(Reuters) TOKYO - Due to ongoing logistical and supply chain challenges, Honda Motor Co. announced on Thursday that it would cut its production plans by up to 40% in Japan from the beginning of September. Even Japanese automakers have been cautiously encouraged by the news that the chip scarcity that led to repeated output reductions is subsiding.

Early in the next month, its assembly factory in Saitama Prefecture, north of Tokyo, will reduce production by around 40%. Beginning in early September, two lines at its Suzuka factory in western Japan will cut output goals by around 30%. Honda attributed logistics and part delivery delays to COVID-19 and semiconductor shortages. A wide range of automobiles, including the Vezel sport utility vehicle, the Stepwgn minivan, and the Civic compact car, would be impacted.

The automaker announced that for the remainder of the month, the Saitama factory and the Suzuka facility would each reduce production by around 10% and 30%, respectively. Honda changed their production schedule in May but had promised to resume normal operations in early June.

Toyota Motor Corp., a competitor of Honda, maintained its production target of 9.7 million vehicles globally for the current fiscal year ending in March 2023 and stated that the production and sales outlook would improve from August onward.

This month, Toyota stated that it anticipated producing around 850,000 vehicles globally in September and that it planned to increase production through November, subject to the availability of manpower and parts.

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