Many North American automakers' planned shutdowns for July are longer than those from the summer of 2021, spelling lower demand for US aluminum and steel.
Almost every automaker in the region will take some shutdown during July, with varied closure lengths.
Last year, North American automakers cut many of their typical summer shutdowns in an attempt to boost production after losing much of it at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. Automakers lost months of production as they shut down under pressure from their union workforces and then slowly ramped up as they attempted to control outbreaks in their facilities.
The automotive industry is one of the single largest consumers of aluminum and steel products in North America. The average North American vehicle consumes 486 lbs of aluminum and 1,980 lbs of steel, of which approximately 1,480 lbs are flat-rolled products, according to data from the American Iron and Steel Institute's (AISI) Automotive Program.
The cutbacks will put additional pressure on the US steel industry, which has lately faced some headwinds, primarily from lessening demand in the warehouse space as online retail giant Amazon cuts back investments in new warehouses and associated equipment.
The Argus US hot rolled coil (HRC) assessment has fallen by 26pc to $1,118/short ton on 14 June since hitting a peak of $1,500/st in April. Lead times have remained short, and spot demand is limited as service centers work down their inventories in the face of falling prices.
Stellantis, one of the largest automakers in the region, will take week-long closures at nine plants across its operations in Canada, Mexico, and the US, between 27 June and 28 August.
Toyota will close all 14 of its North American plants — 11 in the US, two in Mexico and one in Canada — the week of 18 July.
Nissan will take its four US facilities down from 27 June-10 July, while Hyundai will take its Alabama sedan and SUV plant down from 25 June-10 July.
Daimler will take its Mercedes van plant in Charleston, South Carolina down from 3-15 July, and will not take a shutdown at its Tuscaloosa, Alabama SUV plant.
During the 4 July holiday week, BMW will idle its Spartanburg, South Carolina SUV plant, and Kia will idle its Georgia compact utility vehicle and sedan plant. Volkswagen will idle its Chattanooga, Tennessee sedan and SUV plant.
Honda will take its six Canada and US plants down during the 4 July week.
General Motors (GM) said it will not take any summer shutdowns. Ford, Subaru and Volvo did not return requests for comment.
| Summer auto shutdowns in North America | ||||
| Automaker | Location(s) | Vehicle type(s) | Closure week | Approximate production loss |
| Closures by automaker and plant | ||||
| Stellantis | Detroit Mack, Warren truck (both Michigan) | full-size truck, SUV | [$-409]27-Jun | N/A |
| Stellantis | Brampton, Windsor (both Ontario), Saltillo, Mexico | full-size trucks, minivan | [$-409]4-Jul | N/A |
| Stellantis | Belvidere, Illinois | truck | [$-409]18-Jul | N/A |
| Stellantis | Sterling Heights, Michigan | full-size truck | [$-409]22-Aug | N/A |
| Toyota | 14 locations (11 US, 2 Canada, 1 Mexico) | Full-size truck, midsize truck, sedan, SUV | [$-409]18-Jul | 58,300 |
| Honda | 6 locations (4 US, 2 Canada) | Sedan and SUV | [$-409]4-Jul | 24,356 |
| Nissan | 4 locations (US) | Full-size truck, midsize truck, sedan, SUV | 27 June-10 July | 40,300 |
| Daimler | Charleston, South Carolina | Van | 3-15 July | N/A |
| BMW | Spartanburg, South Carolina | SUV | [$-409]4-Jul | 10,500 |
| Kia | West Point, Georgia | CUV and sedan | 5-8 July | 3,726 |
| Volkswagen | Chattanooga, Tennessee | Sedan and SUV | [$-409]4-Jul | N/A |
| Total estimate | 137,182 | |||
| Company statements and websites | ||||
| Production loss figures are estimates | ||||
