By David Shepardson
(Reuters) -Nissan Motor Co's U.S. arm said Wednesday that supply chain issues will force it to trim production this month at its Canton, Mississippi, assembly plant.
The Japanese automaker said it will cut some production days in November for its Titan and Frontier pickup trucks as well as its Altima sedan. The cuts, which were reported earlier by Automotive News, are expected to be similar in December. A memo to dealers seen by Reuters said the cuts were "due to supply chain disruptions related to ongoing semiconductor chip shortages in the industry."
Nissan (OTC:NSANY) told dealers despite the cuts "total shipments to retailers are still forecasted to be up quarter over quarter." The company said "the long-awaited start of sales for the next generation of Nissan EVs will begin before the end of the calendar year" as it aims for 40% EV sales by 2030.
Nissan declined to specify how many units of production will be lost. Through Sept. 30, Nissan U.S. sales are down 31% to about 538,000.
The email to dealers said "Nissan’s total dealer inventory has more than doubled in the last 60 days and is up (about) 70% compared to the same time last year."
Sam Fiorani, head of production forecasting firm AutoForecast Solutions, estimated the announced downtime will remove about 9,000 units of production in November and December, and potentially more.
A persistent chips shortage over the last two years has affected everything from cars to washing machines to video games and weapons.