Guest Contribution: “The Impact of COVID-19 on Global Industrial Production”

Today, we are pleased to present a guest contribution by Steven Kamin (AEI), formerly Director of the Division of International Finance at the Federal Reserve Board. The views presented represent those of the authors, and not necessarily those of the institutions the authors are affiliated with.


The COVID-19 pandemic triggered the sharpest downturn in the world economy since the Great Depression.  A plethora of research has emerged to study the channels through which the pandemic has affected economic activity, using a wide range of different methodologies: production-based or computable general equilibrium (CGE) models, epidemiological models, event studies, and broader panel data analyses. But only a few of these papers (Deb et al. 2020, IMF 2020, Maloney and Taskin 2020, Furceri et al. 2021) draw on the full range of economic experiences around the world. And aside from Furceri et al. (2021), these focus mainly on daily proxies for economic activity — e.g., atmospheric emissions and cellphone-based mobility data — rather than actual production measures.

My recent research with John Kearns makes a novel contribution by analyzing the impact of pandemic variables on an actual measure of economic activity — industrial production (IP) — across a wide range of economies.  We apply our analysis to a number of critical questions: Did COVID-19 depress output mainly through lockdowns or voluntary social distancing? How did these effects differ among different economies? How large a role was played by the collapse in global trade?

We estimated panel data regressions of the monthly growth in IP on several measures of the pandemic for 58 countries between March and December 2020. The domestic pandemic measures include deaths per 1,000 of the population and a measure of the stringency of lockdown restrictions, the Oxford Stringency Index (OSI). All else equal, a rise in pandemic deaths would be expected to lower IP, both by inducing supply shortages and by prompting an increase in social distancing that leads production to be scaled back. Similarly, an increase in lockdown restrictions would also be expected to lower IP.  (To address the endogeneity of pandemic deaths and lockdown restrictions with respect to shocks to economic activity, we used a two-stage least squares procedure described in our paper.)  Finally, even countries that were not hard-hit by the virus itself might have suffered its economic fallout through the collapse in world trade; to measure this effect, we include merchandise exports in our model.

We estimated this model separately for the richest, poorest, and middle thirds of the countries in our sample (see our paper for country lists), and we found important differences in how the pandemic affected economic activity in these groups.  In the charts below, we use the estimated models to decompose the trajectory of industrial production over the course of 2020 into the contributions of the explanatory variables.

In all three country groups, but especially the poorest countries, we find that the key factor in the collapse of production last March and April was the imposition of lockdown restrictions (the purple bars). In contrast, COVID-19 deaths (the orange bars), which are often interpreted as a proxy for social distancing, accounted for only 19 percent  of last spring’s plunge in IP in the richest countries, and had no measurable impact at all in the poorer countries in our sample. This latter result seems plausible, as poor households are less likely to reduce their work unless lockdowns are imposed by the government.

Figure 1: Impact of COVID-19 on the 20 richest countries (median)

Figure 2: Impact of COVID-19 on the 18 middle-income countries (median)

Figure 3: Impact of COVID-19 on the 20 poorest countries (median)

Perhaps the most distinctive finding of our study is the outsized role played by international trade in the pandemic recession — it (the yellow bars) accounted for about a quarter of last spring’s decline in IP in the poorest countries. To be sure, the contraction in global trade was itself the outcome of pandemic effects on the economy’s trade partners — it thus represents the indirect effect, rather than the direct domestic effect, of the pandemic on the economy in question. But this does not diminish the importance of trade as a global conduit for the COVID-19 recession.

Going forward, international trade should provide some offset to the adverse effects of vaccine inequality around the world.  Although initial progress in vaccinations will be largely concentrated among the advanced economies, their recovery of income and imports will provide material support to the world’s poorest economies. That said, even in the advanced economies, economic activity will not fully — and sustainably — return to normal until most of the world has the virus under control. Accordingly, aid to the world’s poorest economies, in the form of both vaccine donations and financial support, will be imperative for economic as well as ethical reasons.

 


This post written by Steven Kamin.

