TOKYO: Nissan Motor will cut production of its top-selling Rogue sports utility vehicle (SUV) in Japan from next week due to a short supply of chips from Dutch firm Nexperia, according to a source familiar with the matter.
Nissan plans to cut output of the Rogue SUV by about 900 vehicles in the week starting Monday at its plant in southwestern Kyushu, said the source who declined to be identified as the information is not public.
The automaker is also reviewing planned output for the plant for the week of Nov 17 as the supply of parts using Nexperia chips remains impacted, the source said.
The Rogue, sold as the X-Trail in Japan and Britain, was Nissan's top-selling model in the United States last year at almost 246,000 vehicles. Nissan also makes Rogue models at Smyrna in the US state of Tennessee.
In a statement to Reuters, Nissan said it would implement "small-scale production adjustments" during the week of Nov 10 involving several hundred vehicles at the Kyushu plant and its Oppama plant, south of Tokyo, where it makes the Note compact.
Automakers worldwide are scrambling to deal with the supply squeeze linked to Nexperia, which is hitting production and has caused some firms to furlough staff.
China banned exports of Nexperia products after the Dutch government seized control of the firm in September, citing fear of technology transfers to its Chinese parent Wingtech, which the US has flagged as a potential security risk.
While most of Nexperia's chips are produced in Europe, 70 per cent are packaged in China before distribution. China said on Saturday it would consider exemptions to the chip exports affected by the Dutch move. On Tuesday, however, the Chinese Commerce Ministry issued a statement telling the Netherlands to "stop interfering" in Nexperia's internal affairs.
A separate Kyushu plant run by Nissan subsidiary Nissan Shatai — which makes SUVs including the Patrol — is not affected for now, the source said.
Nissan said last week that supply chain risk would be its biggest headwind in its fiscal second half, and chief performance officer Guillaume Cartier told reporters that Nissan was "OK to the first week of November" in terms of chip supply.