(Updated)
On January 27, 2020 the The New York Times, announced that almost 3,000 cases were confirmed in China with a death toll just surpassing 80 people. As of February 13, 2020 the BBC has reported that there are now 63,851 confirmed cases and 1,380 confirmed deaths in China due to the virus.
Other countries continued to see small increases in confirmed cases, except Japan which has now reached a total of 218 cases.
In response, numerous airlines have limited their operations in the region since travel bans and quarantines have lowered travel volumes.
Consequently, this has made finding available bookings for air craft challenging. Ocean freight has also been negatively impacted as ship line companies continue to issue blank sailings.
Outer Seaways has been receiving countless notifications from carriers and vendors regarding sailing/flight cancellations, delays and warehouse congestion as a result of the outbreak.
This is directly impacting commercial projects and operations as products and materials are not able to be delivered as needed. Also, as warehouse congestion increases, congestion surcharges may start being applied in high traffic trade areas.
Unfortunately it is uncertain how long the disruptions from the coronavirus will continue. Thus companies should plan on how to mitigate issues in their supply chains until further notice.
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Moshe Strugano (Attorney - Moshe Strugano and Co Law firm) says undoubtedly supply chain will be affected. Coronavirus has a big impact on every business.