Nissan pauses some Japanese production as virus hits supply

TOKYO -- Nissan Motor will temporarily halt operations at a Japanese plant, becoming the first automaker in the country to suspend vehicle assembly due to an auto-parts shortage caused by the coronavirus outbreak in China. 

Both production lines at subsidiary Nissan Motor Kyushu's plant will be halted Friday. One line, which makes mainly vehicles for foreign markets, will go offline the following Monday. The factory, a relatively early adopter of Chinese parts, appears to have been hit particularly hard by the supply chain disruption caused by the virus.