This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/business-13142299
The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Toyota cuts UK car production due to parts shortage | Toyota cuts UK car production due to parts shortage |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| Toyota, the world's biggest carmaker, has said it will close its UK plant at Burnaston in Derbyshire for two days each week in May to manage the current shortage of car parts. | Toyota, the world's biggest carmaker, has said it will close its UK plant at Burnaston in Derbyshire for two days each week in May to manage the current shortage of car parts. |
| The firm said workers had also agreed to limit production to half a shift on the other three days during May. | The firm said workers had also agreed to limit production to half a shift on the other three days during May. |
| Car makers have been facing a shortage of parts due to the damage caused by the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. | Car makers have been facing a shortage of parts due to the damage caused by the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. |
| The reduced hours will commence from 3 May. | The reduced hours will commence from 3 May. |
| "The combination of this and flexible working arrangements will help ensure that we are able to quickly respond to the demand for our products as soon as parts are available," Toyota said in a statement. | "The combination of this and flexible working arrangements will help ensure that we are able to quickly respond to the demand for our products as soon as parts are available," Toyota said in a statement. |
| Global production shortfall | |
| Toyota has also announced plans on Wednesday to cut production in North America by 70% and that in China by 50-70%, until 3 June. | |
| The firm has previously said it will also curb production at factories in Turkey, Poland, France and Australia. | |
| The company has been able to resume production at all of its Japanese assembly plants, although these are equally affected by the parts shortages. | |
| "As we are producing, we are keeping a careful eye on the parts situation," said Paul Nolasco, a spokesman for the manufacturer. | |
| "We are doing the best we can to return the situation back to normal as soon as possible." | |
| The company now faced a total production shortfall of 540,000 cars from North America, Europe, Japan and China for the period up to 3 June, he said. | |
| That is equivalent to 7% of Toyota's global production target of 7.7 million units for 2011. | |
| Other car companies have also announced their own production cut-backs because of the earthquake. | |
| Nissan has closed its Sunderland plant from Good Friday until May Day, while Honda had to halve output at its Swindon factory earlier this month. | |
| Japan revealed earlier on Wednesday that its exports in March had fallen a surprise 2.2% compared with a year ago, largely due to the impact of the earthquake on manufacturers. | |
| Car shipments were down 28% in the month. |