The chip shortage is having a major impact on car production and sales worldwide. Perhaps there is finally some light at the end of the tunnel, given the cautious optimism of Volvo CEO Hakan Samuelsson.
The latest reports about the global chip shortage and the effect on the car industry are not to cheer about. Reports about factory closures are flying around us. Opel even has to stop work in Eisenach until the new year. Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen and Stellantis are anticipating shortages well into 2022 or even 2023. Research firm IHS has revised the expectations for car production for the coming years even further downwards. In that light, it is refreshing that there is also someone who seems to see a bright spot: Volvo CEO Hakan Samuelsson.
In conversation with the Swedish Sveriges Radio Samuelsson states that Volvo is noticing that delivery times for microchips are beginning to decrease. “It’s looking much better for the fourth quarter. It’s very difficult to predict, but I think we can really expect a clear improvement.” Samuelsson is nevertheless realistic about the lingering consequences of the shortages, according to him the chip shortage will continue to limit Volvo’s growth rate for the time being.
The shortages are mainly attributed to a sharp rebound in electronics sales during the lockdowns. As global car production slowed and chip orders were delayed, the auto industry was further back in line and now running into shortages. What, according to Samuelsson, caused even bigger problems last quarter, is now behind us: “It was mainly covid outbreaks at suppliers in the Far East that caused major problems. It was more a corona problem than a semiconductor problem at the time.”
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl