A new wave of covid-19 cases is slowing semiconductor production in China. These are important parts of computer chips.
The last time China experienced a delay was in 2019. Staff sitting at home is not the only problem. China also notices that there is less demand for chips.
Research by the Chinese variant of the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), which covers the first quarter of 2022, shows that this is a decrease in 4.2 percent go† In the first quarter of 2019, the agency recorded a decline of 8.7 percent.
Shanghai in lockdown due to covid-19
The city of Shanghai recently went into lockdown. That happened on April 5, due to a growing number of Covid-19 cases. This city is home to important chip factories, including Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. (SMIC) and Hua Hong Semiconductor.
The city accounts for three percent of China’s gross domestic product and ten percent of the country’s total economy. So if something is wrong there, it has a lot of influence.
Chinese hardware companies expect to see more shortages in the coming months. Other regions in the country are also facing lockdowns due to a growing number of people with Covid-19. The factories of Toyota, Volkswagen and Tesla were previously closed.
In addition, there is also a lower demand for cars and consumer products from China. That may also have something to do with the lockdowns; after all, people are out on the streets less.
Worldwide, car and semiconductor manufacturers are trying to get their production back in order; but for now it seems that China is not running at full capacity.
