Foxconn and Toyota Halt Factory Operations Amid COVID-19 Lockdowns in Shenzhen and Changchun, China

On the 12th, citizens of Changchun City, Jilin Province, China, lined up to get tested for COVID-19. [Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] As Shenzhen City in Guangdong Province and Changchun City in Jilin Province in China have successively implemented lockdown measures for COVID-19 prevention, factories of global manufacturers such as Foxconn and Toyota Motor have consecutively suspended operations.

According to Bloomberg on the 14th, Foxconn announced in a statement that due to the lockdown measures implemented by Shenzhen's epidemic prevention authorities, it has suspended operations at its two campuses operating locally and reassigned some production to other regions to mitigate the impact. Foxconn is the world's largest iPhone assembler, and its Shenzhen production plant is considered the largest Foxconn production base in China.

With a population of 17 million, Shenzhen is the first first-tier city (Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen) to be locked down due to COVID-19. Shenzhen is called a "technology hub" housing advanced technology companies such as Tencent, China's largest internet company, telecommunications equipment maker Huawei, and drone manufacturer DJI. Shenzhen city ordered all companies and institutions, except those providing essentials such as food and fuel, to work from home. This lockdown measure is in effect until the 20th of this month.

The Toyota Motor production plant in Changchun City, Jilin Province, also suspended operations starting from this day. According to Japan's Nihon Keizai Shimbun, Toyota's China subsidiary decided to halt factory operations considering government movement restrictions, the impact on partner companies, and employee safety, and stated that it will resume operations after monitoring various situations.

Foreign media expect that the suspension of factory operations due to lockdown measures by Chinese local governments will impact not only corporate performance but also the Chinese economy.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.