Foxconn is beginning to feel the pinch that is being brought on by the ongoing chip and electronic component shortage. It’s gotten so bad that Young Liu, Foxconn’s CEO, has said that the global shortage could continue well into the second quarter of 2022.
Liu told investors during a recent earnings call that Foxconn is expected to miss approximately 10% of its orders this month, which isn’t too big of a drawback, especially when it counts Apple as one of its heavyweight clients. However, as these situations usually go, Foxconn’s shortages will inevitably trickle down to Apple and force the fruit company to deal with its own set of shortages.
Foxconn isn’t the first manufacturer to speak out about the ongoing chip shortage, but it is clear that the slowdown in its assembly lines – caused by government-mandated shutdowns and worker quarantines due to COVID-19 – are starting to hit home. Samsung is also another factory that unwillingly contributed to the global shortage when it was forced to shutter its plants in Texas because of a historic winter storm that battered the state.
The shortage has also affected both the PC component and video game console market, the main issue with the former segment having strained GPU production, among other things. There’s also the automotive industry, where car brands like Nissan and Ford have also been forced to delay vehicle production.
(Source: The Verge, Channel News, Nikkei)
