Canadian auto parts suppliers say the chip shortage that has created havoc in the industry and shortages at dealerships has been worse than expected and could continue to prove forecasts wrong.
During quarterly earnings reports last week, suppliers revised down or eliminated production and revenue forecasts because the situation is so unpredictable.
"This is having a more dampening effect on production than many expected just a few months ago," said Pat D'Eramo, chief executive of Martinrea International Inc., on an earnings call.
The parts producer decided not to release any third-quarter guidance because production schedules are so unclear. Suppliers are sometimes only getting a few days' notice that their customer is shutting down, he said.
"Visibility is a week out in a lot of cases ... a lot of products are hit and miss, run two weeks, stop a week, run four weeks, stop a week. And I think it's going to be like that into the fourth quarter and maybe even a little bit, almost likely for sure into next year."
Magna International Inc. said it now expects 1.6 million fewer vehicles built this year than what it had predicted only in May as the chip shortage has more impact than it expected.
"It is clear that the global semiconductor chip shortage has been and will be more impactful to 2021 than most in the industry anticipated earlier this year," said company chief executive Seetarama (Swamy) Kotagiri.
The semiconductor chip shortage, like so many supply chain issues, came about largely because of the widespread shutdown in production last year because of COVID-19 that hasn't ramped back up as fast as demand. Chips have been especially in high demand in consumer electronics as more people work from home, leaving the auto sector scrambling to get enough supply.
The shortage of chips that are necessary for the ever-increasing number of electronic components in vehicles has forced major automakers to cut back production, as well as focus supplies on larger, more profitable trucks and SUVs, building vehicles to later add missing parts, and in some cases cutting out some components entirely.
GM has cut back on features like wireless cellphone charging, smart mirrors, HD radio and some fuel-saving features in trucks as it tries to meet the strong customer demand at dealerships where lots are running near-empty.
Customers so far aren't too bothered by the cuts, said Dan Murray, general manager of Murray Chevrolet in Winnipeg.
"A lot of it is stuff they don't really care about. I mean a heated steering wheel in Manitoba is an important option, so that's one we don't like to see, but for the most part customers have been OK with what's been taken off."
He said he's pleased with how GM has responded, and demand is high enough that customers are accepting compromises, including waiting up to six weeks for the delivery of their vehicle. The dealership started July with only 29 vehicles on the lot, and ended up selling and delivering 78 in the month.
"Inventory's so tight that pretty well everything is selling."
The supply shortage could be around for some time as major auto producers say the situation remains fluid.
Ford chief executive Jim Farley said on an earnings call that "my guess is as good as anybody's on this" as he predicted the issues would continue into next year.
The company was especially hit because of a fire at one of its major chip suppliers, while GM chief executive Mary Barra said new issues in supply are cropping up.
"We are seeing new challenges in the third quarter due to global COVID outbreaks, including the current outbreak in Malaysia resulting in closures of assembly, test and packaging facilities for semiconductors. This remains, as we said, a fluid and rapidly changing environment."
In early August, GM announced it would even be shutting down some truck production, while the company's CAMI plant in Ingersoll, Ont., that produces the Chevy Equinox has largely been shut down since February.
The continued production cuts are worse than expected, said Linamar Corp. chief executive Linda Hasenfratz on an earnings call.
She noted that coming into the second quarter, the estimated global lost vehicle production would be 160,000 units, and it ended up being 2.6 million. The third quarter is now forecast to lose 1.27 million units, revised up from 50,000 in May, but she said she's worried it will actually look closer to the second quarter in terms of impact.
"Be prepared for a bigger chip impact in terms of lost vehicle builds than is currently forecast by the industry folks out there. We could be being overly cautious here, but we are concerned by the pattern of underestimation that we have seen."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 15, 2021.
U.S. forecasters are warning of destructive waves, devastating winds and flash floods through the week as Hurricane Milton makes its way from the Yucatan Peninsula toward Florida.
A seasoned American meteorologist became emotional on air as he gave an update on a major hurricane, later suggesting the reason behind his strong reaction.
