Apple supplier suspends production at two China factories

A subsidiary of Apple supplier Foxconn Technology Group has closed two factories outside of Shanghai after new COVID-19 cases were reported on site, the company said on Monday.

The factories operated by Foxconn Interconnect Technology Limited, also known as FIT, are located in Kunshan, Jiangsu Province, a small city situated between Shanghai and the historic Suzhou.

 FIT’s website says that it supplies components for companies that specialise in wireless and Internet of things (IoT) products, including its own brands Linksys, Belkin, Wemo and Phyn.

The South China Morning Post reported on Monday that operations have been suspended at two factories in Kunshan since last Wednesday and employees have been confined to their dorms.

Foxconn acting spokesperson Jimmy Huang in Taipei told Al Jazeera that operations continue on Foxconn’s main campus.

In a follow-up company statement, Foxconn said the suspension of operations would have a limited effect as production had been shifted elsewhere.

“As production has previously been deployed to backup factories, the factory’s main products are located in overseas shipping warehouse and inventory levels are still sufficient, the impact on the company’s business is limited,” the firm said.

China is facing its worst COVID-19 outbreak since early 2020, with millions of people under lockdown as the country continues to pursue a controversial “dynamic COVID zero” strategy to eliminate the virus.

A strict lockdown in Shanghai since late March has disrupted production at international firms including Tesla and resulted in food shortages that have sparked rare displays of public dissent among residents.