As One of China’s ‘Detroits’ Reopens, World’s Automakers Worry About Disruptions

An employee wearing a face mask works on a car seat assembly line at Yanfeng Adient factory in Shanghai, China, as the country is hit by an outbreak of a novel coronavirus, on Feb. 24, 2020. Aly Song/Reuters

BEIJING—Automakers across the world face the possibility of extended supply chain disruptions as factories in China stutter back to life after closures due to the coronavirus outbreak.

The car industry is especially exposed as Wuhan—the epicenter of the outbreak—is known as one of China’s ‘Detroits’, accounting for nearly 10 percent of vehicles made in the country and home to hundreds of parts suppliers.