In the current corona crisis, hardly anyone buys a car, Kia also feels it. The South Korean automaker is now shutting down production. A union representative said a move to stop operations at three factories in the country due to the coronavirus outbreak affecting exports to Europe and the United States, citing a company announcement.
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The union has not decided whether to accept the plan because of ongoing negotiations on payment, the representative said. The operation would initially be suspended from April 23-29.
In Europe, automakers shut down production weeks ago. The industry is in a kind of corona-related deep sleep – not only because of the drastic drop in demand, but also to ensure health protection in the plants. The large German groups Volkswagen, Daimler and BMW have stopped manufacturing until at least April 19. (Read here in detail how the German auto industry is planning to restart.)
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This also affects the many suppliers to the automotive industry, one of the most important branches of industry in Germany with hundreds of thousands of jobs that are often well paid. The head of the supplier group Continental, Elmar Degenhart, reports in the SPIEGEL interview that he himself is dependent on around 2,200 additional suppliers.
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