A container is lifted at Erenhot Port in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, April 11, 2020. (Xinhua/Lian Zhen)
CHINA AND SUPPLY CHAINS
COVID-19 has disrupted global supply chains, particularly those among multinational corporations, making them rethink the relationship between interest and stability.
The epidemic will function as a catalyst to accelerate the shift of global supply chains, according to media outlets.
The idea for future supply chains is nothing but to strike a new balance between cost savings and supply chain resilience, Gu Qingyang, an associate professor at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy at the National University of Singapore, told Xinhua in a recent interview.
A recent survey by the American Chamber of Commerce in China and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) showed that almost 70 percent of U.S. companies say they have no plan to relocate production to outside of China due to COVID-19.
"We are very confident in the Chinese market. We will make another successful year with partners in China," Jean-Paul Agon, chairman and CEO of L'Oreal Group, has told Xinhua recently.
China has the world's most complete industrial support system and ecological system, abundant financing ability, a vast high-quality workforce, and increasing scientific and technological innovation ability, Gu said.
"China occupies a central position in the global industrial chain and supply chain," he added.
BEYOND ECONOMY
Emergencies "fast-forward historical processes," wrote Yuval Noah Harari, the author of "Sapiens," "Homo Deus" and "21 Lessons for the 21st Century," in an article titled "The world after coronavirus" on the Financial Times website.
When countries are in trouble and face an economic slump, there are signs that skepticism of globalization resurfaces, along with decoupling theories. Some say the pandemic is one of the latest tests for globalization.
The advantages of the powerful deployment of labor and resources -- thanks to globalization -- will not be easily altered by the COVID-19 pandemic, which will wane eventually.
A global crisis needs a global response. From the research and development of drugs and vaccines, to information sharing and resource mobilization, none of these can live without global efforts and coordination.
As Harari wrote, "both the epidemic itself and the resulting economic crisis are global problems. They can be solved effectively only by global cooperation."
The world has witnessed quick actions to strengthen global governance, which is now embracing opportunities to upgrade itself.
The Group of 20 has set out agendas ranging from stimulus plans and energy security to debt alleviation within a month; the United Nations, the IMF, and the World Bank have all beefed up preparations for post-pandemic economic recovery. Meanwhile, the international community is joining hands to promote information sharing and address medical supply shortages.
In a world that is best defined as a community with a shared future for mankind, a concerted response from all countries to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic will go a long way toward an early economic recovery.