Former cabinet minister Marc Garneau, who describes himself in his new book as always-a-Liberal, 'but a decidedly blue one,' says he hopes the party still has room for someone like him.
The renewed pleas of people in Fort Chipewyan, Alta. for government to take action cleaning up contamination in their community have reached the ears of federal Transport Minister Anita Anand.
Emotions boiled over after a judge acquitted two out of three defendants in a manslaughter case, while the third accused has since died.
WeightWatchers said on Tuesday it would offer a compounded version of Novo Nordisk's popular obesity drug Wegovy as part of its weight-management programs.
On September 11, 80-year-old Madeleine Gervais was robbed in Ottawa's west end. It happened in the Loblaws parking lot in College Square, when she was approached by a man and a woman who insisted to help her load her groceries into her car.
In his column for CTVNews.ca, former NDP leader Tom Mulcair argues that the dramatic side to Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, and his tendency to 'play everything to the hilt,' could well become his undoing.
An American family doctor is frustrated with what she says has been a challenging two-year-and-counting bureaucratic journey to be accepted into Canada.
On September 11, 80-year-old Madeleine Gervais was robbed in Ottawa's west end. It happened in the Loblaws parking lot in College Square, when she was approached by a man and a woman who insisted to help her load her groceries into her car.
The province鈥檚 consumer watchdog is investigating a Saskatoon company selling luxury vacation condos in Mexico.
An American family doctor is frustrated with what she says has been a challenging two-year-and-counting bureaucratic journey to be accepted into Canada.
Border officers in B.C.'s Lower Mainland made more than 60 seizures of methamphetamine bound for Australia in a six-month span earlier this year, totalling more than eight million doses of the drug.
Elections BC is reissuing new 'where to vote' cards to some residents after an administrative error mistakenly recommended voting places that were farther from homes than necessary.
A Toronto senior says she can鈥檛 believe that two roofers took advantage of her, despite knowing she was recently widowed and suffering from a painful disability.
Donald Trump has had as many as seven private phone calls with Vladimir Putin since leaving office and secretly sent the Russian president COVID-19 test machines during the height of the pandemic, Bob Woodward reported in his new book, 'War.'
A seasoned American meteorologist became emotional on air as he gave an update on a major hurricane, later suggesting the reason behind his strong reaction.
A former New York City official was charged Tuesday with witness tampering and destroying evidence in a federal investigation that led to Mayor Eric Adams鈥 bribery indictment. The arrest came amid yet more high-profile departures from Adams' administration as federal prosecutors delve deeper into allegations that the mayor was involved in a coverup.
Britain is facing a "staggering rise" in assassination attempts on U.K. soil by Russia and Iran, as the hostile states recruit criminals to "do their dirty work" for them, the head of the U.K.'s domestic intelligence agency said Tuesday.
A German court on Tuesday acquitted a man who is also under investigation in the 2007 disappearance of British toddler Madeleine McCann in a trial on charges of unrelated sexual offences.
Kamala Harris called Donald Trump 'incredibly irresponsible' for spreading falsehoods about the federal response to Hurricane Helene's destruction, offering especially sharp words as a new storm bears down on Florida with just weeks until Election Day.
Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland says the government has no intention of proroguing Parliament to end an impasse with the Tories over a matter of privilege.
Former cabinet minister Marc Garneau, who describes himself in his new book as always-a-Liberal, 'but a decidedly blue one,' says he hopes the party still has room for someone like him.
A Conservative MP from Newfoundland and Labrador says some small towns in his rural riding are overrun with crime, but police say they haven't received reports to that effect.
One in eight women will be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer in their lifetimes, according to the American Cancer Society. Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death for women in the United States, with 42,000 women dying every year from this cancer.
A new report that looks at the sex lives of Canadian youth suggests more needs to be done to encourage safe sex, including reversing a decrease in condom use.
The Ontario government has lowered the age for regular mammogram breast screening to allow all woman between the age of 40 and 49 to self-refer for the service.
A British-Canadian researcher has won the Nobel Prize in physics for work developing the foundations of machine learning and artificial intelligence. The University of Toronto's Geoffrey Hinton was awarded the prize Tuesday morning, along with Princeton University researcher John Hopfield.
