Chinese factories face new threat: US anti-virus controls

Factories in China, struggling to reopen after the coronavirus shut down the economy, face a new threat from US anti-disease controls that might disrupt the flow of microchips and other components they need.

The shock threatens to set back the ruling Communist Party's efforts to revive the world's second-largest economy after it declared victory over the outbreak. It would add to pressures on the global business activity as Western countries close workplaces, limit travel and tell consumers to stay home.

Chinese manufacturers assemble more than 80% of smartphones for Apple, Samsung and other brands, half of the world's personal computers and a big share of home appliances and other goods. But they need US processor chips and other high-value components.

It isn't clear how US anti-coronavirus curbs might affect trade. Controls so far apply to travelers, not goods. American factories are operating, but the National Federation of Independent Business says 39% of 300 companies surveyed already were suffering supply disruptions.

"A sustained disruption of activity in the US will likely lead to disruptions to manufacturing activity in China," said Darren Tay, a country risk analyst for Fitch Solutions, in an email.

Beijing is easing controls that left city streets empty and silent and sent shock waves through the global economy. Manufacturers are rebuilding supply chains - networks of thousands of providers of auto parts, microchips, and other components.

Officials say steelmakers and other state-owned industries are almost back to normal. But conditions are more precarious for small, private companies that are China's economic engine and make clothes, toys and other consumer goods. Many are running at a fraction of normal levels or are closed due to a lack of materials and employees

Stock Market Crash

Stock Market Crash 

       The three most top and prominent IT service firms of the country had a combined loss of market capitalization of around $31 billion in the fortnight as corona virus continues to affect the stock market. The market capitalization have also witnessed the global service majors like IBM, Accenture and DXC Technology.
It's not just stocks in India but markets all over the world that continue to remain volatile has been affected by the corona virus outbreak.

India’s largest IT services player Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) dropped by Rs1.45 trillion (around $21 billion). Country’s second-largest IT firm "Infosys" saw its market capitalization drop by around Rs70,000crore. In case of Wipro, market capitalization fell by around Rs26,000 crore  (around $3.7 billion).
 
Globally, the phenomenon is also not different. DXC Technology is the fourth-largest IT services firm globally and its market capitalization fell to around $3 billion.  
          
    Gartner, global research firm said that global spend on IT is likely to grow at 3.7 per cent in 2020. However, with major countries shutting down establishment to contain the virus, demand slowdown has now become a reality. Brokerages on D-Street have asked traders to make their moves smartly as the situation is currently too volatile. They have also asked investors to stay calm and not indulge in panic selling. However, that’s what seems to be happening in markets around the world despite assurances by central banks around the world.

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25000 auto executives to work from home to contain the spred of COVID-19

India’s automobile sector will see an unprecedented number of 25,000 office employees working from home for at least two weeks. It is part of protective initiatives being enforced across organizations to curb the Covid-19 outbreak. Although employees working from home often hold desk positions, in an incredibly regulated climate, the factory workers tend to work as they did before. At a crucial moment of the transition from BS-IV to BS-VI, these steps are being taken and the organizations are under pressure to reach annual goals.

Tata Motors was the first to issue an advisory asking around 3000 employees to work from home, late last week. On Tuesday, the Mahindra Group instructed over 7000 employees from the automotive and farm division working from offices to work from home.

Among its peers, Volkswagen Group asked 200 employees, while Fiat Chrysler directed 300 and another 1000 employees from its joint venture company with Tata Motors - Fiat India Automobile Private Limited to work from home. Renault asked 150 to work from home, while 100 executives from M G Motor and 40 executives from Volvo Cars India has received advisory to operate from home.

The biggest contingent however to get a work from home directive are over 15000 executives from the business service division of US carmaker Ford. They have now been asked to work from home.

Ruzbeh Irani, president (group communications & ethics) and chief brand officer at Mahindra explained the group is carefully monitoring the rapidly evolving Covid-19 pandemic and continues to take appropriate actions to ensure the protection of its employees.

"We have incorporated work-from-home as necessary and practical while maintaining continuity of operation. Workers should use a variety of technological resources available to them to promote seamless coordination and agility," Irani said.

The leaders Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai Motor and rivals Honda Cars India, Toyota Kirloskar, Kia Motors have all taken precautionary measures but are yet to take a call on work from home. FCA India said it has permitted over 50% of its staff, from its Mumbai and Pune offices, to work from home, at least until March 31, 2020.

SBI ATMs problem - rearrange for getting ₹2,000

                             There is no government proposal to withdraw ₹2,000 currency notes, the government has said that many ATMs are still dispensing the high-value notes. Several banks are said to have reduced or stopped the issue of ₹2,000 notes.

                          Due to the higher circulation of currency notes of ₹500 and ₹200 denominations and inconvenience faced by the customers in exchanging ₹2,000 currency notes, two of the public sector banks namely State Bank of India and Indian Bank have been issued instructions to the field functionaries to reconfigure the ATMs for currency notes of ₹500 and ₹200 denominations," Minister of State for Finance Anurag Thakur said in Lok Sabha.

                State-owned Indian Bank had earlier announced that it has decided to stop using ₹2,000 notes in their ATMS. Due to less number of Rs 2,000 notes available in market for last couple of months there was a rumor that government may be planning to take it out of circulation.Thakur clarified that printing of notes was done by government on the advice of RBI and while doing so effort is made to maintain balance of currencies in circulation.

