Ford Says European Production Hit By Chip Shortage, Ukraine Conflict

Ford Motor Co said on Monday vehicle production and orders in Europe have been hit by the global semiconductor shortage as well as the conflict in Ukraine.

The U.S. automaker said it will idle its German plants in Saarlouis and Cologne, mostly due to the global chip shortage. That also led it to stop taking new orders for the S-Max and Galaxy vehicles built in Valencia, Spain. Ford said it has orders for both products that take it beyond September and that existing orders will be fulfilled.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine also has caused parts shortages at a Volkswagen plant in Poland that builds Ford's Tourneo Connect vehicle, leading to a temporary halt of production, Ford said.

"We continue to monitor the situation on a daily basis in conjunction with our partners at VW and will have more to say on this at a later date," Ford said in a statement.

The Ukraine conflict has also led to supply issues that have forced Ford to offer consumers the Focus car with a smaller, 8-inch dashboard screen, instead of the 13.2-inch SYNC4 screen that was part of the updated vehicle's introduction, the company said, without providing details. Supply of the larger screen is being moved to a new location in Europe, but until then only the smaller screen will be available.

(Reporting by Ben Klayman in DetroitEditing by Bernadette Baum)

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