Question

After corona effects on

1.Infrastructure

2.Transport

3.Business

3.Tech companies.

Consider various news sites analyse and then answer.But do not copy directly.Use only facts from International news sites.Write in your own words.Thank you.

Answer 1

1. Infrastructure :

The recent and on-going pandemic has disruptions in supply chains, cancellations of events and a near complete standstill in mass transit as more and more people adopt social-distancing norms. Most countries' infrastructure was just not prepared for this kind of an emergency/disaster that involves most to all people on the planet. As schools, offices, religious locations and mass gathering sites are closed (some indefinitely) most types of infrastructure are left unused and un-needed. Telecommunications and internet services have largely held up to this disruption even with most countries having additional burden placed on them as people stayed indoors and increased their usage of communication channels such as landlines, mobile phones, broadband etc. to continue to conduct business, keep in touch with families and to stay up to date on the pandemic's affects in their locations. And this is only for those who are lucky enough to have access to these services, as there are still locations in the world that do not have uninterrupted connectivity. The recent years trend to build bigger malls, hospitals, super markets etc. means that now people afraid of crowds are likely to avoid these entirely. Smaller options such as a local grocery store, smaller clinics and individual restaurants or drive-thrus might be more in demand until the fear of catching a deadly virus goes away. Infrastructure that is designed by definition to facilitate daily functions has not made any provisions for an outbreak such as this showing a gap in the planning and strategy of the city planners.  

(Tonar, Talton, 2020)

Infrastructure design should start to incorporate unusual possibilities such as this pandemic to create more/better solutions for all situations.

2. Transport :

This outbreak has also caused a change in the modes of transportation that are preferred these days, as most people choose personal transport over public (if possible). This means more people will use their own vehicles to go anywhere, however this can be a real issue in cities like New York which has a well-connected and extensive metro system but fewer car parks as they did not anticipate the current situation. The lack of parking places, previously not viewed as an issue, will likely remain a problem until the pandemic is completely resolved, and even then residual fear might cause people to avoid mass transit options such as buses, trains, airports, metro systems etc.

Another reason people might avoid airports is the recent trend to build larger and larger international airports that connect multiple cities and countries. These are likely to be eschewed in favour of smaller domestic airports even by carriers that are transporting essential goods/cargo etc., as a way of limiting contact. Airlines as a whole are likely to need a bail-out from governments to be able to resume services (Booth, Rosenbaum, 2020).

(Tonar, Talton, 2020)

Transportation as a whole is likely to be under-utilised this year as people will probably continue to social distance for many more months to come.

3. Business

The pandemic has led to global supply chain disruptions causing near halt to most businesses. Large firms now expect that business might not return to normal for as long as 6 months after the outbreak is under control. Currently all economic issues are being driven by public-health focus as people around the world practice social-distancing. Business for essential goods might still not see too much disruption as governments around the world strive to ensure these commodities are available for the citizens staying in. Some businesses like GM and Tesla have decided to join the effort to resolve the pandemic by reworking their factoring to produce essential medical gear such as ventilators. Clothing brand Hanes is looking to move some of its manufacturing plants to producing masks instead. The disruption/halt to business of luxury goods (production and sale) means that this inventory will need to be held until the economy is back up and running enough for people to start venturing into buying non-essential goods. Overall, business might take a big hit this year and look to regain losses only next year onwards.

(Booth, Rosenbaum, 2020)

4. Tech companies

Unlike traditional business which has been crippled by the pandemic, big tech firms are able to hold steady for now. As more and more people use online and digital technologies to keep in touch with the rest of the world, the volume of transactions in social media, digital calling, home delivery etc. have surged leading to more people being needed to help manage this sudden increased. Amazon has said it will need to hire more workers as online sales increase exponentially. As more people use technology for more tasks the reliance on technology could relate to a new trend even post the pandemic. As more people are able to work from home in this industry, the trend to hire more remote workers could grow and enable firms to save money on office space. The increased dependence on home delivery could mean that people now start to prefer the convenience of online shopping more than actually going to a store. On the other end, there are firms that will likely see lower revenues due to this outbreak. Apple and MicroSoft have both reduced their revenue forecasts as they expect fewer people to buy new phones and computers in the wake of the outbreak - prioritising essential goods at this time. Overall, the global technology industry will suffer due to the outbreak but perhaps not as much as the other areas, and the new emerging trends of customer behaviour and buying habits, use of technology in other arenas such as education and learning, could end up being very profitable and in the end make this industry finish the year stronger.

(Wakabayashi et al, 2020)

References :

Booth, Barbara., Rosenbaum, Eric (2020) Coronavirus impact: Once pandemic ends, businesses may take 6 months to get up and running normally, says CFO survey. CNBC.

Tonar, Remington., Talton, Ellis (2020) Coronavirus Forces Us To Rethink Infrastructure For An Age Of Biological Risk. Forbes Media.

Wakabaashi, Daisuke., Nicas, Jack., Lohr, Steve., Isaac, Mike (2020) Big Tech Could Emerge From Coronavirus Crisis Stronger Than Ever. NY Times.