German car maker BMW wants its suppliers and sub-contractors to shoulder more of the burden of higher raw material costs, the German industry newsletter Automobilwoche reported. ( Reuters )
"Since 2004 raw materials have led to additional costs in the region of 800 million euros ($1.24 billion) for us, of which more than 700 million euros have ended up in our books," it quoted BMW management board member Herbert Diess as saying.
Sub-contractors, suppliers and BMW should each carry one-third of such costs, he said.
But the approach should be differentiated, taking into account the impact of higher raw material costs for the sub-contractors and suppliers, Diess said.
"We expect a clearly lower participation from a foundry than from an electronics supplier."