47 thoughts on “Guest Contribution: “The Impact of COVID-19 on Global Industrial Production”

  1. pgl

    McConnell and McCarthy leave their meeting with Biden and here is what they seem to be telling the press:

    INFLATION! GAS Lines! The 1970’s! Well at least they refrained from calling Biden a socialist – at least for right now.

    Where did they get this garbage? If anyone watched Fox and Friends this morning – let me know if their chief economist Princeton Steve made an appearance.

    1. Barkley Rosser

      Obviously the US needs to bring back Trump who knew how to crawl on his knees before V.V. Putin. Then we will not have Russian cyberattackers taking out our pipelines.

  2. JohnH

    Stiglitz: “The scarcity of COVID-19 vaccines across the developing world is largely the result of efforts by vaccine manufacturers to maintain their monopoly control and profits. Pfizer and Moderna, the makers of the extremely effective mRNA vaccines, have refused or failed to respond to numerous requests by qualified pharmaceutical manufacturers seeking to produce their vaccines.

    “Their goal is simple: to maintain as much market power as they can for as long as possible in order to maximise profits…”

    China is about to crash the party (and reap the soft power rewards.)
    https://www.indianpunchline.com/china-on-the-horizon-as-worlds-pharmacy/

    1. Ulenspiegel

      “Stiglitz: “The scarcity of COVID-19 vaccines across the developing world is largely the result of efforts by vaccine manufacturers to maintain their monopoly control and profits.”

      This statement only tells us that Stiglitz is an economist with only shallow knowledge in the field of chemistry.

      1. pgl

        Some people think that having the recipe is all one needs. One would hope such people never run the kitchen of a good restauarant.

      2. pgl

        This is depressing. China was supposed to ship a lot of active ingredients for the Sinovac vaccine to Brazil where vaccines are really needed. But China has decided to put a hold on these exports.

        https:/www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3133285/china-export-delay-halts-sinovac-covid-19-vaccine-production

        It seems the Trumpian insults from Brazil’s dear leader directed at China has created some ill will. Come on fellows – kiss and make up so we can put ordinary citizens first.

      3. baffling

        we seem to have a pretty knowledgeable commenter by the name of alan goldhammer who provides us some occasional insight into the pharmaceutical issues related to covid. would really like to hear his thoughts on this issue of vaccine production around the world, and why it may be limited in nature. alan, are you still following the blog?

        1. pgl

          I hope you realize that this was written two years ago as a critique of Trump’s stupid trade war with China. And please try to understand this:

          That’s because the key ingredients for so many essential drugs, from antibiotics and birth control pills to treatments for cancer, depression, high cholesterol and HIV/AIDS, are purchased from China, says Rosemary Gibson, co-author with Janardan Prasad Singh of a new book called “ChinaRx: Exposing the Risks of America’s Dependence on China for Medicine.”

          The ingredients – yes. Cheap chemistry. The patented recipe is owned by multinationals in places like the US, the UK, Germany, Ireland, Switzerland. Prices for the basic ingredients is often less than 10% of the price of the patented drug. Stiglitz and Dean Baker are rightfully complaining about the high prices of the patented drug not the low cost of the basic ingredients. China is not exactly reaping huge value added from their biopharma sector. But I would say it takes a global team to fight a virus so Trump was stupid as hell to exit the WHO. I’m glad Biden reversed that awful decision.

        2. pgl

          Your link suggests we are importing a lot of pharmaceutical products from China. I checked with the trade data at Census which shows imports by nation and by product. Under (40100) Pharmaceutical preparations we do import almost $160 billion per year from all nations but our imports from China are less than $3 billion per year.

          If one is concerned about how much we import in terms of this sector, half of these imports are from either Ireland, Germany, or Switzerland.

          Of course what we do import from China are ingredients whereas what we import from Europe at the actual high priced drugs.

        3. Ulenspiegel

          “Ulenspiegel: Stiglitz may not know much about chemistry, but apparently numbers of countries, including China, have robust drug manufacturing capabilities.”