A device used by researchers with Fisheries and Oceans Canada appears to have been the victim of an attack by a great white shark.
A bipartisan group of 14 U.S. attorneys general from across the country filed lawsuits on Tuesday against TikTok, alleging that the platform has 鈥渁ddicted鈥 young people and harmed their mental health.
An elevator mechanic mistakenly threw out a piece of artwork, made to look like empty beer cans, assuming it was litter, a Dutch museum revealed earlier this month.
The "Star Trek" star, Chris Pine, has a new children's book out, titled "When Digz the Dog Met Zurl the Squirrel: A Short Tale About a Short Tail."
Cissy Houston, the mother of the late Whitney Houston and a two-time Grammy winner who performed alongside superstar musicians like Elvis Presley, and Aretha Franklin, has died. She was 91.
Statistics Canada says the country posted a merchandise trade deficit of $1.1 billion in August as lower oil prices weighed on exports.
A new report from the Canadian Chamber of Commerce is sending a stark warning ahead of the U.S. presidential election, saying protectionist policies like Donald Trump's proposed tariffs could damage economies on both sides of the border.
A Toronto senior says she can鈥檛 believe that two roofers took advantage of her, despite knowing she was recently widowed and suffering from a painful disability.
A woman in Greater Sudbury, Ont., said "It doesn't get more Canadian than this" when she spotted a black bear dumpster diving at a Tim Hortons last month.
A Winnipeg baker is hanging up his apron permanently because he won the lottery.
When it comes to raising a child, the majority of fathers say they share tasks equally, but fewer mothers tend to say the same thing, according to a Statistics Canada survey.
The NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers and NHL's Tampa Bay Lightning have left Florida ahead of Hurricane Milton to practice the rest of the week.
RJ Barrett will miss the rest of the Toronto Raptors' pre-season with an injury.
New York Jets owner Woody Johnson made the stunning decision Tuesday to fire Saleh five games into his fourth season after the team's 2-3 start following a 23-17 loss to Minnesota in London on Sunday.
Mercedes-Benz has partnered up with the Ontario Vehicle Innovation Network (OVIN) and the provincial government to launch a new 鈥渋ncubator program鈥. One of the first three locations is Windsor, with the other two going to Toronto and Kitchener-Waterloo.
New data from the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) shows that even though claims for auto theft dropped in the first half of 2024 compared to their 2023 peak, the rates of reported theft remain well above those of years prior.
Tesla is recalling more than 27,000 Cybertrucks because the rearview camera image may not activate immediately after shifting into reverse, the fifth recall for the vehicle since it went on sale late last year.
A B.C. couple is getting desperate 鈥 and creative 鈥 in their search for their missing dog.
Videos of a meteor streaking across the skies of southern Ontario have surfaced and small bits of the outer space rock may have made it to land, one astronomy professor says.
A unique form of clouds made an appearance over the skies of Ottawa on Sunday evening.
Bernie Hicks, known as the 鈥楤atman of Amherst,鈥 always wanted to sit in a Batmobile until a kind stranger made it happen.
Bubi鈥檚 Awesome Eats, located on University Ave West took to social media to announce the closure on Friday.
Weeneebayko Area Health Authority and the Government of Ontario have awarded a $1.8 billion fixed-price contract to design, build and finance a new Far North hospital.
Manitobans are in cleanup mode after intense winds barreled through southern parts of the province this weekend.
Avry Wortman, 13, scored two touchdowns on Sunday during her team's win in the under 14 Greater Moncton Football Association.
A gargantuan gourd 鈥 affectionately named 鈥極rangina鈥 by the urban gardeners who grew it in the front yard of their Vancouver home 鈥 earned the massive honour of being named B.C.鈥檚 heaviest giant pumpkin Saturday.
A Vancouver Island man has been charged in connection with a hit-and-run crash that killed a teenager near Duncan, B.C., earlier this year.
