Toyota IMC has announced that it will be shutting down all production completely from 1st February till 14th February 2023 due to an inventory shortage.
Indus Motor Company Limited (IMC Ltd.) is the assembler and distributor of Toyota vehicles in Pakistan. After increasing car prices due to the Rupee devaluation,Toyota is shutting down operation now for two whole weeks. When the operations resume on 15th February, it will only be done on a single shift basis until further notice. this news was communicated by the company in a notice issued to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Tuesday.
The main reason behind this break in operations is the shortage of inventory. The company claimed that it is still facing issues regarding importing raw materials and getting its consignments cleared from commercial banks.
The notice stated:
“In light of the recently introduced mechanism vide EPD Circular No. 20 of 2022 dated December 27, 2022, (effective from 2nd January, 2023), commercial banks are advised to prioritize / facilitate the imports to specified sectors only, which does not include auto sector. This has disrupted the entire supply chain and the vendors are unable to supply raw materials and components to the company. Accordingly, the company has insufficient inventory levels, therefore, the company is unable to continue its production activities.”
This notice of Toyota shutting down operations came shortly after the company raised the prices of all Toyota models in Pakistan.
Toyota had shut down operations towards the end of last year’s December as well for ten days. The company had cited the same reason back then too.
Earlier this month, the State Bank of Pakistan had slashed custom duty taxes on CKD kits to make import easier and quicker for car assemblers in Pakistan. However, several import restrictions are still prevalent due to a shortage of dollar and are still affecting the auto industry negatively.
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