Workers are still stuck in their hometowns. Before factories or offices can reopen, officials want detailed health plans. Assembly lines for Apple and General Motors are standing silent.
A dangerous viral outbreak, more than two weeks after China locked down a major city. One of the world’s largest economies is remaining mostly idle. Moreover, there were hopes that much of the country would have been reopened by now. Nevertheless, the streets are still empty. Weeks or months could pass before this vital motor of global growth will buzz again. That is what legions of inactive workers and quiet factories suggest.
The global economy will suffer the longer China remains in low gear. It was hampered by both the outbreak and its attempt of containment.
The process led to cut off workers from their factories from their raw materials and jobs. That resulted in a slowdown, already slashing traffic along the world’s shipping lines. Thus, it led to forecasts of a sharp fall in the production of everything from smartphones to cars.
Jorg Wuttke is the president of the European Chamber of Commerce in China. He said that it is like Europe in medieval times. At those times, each city has its crosschecks and checks.
New figures are showing that the authorities still have a long way to go before the outbreak can be tamed. On Tuesday, a report was released. It is stated that China’s death toll of the coronavirus is 1,000 people. Whereas, the number on Monday was indicating 908.
On Monday, a crew from the WHO landed in Beijing. They arrived there to work with Chinese researchers fighting against the coronavirus. Their arrival is signaling a shift in attitude among China’s leaders.
China and Their Declining Production
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus is the organization’s director-general. He cited concerns for instances of infections among people who had not traveled to China, suggesting that even more cases might emerge. Tedros wrote on Twitter that in short, they might only be seeing the tip of the iceberg in reality. The fact is that the recoveries among victims have outpaced deaths for more than a week, supporting the Chinese health officials. Nevertheless, the rate of infection was continuing to soar. It is suggesting that the worst is on its way.
China is the titan of global trade and the world’s largest manufacturer. It is becoming clear that restarting the country will be very difficult. It does not matter if China will make significant strides in the next few days to contain the outbreak.
Before then, the damage is spreading.
On Monday, Nissan of Japan said that it would shut down its plant in Kyushu, Japan. The lockdown will continue for four days and it will start later this week because of the supply shortages of parts from China. Other carmakers, like Hyundai in South Korea and FCA in Italy, have already warned that a lack of China’s production might force them into curtailing production in their home markets.
All in all, China is facing many challenges and problems.
