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    Analysis

    April 15, 2022

    North American Auto Assemblies Accelerate in March

    Written by David Schollaert

    North American auto assemblies grew by 18.1% in March, expanding for the third straight month despite ongoing supply hurdles. Though North American production has improved since last December, March’s recovery was just 1% higher year on year. And it’s still 13.5% below the pre-pandemic period of March 2019.

    At the onset of 2022, the global auto industry was looking forward to a year of growth. Nearly two years removed from the initial pandemic shock, sentiment was upbeat with Covid rates receding and supply chains expected to improve. Recent events have greatly complicated the outlook, however, as the war in Ukraine takes the auto sector on another roller coaster ride.

    David Schollaert

    David Schollaert is deputy editor-in-chief for Steel Market Update. David joined SMU after more than a decade in the metals and mining industry in a myriad of different roles. Much of his early experience and expertise were within the coverage and analysis of steel-making raw materials and served previously as senior editor of the CRU Prices Service. Most recently, however, before his return to market analysis, David held roles as a metals buyer and an operations manager for raw material suppliers. He can be contacted at david@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-720-1008.

    Read more from David Schollaert

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