REDSTAR Hangzhou March 2020

广 告 • 特 辑 // FEATURES /
infected, things are obviously tense there
too. There are growing fears about what this
could mean for the developing countries,
like Afghanistan and Syria, that it borders,
as they will be far less equipped to handle
testing, treating and containing the virus. As
the scope of impacted populations grow, so
do the costs.
THE ECONOMIC IMPACT
Even if the virus manages to be contained
and doesn’t begin to spread widely around
the world, the passive impact and residual
costs of COVID-19 will be felt for months to
come. The outbreak over the past weekend
in the north of Italy have caused schools to
close, sporting events shuttered, and fashion
shows postponed. This kind of halt to daily
life is something that we here in China
know all too well. Aside from the reduced
Empty Italian Store
availability of masks and rubbing alcohol,
most food and living products stayed in stock
over the last weeks. The small outbreaks
in Italian villages are already straining the
amount of food on the shelves of stores 3
hours away. Unfortunately, these runs on
stores only strain supply chains further.
The shutter from the virus’ economic impact
has finally hit international stock exchanges,
which fell between 3 and 5 percent in a
single day all over the globe. It is a good
thing that China is getting back to work; it
makes up 17% of all manufacturing, globally.
But the production capacity of most factories
is currently only at about 20% to 30% of their
normal production capacity. Things abroad
are beginning to get stretched. The products
in warehouses will cover us for another
month of shutdown, but after that suppliers
will have a very hard time keeping up with
demand if things don’t get back on track. We
need to conserve a bit more in the coming
months and not give in to fear or buy more
than we need.
One thing is for sure, COVID-19 is not behind
us. The Coronavirus will still be infecting the
airwaves and our social media feeds for a
while to come, and it might be still going
around even in May.
redstarhangzhou.com 17