Lenovo: Supply chain disruptions could hurt tablet production

The 9.0-magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami that struck Japan two weeks ago has brought the country's infrastructure to a standstill. The effects of the devastation are reverberating throughout the global economy: Lenovo said its new tablet computer could face delays on tight sales of memory chips produced in the country.

Lenovo's LePad tablet is not yet available for sale in the U.S., but the company has already begun selling the device in China, where the company is based. While Lenovo said supply disruptions have so far not affected the supply of LePad, the company is wary of the rising price of memory chips after many Japanese factories were forced to shutter their doors in the wake of the devastating natural disasters; Japan accounts for a large percentage of the world's supply of electronics components.

Nonetheless, Lenovo vice president Chen Xudong said Monday that supply disruptions could cause potential supply problems in the future - though he didn't specify a time frame. Other companies like ZTE Corp, a Chinese telecommunications equipment and mobile phone maker, assert that supply chain problems emanating from Japan could last for the next three to six months. So far, shortages have affected the supply of critical components like battery cores, storage and LCD panels.