Honda Halts Production at Mexico Plant amid Chip Shortage

(The fourth paragraph should have read, “…after starting…,” instead of as sent. A substitute story follows.) Honda Halts Production at Mexico Plant amid Chip Shortage Tokyo, Oct. 30 (Jiji Press)–Honda Motor Co. has halted vehicle production at a plant in Mexico due to a semiconductor shortage linked to the disrupted supply from Netherlands-headquartered Chinese chipmaker Nexperia, officials have said. The timing for resuming production remains unclear, while the Japanese automaker said Wednesday that it is making arrangements to resume operations. The supply disruptions occurred as a result of U.S.-China trade tensions. This is the first time that the impact of the Nexperia-linked chip supply issue on a Japanese manufacturer has come to light. Honda halted production at its Celaya Auto Plant in Mexico on Tuesday, after starting to reduce output at its plants in the United States and Canada on Monday. The plant in Mexico, which produces the HR-V multipurpose SUVs, manufactured over 190,000 vehicles last year. Most of the vehicles were exported to North America. Nexperia’s semiconductors are widely used in electronic control units that manage vehicle functions and other devices. Honda receives supplies of some products from Nexperia. The Chinese government has imposed export regulations on products manufactured by Nexperia within China. Nissan Motor Co. is conducting a survey on auto parts makers. A senior official of the Japanese automaker told reporters that no impact has been confirmed at this point, while saying, ” It may become a large-scale problem.” END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]