Border officers in B.C.'s Lower Mainland made more than 60 seizures of methamphetamine bound for Australia in a six-month span earlier this year, totalling more than eight million doses of the drug.
Police are investigating after a 60-year-old woman was struck and killed by a vehicle Tuesday morning in Abbotsford, B.C.
More than two weeks have passed since Hassan Ali walked out of a Toronto courtroom a free man, after prosecutors decided not to move forward with a first-degree murder trial against the local rapper.
Some City of Toronto park crews did half as much maintenance work as they reported and instead appeared to hang out at plazas and eateries, a new report from the city鈥檚 Auditor General has found.
Police are searching for five teenagers who allegedly sexually assaulted a female youth in Vaughan over the weekend.
Calgary police are investigating after several shots were fired by a suspect into a truck in the northeast community of Saddle Ridge.
A Calgary officer's use of force in an August police-involved shooting has been deemed appropriate following an investigation.
Calgary's police chief is worried possible changes to Alberta's photo radar rules will affect safety for both residents and officers 鈥 and not just on the roads.
On September 11, 80-year-old Madeleine Gervais was robbed in Ottawa's west end. It happened in the Loblaws parking lot in College Square, when she was approached by a man and a woman who insisted to help her load her groceries into her car.
An Ottawa man who stabbed his estranged wife to death in an attack that also injured his daughter in Ottawa's west end has been found guilty of first-degree murder and attempted murder.
The federal government announced 14 new properties will be added to the Canada Public Land Bank, the list of federal properties that could be turned into new homes, including seven in Ottawa and two in Gatineau, Que.
Quebec coroner G茅hane Kamel will preside over a public enquiry into the deaths of L茅onor Geraudie, 43, and her seven-year-old daughter V茅rane, who were killed in a fire in a heritage building in Old Montreal on Oct. 4 that also left two people injured.
Montreal police (SPVM) arrested a 15-year-old in connection with an alleged arson in Saint-Leonard that occurred on the weekend.
Swedish battery manufacturer Northvolt said on Tuesday that one of its entities had filed for bankruptcy with a Stockholm court due to its financial situation.
A crash Tuesday morning between a train and a semi outside the Alberta town of Lamont is blocking traffic.
Edmonton's transit system is seeing record usage, with six million trips taken in September.
This is for people new to hockey. Not everyone who lives in Canada follows the game, even though it's the country's unofficial official sport. Hard for the hardcore hockey fan to understand, I know.
Police in New Brunswick are trying to track down a man they consider 鈥渁rmed and dangerous鈥 after he allegedly crashed a vehicle, waved a weapon at police, and fled in a stolen vehicle.
A device used by researchers with Fisheries and Oceans Canada appears to have been the victim of an attack by a great white shark.
Todd Joseph Gallant pleaded not guilty to the murder of Byron Carr in a Prince Edward Island courtroom on Tuesday.
To get between Churchill, Manitoba, Canada -- the polar bear and beluga whale capital of the world and a tourist hot spot for northern adventure tourism -- and Winnipeg, Manitoba, there are only two options: A $1,100 one-way plane flight that takes two-and-a-half hours or a scenic 45-hour to 49-hour much cheaper train ride.
Manitoba RCMP and the Winnipeg Police Service are launching Manitoba's Most Wanted website.
The Manitoba government has apologized in the legislature for clawing back federal benefit payments to kids in the child welfare system.
A 35-year-old Regina man is facing multiple charges after police say he barricaded himself inside a basement suite and set fire to entryways.
The province鈥檚 consumer watchdog is investigating a Saskatoon company selling luxury vacation condos in Mexico.
Those in Saskatchewan gazing at the stars Monday night were treated to a brilliant display of northern lights 鈥 as a solar storm continues to bear down on the northern hemisphere.
Fire crews were called to respond to Mohawk Plaza shortly before 2 a.m. Tuesday.
Police say they received a 911 call from the involved pilot around 11:20 a.m. after they had crash-landed in a farm field near Newry Road.
The Ontario government has lowered the age for regular mammogram breast screening to allow all woman between the age of 40 and 49 to self-refer for the service.
