Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy opens a ‘one-stop counter’ to respond to lockdown measures in major cities in China On the 14th, quarantine personnel wearing protective suits in Shanghai, China, are waiting near a controlled area due to the outbreak of COVID-19. Shanghai/AFP Yonhap News There are mixed concerns that the lockdown measures in major cities due to the rapid increase in the number of corona19 confirmed in China may cause disruptions in the operation of factories and supply of parts for local companies. In response, the government decided to set up a “one-stop window for resolving difficulties in the supply chain” to solve the difficulties of companies.
On the 17th, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said, “As China imposed lockdown measures on major cities such as Changchun City in Jilin Province, Weihai City and Dezhou City in Shandong Province, and Shenzhen City in Guangdong Province, where Korean companies are concentrated, companies operating in the region will operate their factories. “There is a growing concern about disruptions and disruptions in the supply and demand of materials and parts for domestic companies linked to China through the supply chain,” he said.
The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on the same day that the Materials and Parts Supply and Demand Response Support Center has been designated as a one-stop channel for resolving supply chain difficulties in response to the Chinese corona blockade, and that it has established a support system in cooperation with local diplomatic missions overseas, KOTRA, trade associations, and the Korean Chamber of Commerce. In response to difficulties in supply and demand discovered through this, KOTRA and other networks will be mobilized to support the discovery of alternative importing countries and the conclusion of contracts.
The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on the 21st that it plans to hold a ‘major industrial supply chain impact analysis meeting’ with industry associations such as semiconductors and displays on the 21st to continue monitoring and take proactive measures in preparation for the possibility of expanding lockdown measures in China. “As supply chain crises become permanent due to the Russia-Ukraine crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic, cooperation between companies and the government to build a stable industrial supply chain is more important than ever,” said Joo Young-joon, head of industrial policy at the Ministry of Industry.
In China, which maintains a strong zero corona policy, the number of confirmed cases has increased three to four times since last weekend, and Corona 19 is spreading simultaneously in many regions. Shenzhen, a global center for information technology products, has entered into a city blockade, and major regions in China such as Dongguan, Changchun, Jilin, Shanghai, and Beijing are also raising the level of quarantine.
Shanghai, which is called Chinas economic capital, entered a semi-lockdown phase on the 12th by suspending the operation of elementary, middle and high schools and banning international flights.
The situation in Shenzhen is even worse. The city, with a population of 17.5 million, stopped public transportation on the 12th and banned residents from going outside. Businesses were also banned except for essential businesses such as electricity and water. Ports are included in essential business sites and are operating normally, but the situation is unstable. Foxconns Shenzhen plant, the worlds largest electronics consignment maker, temporarily halted production of Apples iPhone. In Shenzhen, besides Foxconn, Huawei, Tencent, GTE, BYD, and Dajiang are also doing business.
Hong Kong <South China Morning Post> mentioned the situation in which Shanghai and Shenzhen have entered the lockdown phase due to the increase in the number of Omicron confirmed in China on the 16th, and feared that a fatal blow could occur to the global supply chain. The British Financial Times reported that “the Shenzhen blockade could exacerbate the global supply chain disruption that fueled inflation in the US and Europe,” and Morgan Stanley said, “As Chinese authorities blockade Shenzhen, the Chinese version of Silicon Valley, “We have made clear the message that we will focus on controlling COVID-19 rather than recovering the economy,” he said.
