DETROIT—Fiat Chrysler and Peugeot agreed Wednesday to merge into a single company that will become the world’s fourth-largest automaker, a giant that could bring consumers a wider variety of cleaner vehicles at a faster pace, including more powered by electricity.
The boards of the two companies signed the deal to achieve what neither was good at alone: conquering the challenges of stricter emission rules and navigating the transition to battery-powered and autonomous vehicles.
