According to reports from the World Economic Forum, which took place in the Swiss resort of Davos last week, French tyre maker Michelin is planning to open a logistics centre in Serbia before the middle of 2010.
 
The announcement, which was reported by Serbia’s Tanjug news agency, follows a meeting between Michelin Group managing partner Michel Rollier and Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Bozidar Djelic,
 
The two men discussed the establishment of a new logistics centre according to the report, to support a confirmed increase in output at the Tigar-Michelin joint venture plant, which currently makes six million tyres annually.
 
The financial aspects of the project will be agreed upon during the next visit of Michelin representatives to Belgrade at a date to be announced.
 
Meanwhile, in the UK, the news was not so good, as Michelin announced a slowdown in production at its Stoke-on-Trent plant, which will close for 15 days between February and April.
 

The move, which is designed to avoid redundancies and avoid costly surplus stock, is a response to a market that is "still very depressed" according to the company.