Subaru halts bulk of global car output over part defect

Subaru Corp (7270.T) said its sole car factory in Japan, accounting for roughly 60 percent of global production, could be out of action for almost two weeks after it discovered a suspected defect in a power-steering component, Reuters reports.

Shares in Japan's sixth-largest automaker fell nearly 7 percent at one point before recovering some ground after the company announced further details, including plans to restart production on Monday at the earliest. It closed down 3.4 percent, while the benchmark Nikkei average .N225 ended flat.

The production stoppage, which started from the night shift on Jan. 16 at one of Subaru’s only two factories worldwide, was first reported in the Asahi newspaper on Wednesday.

The possible defect affected the Forester, Impreza, and XV models, the automaker said. Production of all other models had also stopped because they are built on the same assembly line, it said.