The shutdown of factories could cause delays in chip order deliveries. However, there is no expectation of an increase in car prices, as happened during the pandemic. Milad Kalume Neto, director of business development at Jato Dynamics, a consultancy specializing in cars, states that what happened during the health crisis was more serious due to its duration and the competition that existed with the electronics sector, which also uses semiconductors in its production.
With people at home, they bought more notebooks and cell phones than cars, according to Kalume Neto. “We had a shift in production to meet those demands that arose, while the automotive industry succumbed”, he states.
When the automotive industry started buying chips again, competition was greater. The industries sold to those who paid the most, which were companies in the electronics sector. This caused car prices to rise (both new and used) and companies to halt their production lines. When chips were available, automotive companies preferred to use the parts in more expensive cars.
The current issue is specific and will be easily resolved in the short to medium term, for Kalume Neto.
The batch that was produced will probably be thrown away, but it is nothing that will affect the global production chain. It is nothing that will cause torment within the global automotive industry or that will lead to a very large increase in vehicle prices.
Milad Kalume Neto, from Jato Dynamics
* With information from AFP and Reuters.
