Steel Markets
Toyota Cuts February Production Forecast on COVID, Supply-Chain Snarls
Written by Michael Cowden
January 18, 2022
Toyota has reduced its North American production schedules for the second month in a row because of shortages stemming from COVID-19 and supply-chain bottlenecks.
The Japanese automaker said on Tuesday that its North American assembly plants would make approximately 25,000-30,000 fewer vehicles than initially projected in February.
That number could change because “the situation remains fluid,” a company spokeswoman said in an email to SMU.
“Toyota will continue to face shortages that will affect production at our North American plants. Our teams are working diligently to minimize the impact on production,” she said.
“We do not anticipate any impact to employment at this time,” she added.
Toyota scaled back January production by 40,000-50,000 vehicles for similar reasons.
The automaker did not specify how many tons of steel would be impacted by the reduced production levels. A rough rule of thumb is that each passenger vehicles contains approximately one ton of steel.
Automakers have been struggling with COVID, supply-chain issues as well as shortages of chips and other parts for more than a year.
By Michael Cowden, Michael@SteelMarketUpdate.com
Michael Cowden
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