France's Socialist government said it would do whatever it took to keep ailing carmaker PSA Peugeot Citroen afloat though the prime minister said the state had no current plan to buy a stake, according to Reuters. The comments came a day after Peugeot, suffering falling sales in a depressed European car market, highlighted the scale of its woes by taking a 4.1 billion euro ($5.5 billion) writedown on its plants and other automotive assets. The future of Peugeot - maker of everything from the presidential limousine to the white vans favoured by small businesses - is sensitive given its status as a flagship of French industry, accounting for two-thirds of car production at a time when the jobless rate is at a multiyear high. "Regarding the purchase of a stake in this company, it is not on the agenda because PSA is not asking for it," Prime Minister Ayrault told reporters in Grenoble, southeast France, where he was giving a speech on pension reforms. "We do have a tool, the FSI (France's sovereign-wealth fund), which can if necessary take a stake. But today this question is not being looked at," Ayrault said. A spokesman for the FSI said the organisation is not working on any plan to invest in Peugeot. Peugeot declined comment. Although the writedown was a non-cash accounting item that does not affect Peugeot's liquidity or solvency, it reflected Europe's worsening market outlook and prompted speculation the state might intervene. -- SPA
