A Mercedes and Volkswagen supplier's daily shipments of parts have fallen 50%, due to the South Korean trucker strikes, report says

June 13, 2022

A Mercedes and Volkswagen supplier's daily shipments of parts have fallen 50%, due to the South Korean trucker strikes, report says

Workers at the assembly line of Chinese automobile manufacturer Leapmotor in Jinhua, Zhejiang Province of China. — The South Korean automotive industry has been impacted by ongoing trucker strikes.
Li Jianlin/VCG via Getty Images

Hankook Tire & Technology, a supplier to major carmakers, has seen its shipments fall, per Reuters.
The shipment issues are a result of a week-long truckers' strike in South Korea.
Truck drivers are striking over low pay amid rising fuel costs around the world.

Truck drivers striking in South Korea are causing supply chain issues for major carmakers, Reuters reports.

Han kook Tire & Technology Co Ltd, a large global tire brand, is a key supplier for carmakers such as Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen. The company has seen daily shipments fall about 50% due to the truck drivers' protest in South Korea, a spokesperson for the company told Reuters.

Han kook Tire & Technology did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment made outside of normal working hours.

640,000 tires, worth more than $44 million, had faced shipment issues as of Sunday, according to a statement from the South Korean industry ministry, as reported by Reuters.

Monday marks the seventh day of the strike as thousands of workers protest low pay and a lack of government subsidies amid rising fuel costs worldwide. The strike is estimated to have caused South Korean industries accumulate losses of around $1.24 billion, according to the country's industry ministry's statement.

The week-long strike has significantly affected the country's automobile industry. Around 5,400 vehicles, worth around $200 million, have been lost production as of Monday, per the industry ministry's statement.

The South Korean industry ministry did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment made outside of normal working hours.

South Korean carmaker, Hyundai, has also faced significant production cuts since the strike began. On Friday, striking workers cut production at Hyundai's Ulsan factories to one-tenth of its usual output, union officials told Reuters.

Hyundai's Ulsan factories produce around 6,000 cars daily and as of Friday, the strike has cost Hyundai around 3,800 vehicles, per Reuters.

The disruptions in South Korea come as another hit to the global supply chain which has been plagued with signification disruptions in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Ukraine War.

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