The coronavirus epidemic continues to spread, with confirmation earlier today of the death toll eclipsing the 1,000-people mark and total confirmed infections of almost 40,000. It's growth is also unsurprisingly having an impact on various industries, including car-makers from both Japan and South Korea.
Nissan has confirmed that it has scheduled a halt to its Kyushu factory production lines on February 14 and 17 due to a shortage on Chinese-sourced parts for the construction of vehicles like the Serena people mover, Murano SUV, and overseas versions of the X-Trail (sold elsewhere as the Rogue Sport).
The stop will reportedly reduce the factory's annual production by approximately 3000 vehicles. The Kyushu factory produced over 400,000 vehicles during the 2018 fiscal year. Nissan had already closed four of its Chinese production plants, with each recently given one-week closure extensions.
Read more: Nissan unveils the quirky 2020 Juke
The announcement is one of several in recent weeks, following on from Hyundai and Kia's decision to temporary stop production. Isuzu is reportedly the next manufacturer in Japan considering a similar closure, while Toyota had a production stop of its own in selected areas of its Shimoyama factory.
According to Nikkei, China accounts for approximately 30 per cent of auto parts imported into Japan — namely small components and consumables. This combined for a 347billion yen (NZ$4.9billion) import total, from China to Japan, in 2018.
Along with dealing with these aforementioned Chinese components, the Nissan Motor Kyushu plant also deals with stamped steel production, body assembly, and painting. Each car has between 3000 and 4000 parts added during the assembly phase.
To view Nissan vehicles listed for sale on Driven, click here