Quake hits car, electronics factories in northern Japan

Operations at a number of Japanese car and electronics makers remained suspended on Sunday as companies tried to repair damage from a powerful earthquake, officials said. Kanto Auto Works Ltd., a unit of Toyota Motor Corp., was inspecting production lines a day after its factory in northern Iwate prefecture was damaged by the quake, which killed six people and triggered massive landslides. One employee was injured after vehicle frames hanging on assembly lines fell to the floor of the factory, which produces some 27,000 vehicles a month. "We are still assessing the damage as right now we're rushing to recover. We hope to resume operations as early as Monday," said Shigeru Hanaki, a spokesman for the company. Electronics parts factories affiliated with Sony Corp. in northern Japan automatically shut down some of their manufacturing lines following the jolt, company officials said.

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