Chip shortage is weighing on car sector recovery, says Volkswagen CEO

The continued shortage of semiconductors is the only factor weighing on a worldwide recovery of the car sector from the coronavirus crisis, said Herbert Diess, the CEO of Volkswagen.

Demand has boosted in the United States, Brazil and China, Diess said at the Hannover Messe trade fair.

“The only thing that is presently limiting and slowing down this recovery is the critical supply situation worldwide with regard to various semiconductor types,” Diess said.

The chip shortage, which has hit automakers worldwide, emerges from a confluence of factors as automakers, which closed plants for two months during the coronavirus pandemic last year, rival against the sprawling consumer electronics industry for chip supplies.