Even as the global microchip shortage slowly improves, some automakers are still feeling pinched more acutely than others, new data shows.
Honda told shareholders this month the semiconductor shortage is bottoming out — but that it has nonetheless cut its global sales expectation for the year ahead. BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Renault and Nissan have not been affected so far this year by the shortage, according to a report this month from Bank of America Global Research analysts, citing data from S&P Global.
But the positive outlook has not spread to every automaker.
Bank of America said Volkswagen is projected to cut about 65,000 autos from its production schedules in the first quarter of this year because of the shortage. Toyota is expected to lose about 58,000 vehicles, while Geely could lose 50,000 units as it grapples with the shortage on top of the impact of COVID-19 in China.
“Improvements are on the way,” said Sam Fiorani, vice president of global vehicle forecasting at AutoForecast Solutions. “However, the good news is not spread equally around the industry.”
The chip shortage has eased significantly from its peak in 2021 and even since last year. According to Bank of America, the industry has eliminated 200,000 vehicles worldwide so far this year, down from about 500,000 per quarter worldwide since the third quarter of 2022, and down from a peak of 3.4 million units of lost production in the third quarter of 2021.
AutoForecast Solutions estimates that automakers have cut about 350,000 vehicles from their plans this year, down from about 530,000 in the same period of 2022.
Overall, the industry is still about 10 percent under-supplied on semiconductors, compared with about 20 percent last year, Bank of America concluded. Resolution could come by the end of this year, though key hurdles remain, the bank said.
