Honda's Asian plants may see fall in production

Japanese car and bike maker Honda said on Thursday that due to the crisis in its home country and a resultant shortage of parts, it is examining the possibility of a temporary drop in production at its plants in Asia (including India) and Oceania.

Motorcycle and power products production in the region, however, is not to be affected. In Japan, the plants at Suzuka and Sayama, which had been stopped since the disaster on March 11, will start after exactly a month's gap on April 11.

“Honda is striving to continue production at each automobile production plant, however, the possibility of a temporary reduction of production volume due to the short supply of some parts in the future is being carefully examined. Honda also will resume production and shipment of component parts for use in production in regions outside Japan on April 4, 2011,” it said in a statement.

Production of component parts and vehicles at Honda plants in Japan will initially start at half the installed capacity due to the parts shortage. It said that few suppliers are trying to restart production, while many have either started or are ready to resume operations. However, few suppliers have yet to resolve certain challenges in order to resume production.

COMMENT NOW