Suzuki Stops Swift Car Production in Japan Due to Parts Shortage from China

Suzuki Motor Corporation has temporarily stopped making its popular Swift car in Japan. The reason for this pause is a shortage of important parts that use rare-earth materials, which are now harder to get because of new export rules from China.

The company stopped production of the regular Swift model (not the Swift Sport) from May 26 to June 6. Suzuki plans to slowly restart production from June 13 and hopes to be back to normal by June 16, once the needed parts are available again.

Rare-earth materials are used in electric motors and many high-tech parts in modern cars. China, which controls about 90% of the world’s rare-earth supply, recently placed restrictions on exports. Because of this, companies like Suzuki are struggling to get the parts they need.

Suzuki is the first major carmaker in Japan to stop production due to these restrictions. Other global car companies, including Ford and some in Europe, are also facing similar problems.

This situation is affecting the entire automobile industry around the world. In India, carmakers are also worried that electric vehicle (EV) production could slow down if rare-earth materials remain hard to get.

To fix this issue, the Indian government is planning to encourage local production of rare-earth parts, so that the country won’t have to depend so much on imports from China.