The covid-19 epidemic is affecting the supply chain and end market of automobile industry greatly

As the COVID-19 epidemic continues to worsen outside China and causes damage to the global economy, it is estimated that the recent outbreak will cause further damages to the line of automobile. 

At the beginning, it primarily affected the world supply chain in terms of material shortages. For example, several factories in South Korea, Japan, and Europe suspended factory operations due to a lack of materials. More recently, the epidemic has rapidly spreaded throughout Europe and North America after mass production gradually restarted in China. The rapid spread of the infection has caused a corresponding spread of material shortages – along with plant shutdowns and similar large-scale impacts – for automobile producers,auto accessories and auto lights suppliers globally.

As Italy and Spain has been in lockdown status, other European countries and the U.S. have begun to follow suit, along with many auto makers closing factory operations in Europe and North America starting from March 16. Most of these shutdowns are estimated to be one to two weeks long depending on the process of epidemic control.

Facing the serious hit by the pandemic and the recent stock market crash arising from the Russia-Saudi Arabia oil price war, the potential need for customers to make purchase in person and the high retail price of automobiles, are expected to result in deferred or even eliminated market demand. For this reason, global automobile sales in the first quarter are expected to decline by 24% at least. Currently, many countries outside China are still suffering from worsening COVID-19 epidemic, their end markets will likely see great influence impact, in turn putting off most of the market requiremnt in the subsequent second quarter this year.