"The deliveries to customers of the Volkswagen Group continued to recover strongly in the first half of the current year, leading to a very strong Group turnover as well as a very high operating profit," the company said.
Japan's third-largest automaker will idle its factory in Kyushu, southern Japan, for eight days between May 10 and 19, the sources said, declining to be identified because the plan is not public.
The plant, which assembles the Serena minivan, X-Trail SUV and other models, will aim to make up for lost production once the supply of chips returns, the people said.
Global auto sales have rebounded from the pandemic lows hit early last year as consumers increasingly prefer buying vehicles that provide more safety than public transportation during the health crisis.
Jackson said he's optimistic about US car and truck demand given the combination of low interest rates, stable fuel prices and the prospect of a significant new federal stimulus package.
The 7.3 magnitude tremor off Japan's northeast coast caused strong shaking at the Naka factory in Ibaraki prefecture, which has the company's only cutting-edge 300-millimeter fabrication line.
The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) has warned that aftershocks from the latest quake could last for several days.
Semiconductor manufacturers earlier in the coronavirus crisis shifted their output away from the hard-hit auto sector to serve other areas, like consumer electronics, Volkswagen said.