The province鈥檚 consumer watchdog is investigating a Saskatoon company selling luxury vacation condos in Mexico.
A Saskatoon mom is desperately fighting eviction after she discovered mould in her suite and reported it to her landlord.
Those in Saskatchewan gazing at the stars Monday night were treated to a brilliant display of northern lights 鈥 as a solar storm continues to bear down on the northern hemisphere.
A teacher working on a First Nation in northwestern Ontario has been charged with sexually assaulting a minor.
The mayor of Greater Sudbury is throwing his weight behind a proposal that could see 83 new residential units come out of the old Scotia Tower downtown.
Police in Huntsville are investigating a deadly single-vehicle collision that happened Tuesday morning.
U.S. forecasters are warning of destructive waves, devastating winds and flash floods through the week as Hurricane Milton makes its way from the Yucatan Peninsula toward Florida.
A 20 year old is charged with two counts of fail or refusal to comply with demand made by peace officer cause bodily harm, two counts of dangerous operation causing bodily harm, two counts of impaired operation cause bodily harm and transport cannabis
The latest COVID-19 vaccines have arrived in London and Middlesex. The first doses are reserved for people at the highest risk of infection and hospitalization.
A 20-year-old man who was behind the wheel of a speeding car that struck and killed an international student crossing Big Bay Point Road in Barrie last summer has pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing death.
Police in Huntsville are investigating a deadly single-vehicle collision that happened Tuesday morning.
Police arrested a man accused of setting an animal on fire in Orillia, Ont. last month.
Several cars are being pulled out of the Detroit River in west Windsor.
Windsor police say they are looking for the driver who crashed into the Children鈥檚 Aid Society building.
Chatham-Kent fire is asking residents in and around Wallaceburg to keep their windows and doors closed as they battle a railroad tie fire.
A Vancouver Island man has been charged in connection with a hit-and-run crash that killed a teenager near Duncan, B.C., earlier this year.
Elections BC is reissuing new 'where to vote' cards to some residents after an administrative error mistakenly recommended voting places that were farther from homes than necessary.
The leaders of B.C.'s three main political parties will be facing off Tuesday evening for their first and only televised debate ahead of the Oct. 19 election. Here's what viewers can expect.
Nearly two years after a man was stabbed to death in downtown Kelowna, RCMP have made an arrest in the case.
NDP Leader David Eby is promising to offer a $75-million loan forgiveness program to entice doctors, nurses and heath professionals to expand health-care services in rural British Columbia.
Three young suspects have been arrested in connection with a swarming attack on a teenager in B.C.'s Okanagan last week 鈥 and authorities have asked the public to stop circulating disturbing videos of the incident.
A metal fabrication company west of Medicine Hat has been fined by Alberta Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) following a workplace fatality in 2023.
A Lethbridge police officer involved in a scandal involving former Lethbridge New Democrat MLA Shannon Phillips has been reprimanded.
Lethbridge police say a man who escaped from a psychiatric ward at the Chinook Regional Hospital has been found.
A woman in Greater Sudbury, Ont., said "It doesn't get more Canadian than this" when she spotted a black bear dumpster diving at a Tim Hortons last month.
The Federation of Northern Ontario Municipalities (FONOM) is the latest organization to call on the Doug Ford government to re-open dialogue with an airline service that transports lower-income Canadians to crucial medical care far from home.
For decades, Mississauga First Nation has known that human remains from their land were at the Canadian Museum of History.
A Conservative MP from Newfoundland and Labrador says some small towns in his rural riding are overrun with crime, but police say they haven't received reports to that effect.
As millions in federal funding flow into a Labrador group whose claims of Inuit identity have been rejected by Indigenous organizations across Canada, a national Inuit leader worries the Liberal government is putting the rights of Indigenous Peoples at risk.
He may not have logged the fastest time or even gone the full distance, but residents of a Newfoundland town agree the goat who unexpectedly joined the local weekend half marathon was the event's undisputed champion.
The Shopping Trends team is independent of the journalists at 麻豆影视. We may earn a commission when you use our links to shop.聽Read about us.