          Look, here the issue is that many countries have indeed large drug/vaccine manufacturing capabilities. The devile, however, is in the detail, the type of vaccine is different and the very good mRNA vaccines cannot produced there….

          1. pgl

            JohnH has set up a production facility in a sand box in his backyard. Warning – do not risk your life with the untested garbage he is producing.

          2. pgl

            I was writing something on transfer pricing for the pharmaceutical sector (the masters of tax evasion) and wanted to cite Brad Setser who had written a post over at Follow the Money when I noticed a link to his Feb. 2020 testimony to a House Ways and Means subcommittee. Interesting stuff including his mentioning we rely on production facilities in places like Ireland and Switzerland (which I knew) AND Singapore (which was news to me). So I checked the trade data at Census and Brad is correct. We import about $6 billion in pharma goods from Singapore each year. Not so much from China.

            Lessons learned: (1) never trust anything claimed by the clueless wonder JohnH (but you knew that already); and (2) never doubt what Brad Setser says.

  3. Barkley Rosser

    As a ccomment on the post itself, that it shows the important role of the delcine in international trade in all this shows the importance of the collapse of global shipping in all this due to the pandemic, with this a crucial element in a lot of the price rises we are seeing, if not particular the east coast rise in gasoline prices due to the closure of the Colonial Pipleline thanks to Russian cyberhackers.

    1. pgl

      Colonial Pipleline is down because of Russian cyberhackers? Wait – the GOP leadership wants to blame Biden’s progressive agenda for high gasoline prices. Are you trying to tell me it was due to Trump’s incompetence dealing with the Russians?

      1. Jake formerly of the LP

        And Trump’s refusal to shore up cybersecurity. Especially against the Russians.

        Feels like we’ll see another leg up for IP as well as manufacturing and construction after the oddly lousy job numbers in those sectors for April. Although the chip shortage and other supply issues may limit it for a bit.

      2. Barkley Rosser

        No, pgl, Putin held them back when Tramp was in power. Now he has sent a message to Biden to be a good boy before the summit, although FBI now saying no evidence of Russian govt behind this, although apparently the ransomware is in Russia.

        As it is, Colonial Pipeline supposedly getting started back up again, although it will be several days before things return to “normal,” enough time for Trampists to holler and scream about how Biden has brought about lines in gas stations and a hyperinflation due to its shutting down. If only he could keep all those Russians happy.

        1. pgl

          I hear some idiots were using plastic bags as gasoline containers. I bet there were also wearing MAGA hats and they used bleach to fight off the virus!

      3. Bruce Hall

        The Colonial Pipeline, which delivers about 45% of the fuel consumed on the East Coast, was hit Friday with a cyberattack by hackers who lock up computer systems and demand a ransom to release them. The hackers didn’t take control of the pipeline operations, but Colonial shut the pipeline down to contain the damage.
        https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2021-05-12/colonial-pipeline-restarts-operations-days-after-major-hack

        A couple of things:
        1. The hackers may or may not have been Russian and it may or may not have been a government behind the hack
        https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/colonial-pipeline-paid-hackers-nearly-245-million-in-ransom-sources-say/ar-BB1gHxAj
        2. Despite what Jennifer Granholm said about pipelines being the best transportation method for oil/natural gas/gasoline/propane, the Biden administration is balls to the wall about closing down pipelines and oil exploration. This closure, after the Keystone permit revocation, may have been a wakeup call, but more than likely is seen as a nuisance by the super-greens in the administration. Why are people lining up at the gas pumps instead of at Tesla dealerships?

        If the Biden administration is worried about energy infrastructure vulnerabilities, wait until electricity generation becomes the target, especially with the expansion of offshore wind turbines and the new power transmission lines that will be needed for such wind and solar arrays. Oh, I bet the folks at Martha’s Vineyard are thrilled. They fought this for decades. No problem protecting those from external attacks.

        The Vineyard Wind project, it said, was expected to generate 3,600 jobs and “provide enough power for 400,000 homes and businesses.”

