By now, everyone would have heard that the coronavirus outbreak has affected more than just China and its citizens. The illness, now identified as COVID-19 has claimed the lives of 1770 individuals with no signs of slowing down.
Travel bans have been implemented around the world in an attempt to halt to rapid spread of the disease. Several countries have taken the extreme measure of banning arrivals from China while several airlines have halted flights to and from the Chinese nation. What started in the Chinese city of Wuhan, has quickly spread all over the country and beyond international borders.
In China, especially, the effects of the epidemic can be felt keenly. The services sector such as tourism, catering, transport and retail segments has been the hardest hit by the viral outbreak. Inter-city and inter-provincial transport has been put on hold. Citizens are being turned into refugees in their own country, as many are being denied entry into cities out of mounting paranoia of the virus.
Factory closures are happening all over China, with many factories opting for extended shutdowns over the Chinese New Year. While many of it are due to reopen last week, some companies are ordered to remain shut. Many of these factories are also grappling with manpower shortage. The situation is also less severe during the SARS outbreak, unlike the present where most factories and offices have been told to remain shut for the time being by Chinese authorities.
This disruption to China's industrial sector is causing ripple effects. The global car industry, for one, is being affected by the shortage in components. The global ocean container volume is predicted to decline by 0.7% over the full year, which roughly translates into about 6 million containers less. The bookings for container ships, tankers and dry bulk vessels are also falling rapidly.
The resulting knock-on effects of the COVID-19 situation in China can also be felt in Malaysia. Our supply chains are beginning to experience the brunt of this sudden drop in production and goods transportation services. Local factories are starting to slow down production as they are unable to get the parts they need from Chinese suppliers. Not to mention that firms with dispersed supply chains will be particularly vulnerable as components are sourced individually.
However, as Kitchen Arena is home to an array of brands, it is still business as usual for us. Despite the fact that the disruption to China’s industrial sector is likely to drag on, you can be rest assured that many of our products remain unaffected by the current health crisis.
So keep calm, and get your commercial kitchen equipment from us.