What if the resurgence of COVID-19 in China delays the commercialization of computers?


Thibaut Popelier

Gaming Specialist

December 21, 2022 at 5:00 p.m.

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macbook air m2

COVID-19 could once again play the spoilsport in the coming months. Indeed, Chinese factories are finding themselves in difficulty, since many workers have recently stayed at home because of the famous pandemic.

Thus, some computers eagerly awaited and requested by consumers may well not be delivered on time.

Can the specter of scarcity reappear?

Restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic are beginning to be lifted in China. The Beijing government has been forced to loosen the screws to revive its economy while calming popular discontent over its highly decried coercive measures. If this renewed freedom is undoubtedly appreciated in this country with a very harsh regime, it unfortunately already has tangible consequences.

According to DigiTimes, a labor shortage has been affecting China for several days. Several local factories have seen up to 50% of their workers absent for reasons related to the pandemic which seems to be experiencing a strong resurgence in the country. In this report, we also learn that between 10 to 15% of absentees could be infected. The other part would include people who would prefer to stay at home for fear of getting sick.

A new blow for the big brands

As we know, almost all the assembly plants for our connected devices are in China. As a result, the major brands risk suffering from this high rate of absenteeism. Delays in the shipment of the latest PCs and laptops could therefore arrive in the near future. A worsening of the situation is possibly expected following the Lunar New Year (January 22), since these festivities risk leading to large-scale contamination.

But at present, there is no danger in delay. The major laptop manufacturers (Compal, Inventec, Quanta or Wistron) announce that they are not worried. Indeed, they do not expect a strong demand in the first quarter of 2023, and sufficient stocks of components would have been made lately. On the other hand, if COVID-19 were to do its thing again at the start of the year, brands could end up deciding to delay the launch of their new devices. So, if the shortage is not there yet, its shadow does indeed hovers on the horizon.

Source : Tom’s Hardware



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