Mumbai, February 6: As the coronavirus scare continues to grow across the world, the Indian industry, sectors that are dependent on Chinese imports like electronics, automobiles and pharmaceutical takes a huge hit. According to an Economic Times report, trade has been affected and unless the Chinese supplies bounce back, it will soon lead to scarcity and inflated price in a few weeks.
The report mentions that the prices of active pharmaceutical ingredients for antibiotics have already skyrocketed and mobile handsets and consumer electronics could be the next. Coronavirus Outbreak: Global Shipping Industry Takes a Hit Due to Lockdown in China, Goods Lay Stranded.
China is one of the big suppliers of television panels, LED chips, compressors for refrigerators and air-conditioners, and motors. If the supply disruption is affected since long, the prices of these products will soon rise. The case is the same for the automobile industry, which could be impacted if the supply of parts is disrupted.
The global shipping industry has also been affected as companies that carry goods from China to the rest of the world are reducing the number of seaborne vessels to curb the spread of the deadly virus. Several vessels are lying in "floating quarantined zones," as Australia and Singapore refuse to allow ships that have called at Chinese ports to enter their own until the crew has been declared virus-free.
The Surat diamond industry is also staring at losses, and it is likely to face a loss of around Rs 8,000 crore in next two months as Hong Kong, which is a major export destination, has declared a state of emergency due to the outbreak of the virus in China.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 06, 2020 11:05 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).