Supply chains in Southeast Asia are racing to recover to full strength after months of factory stoppages and production cuts. Auto component makers ramp up output as Hanoi eases pandemic restrictions, Japan’s Nikkei Asia said on Tuesday. 

The Nikkei said Japan’s Furukawa Electric expects to return to full capacity at its Vietnamese plants. Its three factories there make wire harnesses for automobiles, with the Ho Chi Minh City site alone staffed with about 8,000 workers. Furukawa Electric President Keiichi Kobayashi said the factory floors have returned to a point where they can respond to requests from clientele.

Domestic suppliers Yazaki and Sumitomo Electric Industries are restoring production at their Vietnamese plants, as well. This trend is expected to support a production comeback in Japan’s auto sector.

The paper said Vietnam in particular is seeing a rapid return to normality as Hanoi finally eases restrictions. About 200 factories in the country contracted to make sportswear for Nike have resumed operations, it said.

An industrial park in Ho Chi Minh City housing plants operated by Samsung Electronics and Intel will provide assistance so that both companies’ facilities will return to full production this month.

Source: VOV5