Chip Shortage Prompts Production Halt At Volvo Cars In Gothenburg

Volvo Cars, owned by China’s Geely Holding, will temporarily stop production at its Swedish plant in Gothenburg due to the shortage of semiconductor chips, it said on Wednesday. A global chip shortage has hit manufacturing, with automakers cutting down on production and electronic device makers struggling to keep up with a pandemic-led surge in demand for phones, TVs and gaming consoles.

“Production at Torslanda will be paused temporarily from this evening due to a material shortage linked with the semiconductor issue,” Volvo Cars said in an emailed statement.

“Production will restart as soon as possible, at the latest before next week,” the Swedish carmaker, which in June halted production at its Belgian plant in Ghent for a week, said.

Volvo Cars, which last month reported a return to profit in the first half as demand for electric cars grows, is considering listing on the Nasdaq Stockholm stock exchange this year.