Production activities of several businesses in the central coastal city of Da Nang have suffered disruption due to the recent novel coronavirus (nCoV) epidemic, with enterprises that have transactions with the Chinese market being the worst affected.

One of the firms hit by the recent changes is the Thuan Phuoc Seafood and Trading Joint Stock Company which is one of the largest exporters of seafood in Danang and employs over 2,000 workers. 

Tran Van Linh, Chairman of the company’s Board of Directors, stated that the firm’s seafood products had previously been purchased at high prices by Chinese traders. However, this has changed as a result of recent circumstances, with a slowdown in purchases leading to a plunge in the price of seafood products.

Along with this issue, a total of 20 per cent of the company's employees have yet to return to work following the Lunar New Year (Tet).

The firm’s products are exported to several markets globally such as Europe, the United States, the Republic of Korea, and Japan, he noted.

Therefore, upon the nCoV epidemic becoming more serious, the company took steps to boost market expansion and seek new partners.

In addition to this, a small quantity of the enterprise’s seafood exports to China have been consumed in the local market.

Following Tet, approximately 80,000 employees from 550 enterprises across six industrial parks in Da Nang have returned to work, with many companies being proactive in taking bold steps to combat the disease by equipping their workspace with body temperature scanners and providing free medical masks for workers.

At Ha Giang Phuoc Tuong Mechanical Joint Stock Company, all workers are now required to measure their body temperature in order to check their health condition, wash their hands regularly, and wear face masks during work hours.

Currently, approximately 130 foreign invested firms are operating in industrial zones across Da Nang, with 16 out of 39 Chinese people returning for work after Tet being put in isolation and strictly monitored for signs of the nCoV.

Pham Truong Son, Head of the management board of Da Nang High-Tech Park and Industrial Zones, said the epidemic has had a detrimental effect on the production activities of local firms due to exports to the Chinese market forced to be suspended.

In addition, businesses who purchase and import components from the northern neighbour have also suffered.

Son said the management board has focused on deploying trade promotion activities in an effort to help enterprises find new partners in fresh markets in order to make up for the loss of business from the Chinese market which has been affected by the nCoV epidemic.

He added that the management board has also worked alongside a number of potential investors to ask them to set up production establishments within the hi-tech industrial parks.