Car firm Renault will cut 17 per cent of its French workforce in the next four years to reduce costs as Europe’s car market sinks for a sixth straight year in 2013. Renault plans to eliminate 7,500 positions through 2016 at its French operations, according to a spokeswoman for the firm.

The car maker would cut 5,700 of the posts through attrition, she said. Renault chief executive Carlos Ghosn said in an interview earlier in Detroit that the European market would drop another 3 per cent this year, after car sales there fell in 2012 to a two-decade low.

PSA Peugeot Citroen, Ford and General Motors are all trimming their European workforces and closing plants in response to plunging demand. Renault notified unions yesterday that the cuts were needed to reach break-even at its operations in France. – (Bloomberg)