(Zaman Al Wasl)- Coronavirus will have a major impact on the Syrian economy amid cut in the Chinese production and exports, according to Syrian business portal.
Majed Sharaf, the director of Al Joudeh Group for Studies and Consultation, told Al-Iqtisadi that the Syrian economy may witness a 50% decline, if the Chinese isolation measures to limit the spread of the virus, are maintained for 3 months, with Chinese products contributing to more than 60% of the Syrian market.
If the situation on China continues, the symptoms of recession in Syria may come to light in about a month. The markets will witness an inflation in Chinese products that currently dominate the market, be it electrical tools or electronics and all other commodities.
“At a governmental level, the repercussions of the Corona crisis will be more intense. If there are signed tenders, the deliveries will certainly be at a risk of delay, which would cause great losses to Syria.”
Corona crisis came as Syrian business associations affected by the falling Syrian pound value.
The Syrian pound started 2019 at around S£500 to the dollar, but started to spiral downwards in the autumn and in recent weeks has crashed below S£1,000, accoridng to Financial Times.
Joseph Daher, a Syrian-Swiss economis told Financial Times that the pound’s decline highlights the vulnerability of Syrian markets to shocks, notably the worsening banking crisis and dollar shortage in neighbouring Lebanon which has disrupted Syrian imports, strangled remittances from Syrian refugees and sparked panic in Syrian foreign exchange markets.
China's central bank last Sunday said it would pump 1.2 trillion yuan ($173 bln) into the economy as it ramps up support for a nationwide fight against a deadly virus that is expected to hit growth, according to AFP.
The virus has now infected over 34,546 people in China and claimed over 722 lives.
China's central bank urged financial institutions to provide "sufficient credit resources" to hospitals and other medical organisations, among other measures.
The move to inject liquidity into its financial system comes as the virus threatens to take a toll on an already slowing economy.
China saw economic growth of 6.1 percent last year, the slowest in around three decades. Analysts are warning this could weaken further if the spread of the SARS-like virus goes on for an extended period.
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