Being the boss of a French car company is not easy these days – and not just because of an unprecedented downturn in the car market. Knowing how to reconcile investor expectations with demands from the French government in return for its €6bn ($7.8bn) aid package, announced on Monday, seems almost as tricky as navigating the crisis.

The terms of its loans mean PSA Peugeot-Citröen and Renault must keep open all their French factories, not shed jobs and not relocate production abroad, putting paid to any hopes investors might have had that the two carmakers could announce new cost savings plans when they, respectively, report annual results on Wednesday and on Thursday.