Japanese chipmaker Renesas halts Beijing plant as COVID spreads

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TOKYO, Dec 19 (Reuters) –

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Japan’s Renesas Electronics Corp has suspended work at its Beijing chip plant due to COVID-19 infections and can hold it closed for a number of days, it mentioned on Monday, one of many first suspensions by a serious overseas producer.

Renesas, the world’s main maker of vehicle chips, mentioned it halted the manufacturing facility on Friday. The plant principally produces semiconductors utilized in industrial equipment and residential home equipment.

The chipmaker will be capable of make up for the misplaced output with current inventory and doesn’t anticipate a lot of an affect from the stoppage, a spokesperson mentioned.

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Nonetheless, the suspension serves as a high-profile signal of the potential knock-on financial impact for overseas producers in China from the worsening COVID disaster. The

latest surge in COVID circumstances in China has hit main city facilities and is sweeping by buying and selling flooring in Beijing and spreading quick within the monetary hub of Shanghai.

China’s broad rest of strict COVID containment measures earlier this month triggered the still-growing wave of infections. Well being specialists say that China could now pay a worth for shielding a inhabitants that lacks pure immunity and has low vaccination charges among the many aged.

Renesas, which makes round a 3rd of all of the microcontroller chips utilized by the world’s carmakers, is one in every of many huge Japanese producers to have operations in China. It additionally has a plant within the japanese metropolis of Suzhou.

Any disruption in China is also troublesome for Japan’s automakers, given their giant manufacturing presence there. Neither Toyota Motor Co Ltd nor Nissan Motor Co Ltd instantly responded to a request for remark about their operations. (Reporting by Mayu Sakoda, Tim Kelly and Maki Shiraki; Writing by Elaine Lies; Modifying by Shri Navaratnam, David Dolan and Christian Schmollinger)