Volkswagen Group (XETRA:VOW) said it will reduce production at more of its plants as the industry continues to have to put on the brakes due to a shortage of semiconductors and microchips.
Volkswagen will cut working hours at its Wolfsburg factory next week, Europe's largest car manufacturer said today, following another cut to production in Brazil it announced at the start of the month.
In May, VW boss Herbert Diess said the company was in "crisis mode" over the ongoing lack of automotive chips, with the shortage expected to intensify and hit profits in the second quarter.
Alongside April's otherwise upbeat results, chief financial officer Arno Antlitz said “the shortage of semiconductors throughout the industry is expected to have a more significant impact in the second quarter than before”, though the company remained confident about the overall outlook for the year and further ahead.
Daimler also said on Tuesday that it will have to cut working hours at two German plants, with the immediate outlook uncertain about the impact of the semiconductor shortage, with other carmakers such as Jaguar Land Rover, Hyundai and Volvo having also recently issued warnings about the effects of the dearth of chips.