CAIT assess impact of corona pandemic on Indian trade and industry

New Delhi : The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) on Friday organised a national seminar on the impact of COVID-19 on the Indian trade and industry. The brainstorming session of leaders from various industry sectors assessed the pandemic’s impact as India falls under the 15 most-affected economies due to the pandemic.

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) earlier stated that the slowdown of manufacturing in China due to the coronavirus pandemic is disrupting world trade which is resulting in a decrease in exports across the globe. Besides the horrifying effects on human life, the pandemic also has the potential to significantly slowdown the global economy. “As China has become the central manufacturing hub of many global business operations. Any disruption of China’s output is expected to have repercussions elsewhere through regional and global value chains,” said UNCTAD.

Praveen Khandelwal, CAIT Secretary General said that stock markets across the world including India have gone down by 30-40% over the last three weeks and some prominent markets recorded their highest single-day crashes. To contain the pandemic, Chinese authorities locked down cities and suspended business operations, he added. Therefore, there is a need to assess the impact of the pandemic on trade, services and small industries sector and recommend the government for suitable measures that keep the supply chain uninterrupted and growth in domestic production, the secretary general concluded.

The key issues include a considerable impact on domestic trade and industry. As India is dependant upon China for various products. Production loss in China will affect India’s domestic trade and small industry.