“Most of the markets have been fortunate in managing Covid well so far. China imports 38% of its data processing machines and 29% of its telecommunication equipment from the five countries, while the U.S. depends on half its semiconductor imports from the bloc.That extends to export hubs of Japan and South Korea, which have remained mostly on track. “The country’s entire supply chain has been seriously disrupted.”Economists are already paring their growth forecasts for Asia as real-time indicators show a hit to consumption and other activity. But looking forward, I don’t think there will be a substantial change soon,” he said.Executives like Raymond Ren -- who runs Pinghu Kaixin Plastic Industry Co. Ltd. , which makes travel bags and suitcases and also in Zhejiang -- aren’t hopeful for a course correction anytime soon. “I don’t think anything could reverse this in the short-term,” he said.“You can’t predict anything during this pandemic.”-With assistance from James Mayger, Ann Koh, Claire Che, Sohee Kim, Jinshan Hong and Nguyen Dieu Tu Uyen.

Source: Economic Times August 16, 2021 00:11 UTC