With no end in sight to the Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCov) spreading around the world, industries, particularly those located in China might soon be affected. Among the locally available Chinese brands, the one that may experience the greatest impact is Dongfeng.
Dongfeng belongs to one of the “Big Four” Chinese automakers in terms of output and has entered into joint ventures with the likes of Kia, Honda, Nissan, Peugeot-Citroen, and Renault. It also has the distinction of being the largest automaker based in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province.
With that, we sought out Arlan Reyes of Pilipinas Autogroup, Inc., distributor of Dongfeng on any possible implications to their vehicle supply. He says: “No. We do not yet see that there will be an effect on the vehicle supply. The plants or factories [that produce vehicles for the Philippine market] are not located in Wuhan, but in other provinces.”
True enough, according to Bloomberg (via Automotive News), only 15 percent of Dongfeng vehicles are assembled in Wuhan, while the rest are assembled in other provinces.
So there you have it, as far as Dongfeng is concerned, there’s no threat to any vehicle supply. Hopefully though that a cure is found soon, because if not, it will shake up the global automotive industry. Already, analysts are predicting that production there will be cut by as much 15 percent. Moreover, it might begin to affect automotive supply chains around the world.
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