Auto Output Dives in Brazil, Mexico as Chip Shortages Bite

Cars are seen in a traffic jam during morning rush hour in a period of social isolation in Brasilia, amid the COVID-19 outbreak in Brazil, on April 16, 2020. Ueslei Marcelino/Reuters

MEXICO CITY/SAO PAULO—Automotive production in Brazil and Mexico, Latin America’s two largest economies, plummeted in September, dragged down by an industry-wide semiconductor chip shortage and railroad blockades in Mexico, data showed on Wednesday.

Brazilian auto production was down 21.3 percent to 173,287 units in September from the same month in 2020, when the industry was scrambling to resume production from a coronavirus-induced shutdown, Brazilian automakers association Anfavea said.