AP reported that French Romanian carmaker Dacia has resumed production on February 9th 2009 after a series of halts, starting in December 2008, were triggered by a sharp drop in sales amid the economic crisis.

After an initial month long closure, production was shut again on January 26th 2009 at the factory owned by French Renault SA in Mioveni.

In January 2009, 2,000 employees held a rally demanding that the government protect jobs in the car industry. The factory employs about 14,000 people.

Dacia said that Romanian car sales in November 2008 were half what they were a year earlier. The factory will now make 1,085 cars a day, instead of 1,360 before the production halt.

Mr Francois Fourmont general director of Dacia Renault has warned in the past that the company might make 3,000 workers redundant if sales do not increase. He added that Renault SA has invested EUR 1 billion in Dacia since buying it in 1998.

The end of the production halt came as steelmaker ArcelorMittal said that it would close its factory in Hunedoara for at least another month due to a lack of demand for steel. The factory, which employs 1,200, was closed in November and December for the same reasons.

(Sourced from www.ap.org)