US automaker GM to pause Corvette production amid supply chain issues

HOUSTON (ICIS)–US automaker General Motors Co (GM) will pause production for the week of 24 May at its Bowling Green, Kentucky, assembly plant that builds the Corvette Stingray.

A spokesperson for the automaker confirmed the pause on Thursday and added that it is not a semiconductor issue.

“Our supply chain, manufacturing and engineering teams are working closely with our supply base to mitigate any further impact on production, and we expect the plant to resume normal operations on Tuesday, 1 June,” the company said in a statement.

The auto industry has been dealing with a global shortage of microchips, but also other chemicals used in auto production.

The winter storm that hit the southern US in mid-February knocked many US Gulf chemical plants offline and intensified an already tight situation.

Most automakers have seen production disrupted this year.

Ford Motor Co will pause production at several North American plants, a company spokesperson confirmed on Wednesday.

Automaker Stellantis said on Friday it plans to reduce the number of shifts at its Belvidere plant in Illinois to one from two.

Nissan has said it would pause production at two plants, one in the US and another in Mexico.

Honda and Toyota have said that they are halting or scaling back production in some of their plants in North America due to supply chain issues.

The automotive industry is a major global consumer of petrochemicals which contributes more than a third of the raw material costs of an average vehicle, and production disruptions could severely weigh on demand.

Polymers used in automobiles include polypropylene (PP), polyurethanes, nylon, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), styrene acrylonitrile (SAN), polycarbonate (PC) and styrene butadiene rubber (SBR).

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