According to the "Financial Times" report, Volkswagen Group CEO Herbert Diess believes that the impact of the situation in Russia and Ukraine on the European economy may be "much more serious" than the impact of the new crown epidemic.

　　Disruptions to global supply chains "could lead to significant price increases, energy shortages and inflation that would pose significant risks and threats to the European and German economies," Diess said, noting that higher inflation could severely "crunch consumers" ". Diess stressed that it supports "maximum sanctions" but must also return to negotiation and dialogue.

　　Image source: Volkswagen Group

　　According to Eurostat, inflation in the euro zone reached an annual rate of 5.8% in February, higher than market expectations and hitting a record high for several consecutive months, while inflation is expected to reach 7% in 2022. In addition, about 45% of Europe's natural gas imports come from Russia.

　　"For a country like Germany that depends on Russian energy, raw materials... If we cut off commercial relations with Russia, you can no longer buy energy, which could have major implications for Europe and Germany."

　　Last week, Volkswagen announced that it would suspend production in Russia until further notice, and the plant in Wolfsburg, Germany, was also suspended due to supply disruptions caused by the situation in Russia and Ukraine. Although VW has 7,000 employees in Russia, the Russian market is relatively small for VW. Last year, brands such as Volkswagen, Skoda, Audi and Porsche sold just 204,000 vehicles in Russia.

　　This article is reproduced from Gasgoo