Cover Story: How a Perfect Storm Created a Global Chip Shortage Globally, automakers cut production by nearly 1 million vehicles during the first quarter for lack of chips A chip shortage that has squeezed global automakers since late last year offered a snapshot of how the Covid-19 pandemic and geopolitical uncertainties have distorted supply chains in the highly globalized semiconductor industry. The question is: Will it lead to a reshaping of the industry’s global landscape? It’s a multibillion-dollar question involving massive investment flows and potentially sweeping economic and geopolitical consequences. As technology has advanced, semiconductors have come to dominate not only the auto industry but also almost every part of consumer goods manufacturing as the tiny electronic devices supply the brains for products ranging from computers to mobile phones to toothbrushes.