AB Volvo to cut white-collar workforce by 4,100 jobs as pandemic weighs

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Truck- and construction equipment maker AB Volvo <VOLVb.ST> plans to cut its white-collar workforce by around 4,100 positions during the second half of 2020, it said in a statement on Tuesday, citing the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The outbreak of the novel coronavirus has slammed demand for trucks, forcing Volvo and its rivals to cut costs, with

fellow truck maker Scania <8TRA.DE> earlier this month flagging it was planning major job reductions.

"The corona epidemic and the global measures taken to fight it has led to a market situation impacting our industry severely," Volvo CEO Martin Lundstedt said in a statement.

"The effects are expected to be lower demand going forward and we need to continue to adjust our organization accordingly."

Volvo said around 15% of the expected reductions were consultants, adding that about 1,250 positions were expected to be cut in Sweden.

The Gothenburg-based company, which employs some 104,000 staff, said late in April that net order intake of its trucks had dropped by 75% in March versus February and been net negative since then.

(Reporting by Johannes Hellstrom; Editing by Simon Johnson)