,” says Zinkl. Nemak is just one example of companies that “find it incredibly difficult to remain competitive with the current overall structure,” explains the expert.

Austria is struggling with high wage and ancillary wage costs. “We have to reduce factor costs and unit labor costs,” says expert Zinkl. The industry is traditionally adaptable and extremely innovative, but without reliable planning and clear strategies, the necessary investments can hardly be made. Added to this are the increased raw material and energy prices as well as the competitive pressure from Chinese manufacturers who are increasingly entering the market and who, with government help, can offer unrivaled prices in Europe.

As long as there is no clarity in Brussels about the future of the combustion engine and the major manufacturers do not agree on a strategy, suppliers will lack the basis for investment decisions, it is said.