EU new car sales collapse in September due to chip shortages | Economic news from Germany | DW

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Sales of new passenger cars in the EU in September 2021 fell 23.1% from the same month a year earlier, according to data from the Association of European Automobile Manufacturers (ACEA) released Friday, October 15. Last month, only 718,598 new passenger cars were registered in the EU countries (excluding Malta, for which data are not available) – this is the lowest figure for this month since 1995.

The decline in sales is mainly due to the lack of vehicle supplies due to the current shortage of semiconductors. All major EU markets recorded double-digit declines. Thus, in Italy, car sales decreased by 32.7%, in Germany – by 25.7%, in France – by 20.5%, in Spain – by 15.7%.

Meanwhile, in the first nine months of 2021, sales of new passenger cars in the European Union grew by 6.6% in annual terms, amounting to 7.5 million vehicles. Strong sales figures earlier this year contributed to this, according to ACEA.

The most significant growth in sales in January-September was noted in Italy (by 20.6%), followed by Spain and France (by 8.8% and 8%, respectively). In Germany, sales were down 1.2%.

Lack of spare parts has forced Toyota to worsen its forecasts again

The automotive industry has suffered more than other sectors of the economy from the shortage of semiconductors in the world. Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corp. on Friday cut its global car production target for November by about 15% from previously planned amid continuing parts shortages. Instead of 1 million next month, the company now expects to assemble only about 850-900 thousand cars, according to a press release from Toyota published on Friday.

“As we are still short of some parts and will not be able to compensate for the lack of production in the past, we have adjusted our original production plans for November, – said in the message. – This adjustment will affect approximately 50,000 vehicles in Japan and from 50,000 to 100,000 cars abroad.

At the same time, Toyota reported that the vehicle production target for the current fiscal year ending March 31, 2022 is expected to remain unchanged at 9 million vehicles “thanks to easing COVID-19-related restrictions in Southeast Asia. “as well as smaller-than-expected production cuts in September and October.

The company cut its annual production forecast by about 3% last month as the spread of the coronavirus in Southeast Asia limited access to semiconductors and other key components.

“The worst period is over,” Kazunari Kumakura, head of Toyota’s purchasing group, told a press briefing. “We see a reduction in risks,” he said, noting, however, that the imbalance between supply and demand remains, despite the normalization of the situation in the microcircuit market.

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