Global chip shortage will drag into 2022, Stellantis CEO says

The global semiconductor chip shortage that has hit automakers around the world and constrained vehicle production will easily drag into next year, the chief executive of the world's No. 4 automaker, Stellantis, said on Wednesday.

The comments by Carlos Tavares at an Automotive Press Association event in Detroit echoed those made by Daimler AG earlier in the day.

“The semiconductor crisis, from everything I see and I'm not sure I can see everything, is going to drag into '22 easy because I don't see enough signs that additional production from the Asian sourcing points is going to come to the West in the near future,” Tavares said.

The global chip shortage comes as demand for cars has spiked during the global economy's recovery from the pandemic, driving up prices of new and used vehicles.

Some carmakers have adapted to the chip shortage by dropping features from their models, while others have built vehicles without the necessary chips and then parked them until their assembly can be finished later.

Stellantis is making decisions around changing the diversity of chips it intends to use, he said. It takes roughly 18 months to re-engineer a vehicle to use a different chip because of the sophistication of the technology involved, he said.

Earlier on Wednesday, Daimler said the chip shortage would dent car sales in the second half of 2021 and extend into 2022. However, Daimler Chief Financial Officer Harald Wilhelm said the shortage would be less severe next year.