As the tanguero Carlos Gardel sang, “siempre se vuelve al primer amor”. And so the relationship between Fiat and Argentina returns to its origins, a country where Lingotto has been present in the agricultural sector since the beginning of the 900th century. The CEO of Fiat, Sergio Marchionne, has decided to further strengthen Fiat Industrial's commitments in Argentina, making up for an almost twenty-year shortage in the production of agricultural machinery. Through the subsidiary Case New Holland (Cnh), the Turin car manufacturer will invest 200 million dollars, twice as much as announced a year ago, in the production of specialized models for agriculture.
Fiat Industrial is planning on-site production – the new production facility will be located in the Fiat complex in Cordoba – of agricultural machinery (combine harvesters and specialized tractors for vineyards and orchards) and high-tech diesel engines, mostly intended for export. Fiat's goal is for Argentina to become a "center of excellence for the production of this type of vehicle throughout Latin America".
The Argentine president Cristina was also present at the presentation of the investment plan Fernandez, which will finance almost half of the project through a government loan. The president has been the subject of various criticisms in recent days because she has been accused of excessive protectionism in asking foreign multinationals to keep a large part of the profits generated in the country locally. But Marchionne seems to be meeting the pressures of the Casa Rosada. "Fiat has understood the type of policy that the Government is adopting towards all industry", said the Minister of Industry, Debora Giorgi, "greater integration of the components in the country to replace imported products and create new jobs". Marchionne had reiterated it previously, Fiat intends to make "a great contribution to the Argentine economy". We hope to be able to say the same for Italy too.
In Piazza Affari, the Fiat Industrial share has gained more than 4% since the beginning of the day, to just over 8 euros per share. Fiat also performed well, gaining 15.00% at around 3,8 pm to 4,152 euros per share.
