Only 2 Days after Resuming Operation
In the aftermath of the new coronavirus spread, Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics are continuing to shut down their overseas plants.
Samsung Electronics' washing machine plant in Newberry County, South Carolina in the United States will be shut down from April 18 to 19. Previously, Samsung Electronics temporarily closed down the plant until April 5 as two employees tested positive for the COVID-19 virus on April 3. The plant resumed operation on April 6 only to be shuttered again in two days.
Samsung Electronics is also considering locking down its TV plant in Tijuana, Mexico next week. The operation of the plant depends on the local government’s guideline.
LG Electronics is also starting to shut down its Mexican plant. Of its three plants in Mexico, the Reynosa plant will be closed down for two days on April 8 and 13, while the Mexicali plant will stop running from April 13 to 24. These LG Electronics factories, along with Samsung Electronics' Tijuana TV plant in Mexico, are used as outposts for the world's largest market. LG Electronics' Tennessee washing machine plant in the United States is also standing still.
As export routes have been blocked, shutdowns of factories in Korea are also continuing. Hyundai Motor announced that the Tucson production line at its Ulsan 5 Plant, the main export factor in the Americas and the Middle East, will be temporarily closed down on April 13 to 17. "We plan to operate plants flexibly according to market conditions by focusing on production of popular Korean cars," a Hyundai Motor official said. In March 2020, Hyundai Motor's domestic sales increased three percent compared to a year ago due to the effects of new models, but its overseas sales decreased 26.2 percent in overseas markets, especially 43 percent in the U.S. market.