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Coronavirus Disrupts Maritime Industry, Supply Chains

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Coronavirus Disrupts Maritime Industry, Supply Chains

With reports that the U.S. military is preparing for a global coronavirus pandemic, companies dependent on China-based production are highly vulnerable to the adverse impacts on the modes of the supply chain, namely in commercial aviation, maritime shipping and overland transport, according to an industry analysis.

“The outbreak has already disrupted some commercial maritime operations and is set to have a much greater impact as international concerns over the virus intensifies,” states Hong Kong-based A2 Global Risk, which supplies its client businesses with a complete picture of global politics, security and trade.

“As large sections of China’s economy grinds to a halt and regional supply-chain mobility becomes tightly restricted, the macro-economic outlook becomes increasingly dire,” A2 Global Risk adds. “More factory closures are a near certainty as the Chinese government tries to control the spread of the disease. Foreign companies heavily reliant on China’s manufacturing sector will be forced to either weather the storm or shift their supply chains to less risky markets.”

TT Club, a UK-based insurance provider, is warning freight forwarders, logistics service providers and other intermediaries of potential unforeseen exposures that may also accrue. “Restrictions due to labor shortages at ports and cancellations of inland transport links within China, constraints in the supply of goods due to factory closures and reduced schedules of air, ocean and rail carriers may expose forwarders to claims arising from delivery delays and cargo deterioration,” states a TT Club briefing that was compiled with the assistance of specialist international lawyers.

“Up-to-date status reports on their cargo’s progress, or lack of it, are vital to shippers,” emphasizes TT Club’s Risk Management Director Peregrine Storrs-Fox. “Forwarders and logistics operators will certainly prove their mettle if they can consistently make customers aware of the ongoing attempts to problem-solve. Careful recording of communication trails detailing such actions will also help in any disputes in the future.”

Global e-retailer Alibaba Group has responded to the coronavirus threat by continuously sending medical supplies, including masks and protective suits, to medical personnel in Wuhan, Wenzhou and Hangzhou, which are at the center of the outbreak and in the most need.

“We are grateful. And we need more help,” states Alibaba, which launched a global sourcing platform for suppliers and distributors of medical goods across the world to join in the campaign.

Consumer Insights and Collaboration to Boost E-commerce Incentives

China’s largest social commerce platform, Taobao Marketplace, and Bilibili, a leading online entertainment platform, confirmed a business collaboration to focus on, “content-driven e-commerce and commercialization of Bilibili’s intellectual property (“IP”) assets,” (EIN).  The company’s will do this by utilizing consumer insights while integrating the platforms and the visibility between content creators, merchandise, and users.

Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Bilibili, Rui Chen commented:

“This business collaboration with Taobao is a remarkable testament to Bilibili’s commercial potential and closely aligns us with China’s leading and most successful e-commerce platform,” said Mr. Rui Chen, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Bilibili. “We can now leverage Taobao’s gigantic platform and seasoned e-commerce operating capabilities to further help our content creators realize and improve their commercial values, thereby building a more-virtuous content community and commercialization-focused ecosystem.”

“Through this collaboration, we will better incentivize the creativity of our young people and will utilize each other’s strengths and resources to generate more premium content. We look forward to working with Taobao to fulfill the tremendous entertainment and consumption needs of the young generations in China, and importantly, in turn, we look forward to increasing the value we bring to all of our stakeholders,” he said.

With the resource sharing that automatically comes with the collaboration, both companies are enabled to better understand consumer needs as well as how to tap into potential markets.

“Early in 2015, Taobao rolled out a program to encourage bloggers, writers and online experts to post content on various channels on Taobao, to amplify the value of creative content. Over 1.6 million content creators, including anime, comic and games (ACG) experts, were actively supporting the Taobao App and helping brands on our platform engage with consumers,” said Fan Jiang, Vice President of Alibaba Group and President of Taobao. “Through deep cooperation with IP holders and content creators, Taobao has experienced the great potential of ACG. We greatly value Bilibili’s unique online hub themed around ACG, and appreciate “Gen Z” demographic expertise and believe there is a great, natural synergy between us. Together with Bilibili, we are devoted to tapping into the significant business value of this coveted demographic and bringing rich content and products to the young generations.”

Source: EIN Presswire