Shanghai Daily news

The heavy snow halted production at one of the city's major car manufacturers.

Assembly line workers at Shanghai Volkswagen's three factories in Anting, Jiading District, got an extra day off.

Shifts which should have begun at 4:30 on Monday afternoon and ended at 8am yesterday were canceled. Office staff and engineers in the research and development department were also allowed to leave an hour early on Monday.

But yesterday all staff were back at work and production had resumed.

An official from Shanghai Volkswagen, the joint venture between Volkswagen AG and the Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp, said there had been concern for the safety of the company's employees because of the dangerous conditions on the roads as most of them drove to work.

The snowstorm also led to difficulties with deliveries to other cities and the supply of auto parts from outside.

With regard to the suspension of production, the official said that the impact wouldn't be dramatic and the car maker would adjust its production to minimize any losses.