Vehicle Demand Cliff Overseas
Kia Motors is considering shutting down some of its plants in Korea due to a sharp drop in exports in the wake of the new coronavirus crisis.
The automaker’s management has recently proposed talks with the labor union on suspending three of its nine factories in Korea.
The management requested the labor union to consider plant shutdowns as the company cannot export vehicles due to worsening market conditions overseas. The factories that are likely to be shut down are Soha 1 and 2 and Gwangju 2 Factories which mainly produce vehicles for exports.
The management is expected to shut down these factories for one week from April 23 at the earliest after negotiating with the labor union this week. The shutdown is expected to pull down Kia Motors' production by 20,000 units.