        Vineyard Wind is a 50-50 joint venture between Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners and Avangrid Renewables. The latter is a subsidiary of Avangrid, which is part of the Iberdrola Group, a major utility headquartered in Spain.
        Wait, why isn’t this a U.S. company project?
        https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/12/us-gives-go-ahead-for-first-major-offshore-wind-farm-.html

        Meanwhile, the administration is unconcerned about the talk of inflation which was highlighted by the spike in gasoline prices along the east coast.
        https://babylonbee.com/news/psaki-reassures-inflation-completely-under-control-outside-of-food-gas-and-housing/

        1. 2slugbaits

          Bruce Hall Your second point is a complete muddle. Think it through. The Biden Administration didn’t kill the Keystone pipeline because they thought it was vulnerable to computer hackers; they killed it because of what the pipeline would have carried. You don’t build dirty and leaky white elephants when you’re trying to encourage greener energy sources. As to the electric grid, maybe you didn’t get the memo, but a big junk of Biden’s AJP is to rebuild the electric grid. And by the way, Spain is the leader in the production of wind turbines. Why should this be a US company project? Are you a 17th century mercantilist?

          As to inflation, it’s not just the Administration that’s unconcerned about inflation; the bond markets are also unconcerned. Anyone with half a brain understands (and expected) a transient spike in observed inflation. And in case you didn’t know this, the April inflation numbers did not include the gas price hikes due to the hacker engineered shortage. You really need to turn off Fox Noise. Fox Noise makes you stoopid.

          1. pgl

            Bruce must be the dumbest mercantilist ever then. Yea – the multinational is located in Spain but the employees will be American workers. Of course the technology is European not American but I have to wonder if Bruce even knows where GE makes those state of the art wind turbines which are being used on even UK projects. Let’s check:

            https://www.ge.com/renewableenergy/wind-energy/offshore-wind/haliade-x-offshore-turbine

            Made in France not Spain. Yea Bruce Hall must have learned his mercantilism in the 17th century as he clearly does not know what a multinational is.

        2. pgl

          You really outdid yourself for writing a parade of BS here. It sounds like you are working with the Russians to shut down energy production here. Did Darkside give you a commission on their $5 million. So much of your usual intellectual garbage to unpack, let me focus on just one of these pathetic paragraphs:

          “Despite what Jennifer Granholm said about pipelines being the best transportation method for oil/natural gas/gasoline/propane, the Biden administration is balls to the wall about closing down pipelines and oil exploration. This closure, after the Keystone permit revocation, may have been a wakeup call, but more than likely is seen as a nuisance by the super-greens in the administration. Why are people lining up at the gas pumps instead of at Tesla dealerships?:”

          I get you hate the fact that your former governor did not let you infect other members of your state with the virus so I get why you had to be pissed she was appointed energy secretary but how else would you efficiently transport natural gas? Oh wait – you were one of those fools carrying gasoline in plastic bags. Got it! But I guess you did not know that a lot of people in the South still drive traditional cars and trucks. I would have thought a village idiot like you would know they do not run on electricity. But maybe not.

        3. pgl

          “If the Biden administration is worried about energy infrastructure vulnerabilities, wait until electricity generation becomes the target, especially with the expansion of offshore wind turbines and the new power transmission lines that will be needed for such wind and solar arrays. Oh, I bet the folks at Martha’s Vineyard are thrilled.”

          Damn – this is really stupid. Do you even have a clue what ransomware even is. It would not make wind turbines vulnerable – even though anything that requires computers and the internet might be vulnerable IF and ONLY if the JV was run by the mental retards in the Trump White House who did not take cybersecurity seriously. Of course they did not hire our favorite village idiot to run security so now that you are not involved – I’m sure they will be OK.

        4. pgl

          “why isn’t this a U.S. company project?”

          Gee you managed to figure out that this is being managed by a Spanish group but I guess you skipped the 2nd bullet of your own link.

          ‘The U.S. still, however, has a ways to go before it catches up with more mature markets, such as the one found in Europe.’

