The Coronavirus – Day 48 Update on Trade and Business

All drivers and passengers of every vehicle have their body temperature checked when arriving home each time.

The Coronavirus – Day 48 Update – How is it impacting trade and business?

With the first cases of the novel coronavirus detected in Wuhan on December 31, this makes it Day 48.

As at today, 71,334 cases have been officially confirmed with 1,775 dead—most being in China. 11,135 have recovered.

The seven provinces most effected are Hubei (1,696 deaths), Henan (16), Heilongjiang (11), Anhui (6), Chongqing (5), Beijing (4) and Guangdong (4). Outside of China, there has been one death each in the Philippines, France and Japan. Live updates are available.

The World Health Organization calls it COVID-19—a name that makes no reference to places, animals or people to avoid stigma. It is a ‘cousin’ of the SARS virus. Within days of first detecting the virus, the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention identified a seafood market in Wuhan as the suspected hub of the outbreak and the market has remained closed since.

The government, in an unprecedented move, shut down much of the country and urged everyone to remain quarantined indoors, at home. This continues to be the case and the streets remain mostly empty of traffic and people. People have obeyed the government out of respect but also fear.

The chatter on social media, although reflecting fear and frustration is overwhelmingly in support of its government that is courageous enough to make the tough decisions to minimise the risk of infection. One well-known imaging supplies leader told RT how proud he was of the Chinese government for acting so quickly. “It takes courage to do what the Chinese government has done. They have acted boldly to eradicate this virus. By taking tough measures they have saved millions of lives and provided a resolution allowing us to get back to business sooner. I don’t think any other government in the world could have achieved this result,” he said.

Playgrounds, like schools, are closed

48 days after the first case was detected, most of the country remains shut down. This includes all businesses, factories, schools, playgrounds, shops, restaurants, clubs, banks, bureaus, government departments. All public events and meetings are closed.

Online transactions and applications are working with banks and government agencies.

Food and groceries are delivered by courier to the external gate

Some restaurants have been given permission to open but only for online orders where food is delivered by couriers to an external gate. They are not permitted to be delivered to the door.

Only supermarkets are permitted to open. All shoppers have their hands sprayed with disinfectant and a temperature body check is administered. It is well understood that if you fail the temperature check you will be escorted to the hospital for further checks before being allowed to leave if you are clear of the virus. There are a number of CCTV clips going viral on social media of people trying to run away after being detected with a high body temperature.

In some districts, factories are able to register to commence operations again with limited staff. In many cases, the unavailability of resources prevents them from being able to maximise their output. In other cases, factories do not meet government requirements. This has caused some anxiety in the printing supplies industry where it’s feared that those factories that are permitted to start production will ‘steal’ international and domestic customers from those unable to get started and meet demand.

There is no doubt the outbreak is taking its toll on the world’s second-biggest economy which had already been struggling due to the US trade war and a slump in domestic demand. The ripple effect is having an impact on other countries which rely on China to buy their resources which have been cancelled.  Now that businesses have been closed for weeks it raised fears of mass lay-offs, unemployment, and housing foreclosures. One estimate warned that the outbreak could cost China $62 billion in lost growth.

RT Communication Director, Amber Guan is working from home

Working from Home

Many staff of printer cartridge suppliers are actually working, but from home. They join the millions of people, holed up in their apartments, across the country. They are not having an extended Chinese New Year holiday but are available on email and WeChat to talk to their customers domestically and internationally about their orders and supplies.

Some suppliers have already informed RT that they have sufficient supplies in warehouses on most continents to last between 30 and 60 days.

Local remanufacturers have also told RT they are looking forward to the demand for local supplies which will be a much-needed boost for locally remanufactured products, particularly in North America and Europe. Chinese suppliers are urging their customers to remain loyal and to contact them to make arrangements.

Staff at RT have also joined the millions of Chinese workers who are working from home. Unknowingly, all have become a part of what may be the world’s biggest work-from-home experiment. In offices across China, desks are empty and phones have been switched off or lie silent, as the region grapples with the deadly virus. CNN has picked up the story too.

Zhuhai

With 1,322 confirmed cases to date, Guangdong is the most affected province, next to Hubei (where Wuhan is the capital city). According to an announcement made on February 15, 2020, by the Health Committee of Guangdong Province, Zhuhai ranked first in the province in terms of the proportion of the population, with an infection rate of 96 cases per 1.76 million (2017 statistics) people. The ten cities most infected in Guangdong are:

1. Zhuhai: 0.545%
2. Shenzhen: 0.330%
3. Guangzhou: 0.233%
4. Zhongshan: 0.199%
5. Huizhou: 0.121%
6. Foshan: 0.109%
7. Dongguan: 0.106%
8. Jiangmen: 0.050%
9. Shantou: 0.044%
10. Zhao Qing: 0.041%

Imaging supplies businesses are confident that the mandatory quarantine will help the industry, as well as the country, get back on its feet sooner.

Does this novel coronavirus day 48 update help you? How are you impacted? Please add your comments below.