Hey guys I live in Japan and just visited the Shiga Mazda dealership. They have received a letter from Mazda HQ stating that the fire at Ujina No. 1 (U1) was in the paint curing line, and that this should not affect production. U2 (Ujina 2) and other facilities are slated to take care of the paint-curing portion of production.
As for the steel shortage, have you guys seen the Washington Post article on China (around September)? They had a photo of ships parked in the ocean as far as the lens can go, waiting to pick up raw materials from Australia. This includes steel which is being sucked into China. China, if growth doesn't slow down in that country, will turn into a black hole...