          This is why I call you Bruce “no relationship to Robert” Hall. The Spanish group has the technical expertise that we have yet to develop. Good God Bruce – I guess you would just started wind mills that did work. And I guess MAGA hat wearing fools like you is why Trump never got anything right!

        5. pgl

          “Meanwhile, the administration is unconcerned about the talk of inflation which was highlighted by the spike in gasoline prices along the east coast.”

          One would have to be a complete fool to confuse one-time spikes in one commodity from a short-term issue with general inflation but we have seen a lot of absolute fools saying some incredibly stupid things. So I figured Bruce Hall would join that chorus – and he lived up to expectations!

        6. pgl

          I have an American company for Bruce to check out. It is called General Electric which BTW is one of those multinationals. Now I get I just went over this 17th century’s limited brain but it seems GE is bragging about its new state of the arts wind turbines which was not only the rage in the US Northeast but also in Europe:

          https://www.ge.com/renewableenergy/en/us/northeast-offshore-wind

          The installation of these wind turbines in the US Northeast will require American workers and will serve American customers. But of course MAGA hat wearing America First morons like Bruce Hall are opposed to this because GE makes the wind turbines in France.

        7. baffling

          bruce hall, i simply do not understand your animosity toward renewable energy. renewable energy will result in cheaper energy, which is good for the nation. why do you continue to promote a world view with expensive and dirty energy sources? rather strange way of thinking, bruce.

          all you inflationistas have yet to give me an adequate answer on what level of sustained inflation will be considered problematic? 3%? 4%? 6%? 8%? instead of arguing about hypotheticals, lets get your exact concern in writing-mostly so it can be ridiculed later. are you really worried about inflation at 3 or 4%? if so, why? and if it is really 6% that concerns you, explain to me exactly why you expect inflation to be sustained at 6%? inquiring minds want to know.

  4. ltr

    https://news.cgtn.com/news/2021-02-26/Why-the-U-S-should-pursue-cooperation-with-China-YbQrkKwDy8/index.html

    February 26, 2021

    Why the U.S. should pursue cooperation with China
    By Jeffrey D. Sachs

    American foreign policy since World War Two has been based on a simple idea, perhaps best expressed by President George W. Bush after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks: Either you are with us or against us. America should lead, allies should follow, and woe be to countries that oppose its primacy.

    The idea was both simple and simplistic. And now it is antiquated: The United States faces no implacable foes, no longer leads an overpowering alliance, and has far more to gain from cooperation with China and other countries than from confrontation.

    Former President Donald Trump was a grotesque caricature of U.S. leadership. He hurled insults, threats, unilateral tariffs, and financial sanctions to try to force other countries to submit to his policies. He ripped up the multilateral rule book. Yet Trump’s foreign policy faced remarkably little pushback inside the U.S. There was more consensus than opposition to Trump’s anti-China policies, and little resistance to his sanctions on Iran and Venezuela, despite their catastrophic humanitarian consequences.

    President Joe Biden’s foreign policy is a godsend in comparison. Already, the U.S. has rejoined the Paris climate agreement and the World Health Organization, and is seeking to return to the United Nations Human Rights Council, and promises to rejoin the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran. These are hugely positive and admirable steps. Yet Biden’s early foreign policy pronouncements vis-à-vis China and U.S. leadership are problematic.

    Biden’s recent address to the Munich Security Conference is a good window into his administration’s thinking in these early days. There are three causes for concern.

    First, there is the rather naive idea that “America is back” as world leader. The U.S. is only now returning to multilateralism, has utterly botched the COVID-19 pandemic, and until January 20 was actively working against the mitigation of climate change. It still must heal the many deep wounds left by Trump, not least the insurrection of January 6, and address why 75 million Americans voted for him last November. That means reckoning with the hefty dose of white supremacist culture animating much of today’s Republican Party.

    Second, “The partnership between Europe and the United States,” Biden declared, “is and must remain the cornerstone of all that we hope to accomplish in the twenty-first century, just as we did in the twentieth century.” Really? I am an Europhile and strong supporter of the European Union, but the U.S. and the EU account for just 10 percent of humanity (NATO members account for 12 percent).

