CHANGING INTERFIRM RELATIONS IN THE EUROPEAN AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY - INCREASED DEPENDENCE OR ENHANCED AUTONOMY FOR COMPONENTS PRODUCERS

Evidence is presented on R&D and capital investment expenditures, inve ntory levels and work-in-progress, and profitability. It is concluded that leading component manufacturers proved more resilient and adaptab le than the assemblers during the early 1990s. This is explained in te rms of the position of these system integrators with respect to their own suppliers, and the differing sectoral and geographical configurati ons of assembly and leading component firms.This article explores the extent to which the benefits of new forms of inter-firm partnership wi thin the European automotive industry have been shared between assembl ers and component producers. It first considers the changing nature of the buyer-supplier relationship from the viewpoint of different parti es and as part of a process of restructuring within the filiere. Then it documents patterns of performance, comparing samples of five Europe an vehicle assemblers and ten component firms from 1987 to 1996.