Dr. Steve Wong 黃楚祺博士
11/10/2022
As the post COVID19 effect sweeps across the globe, threatening the health of billions of people, it is heartbreaking for many to see their friends and relatives die from the infection. It has also led to the closure of many businesses. Many working-class individuals, whether they hold senior or junior positions or their tenure at the employer, have to quit their jobs to retire or find a new job during this period. Part of the unemployed may come from structural changes in their industries and need further training to adapt to new positions in another sector.
The COVID 19 pandemic has changed people’s habits. Self-isolation to protect oneself has adapted many to work from home, and the management have noticed that working from home has had little impact on the employee’s efficiency. An estimated 80 per cent of office workers in the U.S. and Europe are working from home and communicating with clients and others through virtual meetings. This new working trend has led to an increase in the demand for IT staff, while on the other hand, there is a decrease in the need for office and residential space in top business cities such as New York and London. It is a typical case of an industry reshuffle.
Tourism, airlines and hotels are the industries that will benefit the most after the COVID epidemic ends, as most people cannot travel during this period. However, after lifting the epidemic prevention and control measures, a large influx of people will start to travel, resulting in high demand for air tickets and hotel rooms. For example, round trip airfare from Los Angeles to Hong Kong rose to as much as US $12,000 when Hong Kong lifted its quarantine requirements. I can feel this impact on my current business travels, including Asia and Europe, with flight and hotel booking problems in many destinations and much higher rates. This pent-up demand is likely to last for some time.
Many countries have experienced supply chain disruptions during the epidemic, mainly because the processing and production of many semi-finished and finished products rely on mainland China and Southeast Asia. The paralysis of shipping and logistics has resulted in the delay in the timely delivery of medical and consumer products to their destinations. The lessons learned have changed the concept of globalization in many countries. They have realized the need for localization and
automation in producing strategic supplies such as semiconductors, rare earth materials, medical products and drugs. Emphasis is now placed on self-defense, innovative production and sustainable development, thus reducing import dependence and overseas factories are encouraged to move back home.