    The transatlantic alliance cannot and should not be the cornerstone “for all we hope to accomplish” in this century; it is but one important and positive building block. We need shared global stewardship by all parts of the world, not by the North Atlantic or any other region alone. For much of the world, the North Atlantic has an enduring association with racism and imperialism, an association stirred by Trump.

    Third, Biden claims the world is engaged in a great ideological struggle between democracy and autocracy. “We’re at an inflection point between those who argue that, given all the challenges we face – from the fourth industrial revolution to a global pandemic – that autocracy is the best way forward…and those who understand that democracy is essential…to meeting those challenges.”

    Given this alleged ideological battle between democracy and autocracy, Biden declared that “we must prepare together for a long-term strategic competition with China,” adding that this competition is “welcome, because I believe in the global system Europe and the United States, together with our allies in the Indo-Pacific, worked so hard to build over the last 70 years.”

    The U.S. may view itself as being in a long-term ideological struggle with China, but the feeling is not mutual. American conservatives’ insistence that China is out to rule the world has come to underpin a bipartisan consensus in Washington. But China’s goal is neither to prove that autocracy outperforms democracy, nor to “erode American security and prosperity,” as the 2017 U.S. National Security Strategy asserts.

    Consider Chinese President Xi Jinping’s speech at the World Economic Forum in January. Xi did not talk about the advantages of autocracy, or the failures of democracy, or the great struggle between political systems. Instead, Xi conveyed a message based on multilateralism to address shared global challenges, identifying “four major tasks.”

    Xi called on the world’s leaders to “step up macroeconomic policy coordination and jointly promote strong, sustainable, balanced, and inclusive growth of the world economy.” He also urged them “to abandon ideological prejudice and jointly follow a path of peaceful coexistence, mutual benefit, and win-win cooperation.” Third, they must “close the divide between developed and developing countries and jointly bring about growth and prosperity for all.” Lastly, they should “come together against global challenges and jointly create a better future for humanity.”

    Xi stated that the path to global cooperation requires remaining “committed to openness and inclusiveness,” as well as “to international law and international rules” and “to consultation and cooperation.” He declared the importance of “keeping up with the times instead of rejecting change.”

    Biden’s foreign policy with China should begin with a search for cooperation rather than a presumption of conflict. Xi has pledged that China will “take an active part in international cooperation on COVID-19,” continue to open up to the world, and promote sustainable development and “a new type of international relations.” U.S. diplomacy would be wise to aim for engagement with China in these areas. Today’s hostile rhetoric risks creating a self-fulfilling prophecy….

    Jeffrey D. Sachs, professor of Sustainable Development and professor of Health Policy and Management at Columbia University, is the director of Columbia’s Center for Sustainable Development.

  5. ltr

    http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2021-05/12/c_139941072.htm

    May 12, 2021

    Over 342 mln COVID-19 vaccine doses administered across China

    BEIJING — More than 342.69 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines had been administered across China as of Tuesday, the National Health Commission said Wednesday.

    [ COVID-19 has been controlled in China these 12 months or since May 2020. Chinese developed COVID-19 vaccines are in addition already being administered in dozens of countries as public goods, from Morocco to Serbia to Indonesia to Turkey…. The vaccines are already being produced in several countries, from Egypt to Pakistan…. ]

    1. pgl

      China was supposed to ship its vaccine to Brazil as well but alas have decided to hold up the shipments.

    2. baffling

      https://apnews.com/article/china-gao-fu-vaccines-offer-low-protection-coronavirus-675bcb6b5710c7329823148ffbff6ef9
      ““We will solve the issue that current vaccines don’t have very high protection rates,” Gao said in a presentation on Chinese COVID-19 vaccines and immunization strategies at a conference in the southwestern city of Chengdu.”
      while it is great that china has administered millions of doses, it should not be forgotten the efficacy of those chinese vaccines is not really good. better than nothing, sure, but this means that countries that are majority vaccinated by the chinese vaccines will have to deal with a lingering covid19 problem for quite some time. it will not be eradicated, only reduced.

