Paris
The automobile industry is being hit hard by a shortage of computer chips that has slowed production and is set to drag on for months.
Carmakers and suppliers have turned in strong results that beat expectations for the first half of the year, but they warned that a lack of semiconductors had crimped production.
Microchips are essential for the electronics systems of modern cars, and have been in short supply since the end of last year.
The situation is to some extent the fault of carmakers, who scaled back orders when the pandemic hit, so chipmakers shifted output to consumer electronics, which was seeing a boom in demand as people splurged on equipment to work and relax and home.—AFP
