According to Bloomberg reports, with the Covid-19 outbreak in Malaysia out of control, the current daily average of new confirmed cases of more than 20,000 cases, resulting in the local government extending production shutdown measures. STMicroelectronics and Infineon will have to suspend production at some of their local plants, exacerbating the global semiconductor chip shortage problem.
STMicroelectronics has a large back-end assembly and test plant in Muar, Malaysia, with 4,000 employees. 30% of STMicroelectronics' assembly and test capacity is dependent on this plant.
Infineon also has a back-end assembly and test plant in Melaka, Malaysia, which covers 123,500 square meters and employs up to 8,000 people. It is Infineon's largest back-end package plant, mainly producing power semiconductors and MCUs. The company also has a wafer manufacturing and test facility in Kulim, Malaysia.
In addition to STMicroelectronics and Infineon, NXP Semiconductor, Renesas Electronics, Texas Instruments, ON Semiconductor, Nexperia, and other automotive chipmakers also have factories in Malaysia. If the epidemic in Malaysia remains out of control, it will undoubtedly hit the global automotive industry.
Recently, Nissan Motor Co. and General Motors Co. have warned that the shortage of parts is increasing due to the blockade in Malaysia. Nissan also shut down its production line at its Smyrna, Tennessee, plant for two weeks in August.
Toyota Motor Corp. said last week it would suspend production at 14 plants as The Delta variant hits its southeast Asian suppliers.
According to Auto Forecast Solutions, as of August 9, the global vehicle production reduction due to core deficiency has reached 5.85 million units.
IHS Markit estimates that the global lightweight vehicle production will reach 80.78 million units in 2021, an increase of 8.3% from 2020, and the annual production reduction due to chip supply shortage is estimated to be between 6.3 million and 7.1 million units.
IHS Markit expects automotive chip supply tensions to slow down in 2022 Q2. Intel and Infineon believe that the lack of automotive chips will continue until the end of 2022.
