France's Le Maire: We will fight Bridgestone's plan to close Bethune factory

The French government is looking into options to try to save jobs and prevent the closure of the Bethune tyre plant in northern France that Japan's Bridgestone plans to shut. With 863 employees, the factory has daily production capacity of about 17,000 tyres.

The French government is looking into options to try to save jobs and prevent the closure of the Bethune tyre plant in northern France that Japan's Bridgestone plans to shut. "We are going to fight. We are going to fight for a production that will be more attractive and review other options," Le Maire told CNews television.

Bridgestone announced on Wednesday that it would begin talks to close the factory in Bethune in the face of low demand for its main product, low-profile tyres. With 863 employees, the factory has daily production capacity of about 17,000 tyres.