          Currently, ₹7.40 lakh crore worth of ₹2,000 notes is in circulation. The circulation of ₹100 notes is of the value of ₹1.96 lakh crore while that of ₹50 note is ₹43,784 crore. "Printing of banknotes of particular denomination is decided by the government in consultation with the RBI to maintain desired denomination mix for facilitating transactional demand for public," Thakur added.

Organizations employing work from home in the age of corona

As the corona virus cases are on the rise more and more companies are trying to employ work from home opportunities. Getting large numbers of white-collar employees to work from home has never been more critical. India’s low infection numbers thus far defy the exponential spread of Covid-19 the world over, suggesting that the low reported infection rates are the result of inadequate testing.

Chances are people in the age group between 20 years and 50 years are most likely to be exposed to the virus at work.

A study released on 14 March based on a region of France, one of the countries where the epidemic has moved with the ferocity of a forest fire, found that school closures for eight weeks—as Indian cities have recently adopted—had a limited effect.

When combined with 25% of the adult population telecommuting, however, such levels of social distancing “delay the peak by almost two months with an almost 40% reduction of the case incidence at the peak", according to the study.

In the past month, large numbers of companies all over the world have switched to work from home. Seattle, hit by the first outbreak in the US, saw the early adoption by companies such as Amazon.com Inc. and Microsoft Corp. towards the end of February.

Investment bank JPMorgan Chase and Co. asked thousands of its employees to work from home in March. Twitter Inc. made it mandatory on 11 March.

In a memo worthy of comic strip Dilbert, Apple Inc.’s chief executive Tim Cook encouraged all employees in the company’s global offices to work from home in the second week of March in order “to reduce human density and ensure those teams on site can do their work safely and with peace of mind". The offer did not apply to those at its retail stores, according to a report in Bloomberg.

In short these decisions help slowdown the spread of the virus and also fewer vehicles log jammed on Delhi-Gurugram roads or those headed to the Electronic City in Bengaluru.

Why Covid -19 is nothing like the deadly Spanish Flu

Now that covid -19 is officially a pandemic, people have rediscovered the Spanish flu of 1918 that killed between 50 million and 100 million people across the world. Comparisons are being made because pandemics spook people. But should one be looking back at the 1918 flu that also killed the grandfather of US president Donald Trump?

But first, a few quick facts about the Spanish flu. The flu didn’t originate in Spain. Remember, this was 1918 the First World War was still on. Three countries that is US, Britain and France had the same issue that is the flu before Spain, but somehow they managed to keep it put of news ape to “avoid damaging, morale “, Laura spinney reported in a recent article in the guardian. Spain, however was neutral, so it didn’t censor its press. And because news of the flu first reported in Spain it got called the pains flu. But before this name caught on, the Brazilian called it the German flu. The poles, meanwhile, called it the Bolshevik disease.

Today, people are blaming the Chinese. But WHO, in 2015, came out with guidelines on how to name a disease. Hence, no one is calling this Chinese flu or thee Wuhan Plague. So, covid-19 it is a bit mundane, perhaps, but certainly not one to stigmatize a whole country.

Spinney asks a fundamental question in her article:” should we be comparing Covis-19 to flu at all ? The viruses that cause the flu and covid-19 belong to two different families. Sars-coV-2 which causes covid 19 belongs to the coronavirus family. And in that there are greater similarities with SARS( severe acute respiratory syndrome)  that originated in china in 2001 and MERS (middle east respiratory syndrome) which began in Saudi Arabia 2012.

“Unlike flu, which spreads rapidly and relatively evenly thoroughly a population, coronavirus tends to infect in cluster, ”spinney writes. “In theory , that makes coronavirus outbreak easier to contain, and indeed both SARS and MERS outbreaks were brought under control before they went global.”

Most importantly, the world has changed a lot between 1918 and now. In 1918 , a large number of people chose to follow what religious leaders were saying rather than heed the advice of health authorities by ordering evening prayers on nine consecutive days in honor of saint Rocco, the patron saint of plagues. Churchgoers lined up to kiss the saints relics. Zamora recorded the highest death rate in Spain, and one of the highest in Europe.

Cabinet approves reconstruction scheme for cash-strapped YES Bank

Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Friday, the union cabinet has approved the scheme e of reconstruction of YES bank and also lifted the moratorium within three days after the notification is issued. By giving details, Nirmala Sitharaman told state bank of India will invest for 49 per cent equity in yes bank and there are no restriction for other investors they are also invited for the investment.

She also mentioned, there will be a three year lock period for all the investors. Moreover the lock in period for SBI would be only for the 26 per cent of the shareholding.

The finance minister said that the authorized capital of the SBI has been increased from 1100 crore to 6200 crore. She also added that the scheme has been approved with the objective of protecting the interest of the depositors and providing credibility to YES bank as well as to the entire financial system

Along with that finance minister also added when the board is constituted two members are SBI directors and after the notification to lift the moratorium the administrator will vacate his office.

SBI said that they will invest 7250 crore in YES bank which is much higher than they decided. Earlier they had planned 2450 crore as investment and acquire 49 per cent stake in the private sector lender that began operation in 2004.

On March 5, RBI had imposed a moratorium on YES bank restricting withdrawals to Rs 50000 per depositor till April 3. The RBI also superseded the board and placed it under an administrator, Prashanth Kumar, former deputy managing director and CFO of SBI. The proposal which were made to hike the dearness allowance by 4 per cent. Minister Prakash javadekar said that 48 lakh employees and 63 lakh pensioners of central government will be benefitted as the cabinet approved increasing dearness allowance by 4 per cent.