    1. ltr

      https://news.cgtn.com/news/2021-05-09/China-provides-vaccines-to-over-100-countries-intl-organizations–107hwRi941W/index.html

      May 9, 2021

      China provides homemade vaccines to over 100 countries, intl organizations
      By Dai Kaiyi

      The World Health Organization granted emergency approval for China’s Sinopharm vaccine for COVID-19 on Friday, which came as China provides vaccines to more than 100 countries and international organizations amid a resurgence in COVID-19 outbreaks around the world.

      Countries including Pakistan, Myanmar and Hungary are among the latest to receive vaccines from China. As the first EU member state to buy and authorize the use of Chinese vaccines in February, Hungary announced on April 29 that it has received over 2 million doses of vaccine shipments  as part of a contract for 5 million doses the country will import from China.

      Meanwhile, several leaders have also taken Chinese vaccines. Aside from Hungarian President Janos Ader and Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the presidents of Turkey, Indonesia and Serbia also got jabs.

      After receiving the second dose of the Sinopharm vaccine, President of the Republic of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic publicly expressed his gratitude to China and the Chinese people for their enormous support and help and the vast quantity of vaccines received.

      “We hope that we will also improve cooperation on vaccine manufacturing, as well as in genetic sequencing,” Vucic said….

      1. Jacques

        Who pays for your pro-China propaganda? The Communist Party directly or through some go-between?

        1. pgl

          I love the fact that anne (aka ltr) counts number of doses without a single recognition of efficacy. It strikes me that she has adopted Trumpian standards.

  6. ltr

    https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/13/world/asia/covid19-india-nepal-bangladesh-sri-lanka.html

    May 13, 2021

    As India’s Covid Crisis Rages, Its Neighbors Brace for the Worst
    Vaccine shortages, porous borders and fleeing migrant workers have nearby countries fearing that they will share India’s fate.
    By Bhadra Sharma, Aanya Wipulasena and Vivian Wang

    KATHMANDU, Nepal — Most of Nepal is under lockdown, its hospitals overwhelmed. Bangladesh suspended vaccination sign-ups after promised supplies were cut off. Sri Lanka’s hopes of a tourism-led economic revival have collapsed.

    As India battles a horrific surge of the coronavirus, the effects have spilled over to its neighbors. Most nearby countries have sealed their borders. Several that had been counting on Indian-made vaccines are pleading with China and Russia instead….

    1. ltr

      Clarifying:

      Over 366 million COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered in China so far.

  7. ltr

    As for the safety and efficacy of the administered Chinese vaccines, I would think that 366 million doses safely administered since July 2020, in a country that has controlled the coronavirus all the while, would tell us that the vaccines are as effective as could have been hoped for by the creators and expected by any recipient. I really do admire having protected so many people for so long.

    What a Chinese vaccine has meant in Brazil:

    https://www.wsj.com/articles/brazilian-towns-mass-vaccination-creates-oasis-of-well-being-11620392401

    May 7, 2021

    A Small Brazilian Town Is Beating Covid-19 Through a Unique Experiment
    Serrana starts to return to normal as the pandemic continues to rage across the rest of the country
    By Samantha Pearson and Luciana Magalhaes – Wall Street Journal
    Photographs by Tommaso Protti

    http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2021-05/13/c_139943182.htm

    May 13, 2021

    Brazilian town proud of having mass immunization with China’s Sinovac vaccine

    SERRANA, Brazil — The small Brazilian town of Serrana, with a population of some 50,000, has been proud of undertaking a mass immunization campaign with the Chinese-made vaccine, according to Serrana Mayor Leonardo Capitelli….

  8. ltr

    As for Chinese coronavirus protections and vaccines, an important further sense of effectiveness will be known in these few days since there as just a small outbreak of infections. Testing, contact tracing and quarantine are being used as always with vaccine administration added. There are now 5 approved Chinese vaccines, with more to come. Overall more than 380 million doses have been administered, with an addition of 11 to 13 million to be expected daily.

    There is significant concern through Asia now.

Comments are closed.