chamber said. It said supply chains from the
United States are suffering the second-biggest
disruption after those in China.
Just over half the 237 companies surveyed
were American and three-quarters were
manufacturers. All reported “some impact” due
to supply disruptions due to the outbreak.
“Many of the companies reported a great deal
of their needed items regularly being shipped
from Japan, South Korea, Italy and the U.S. —
countries which are now under pressure from
the outbreak,” said the chamber report.
Economists who have slashed forecasts of this
year’s global economic growth cite disruption to
Chinese and U.S. manufacturing as one reason.
The predicament highlights the risks of
manufacturing strategies that cut costs by using
far-flung networks of suppliers and factories
across multiple countries.
Smartphone brands likely will be hard-hit due
to their reliance on Chinese assembly and
fragmented groups of components suppliers,
according to IDC.
Germany, Japan and South Korea also supply
microprocessors and other smartphone
components, but the most advanced chip
producers are American.
“The pessimistic scenario sees supply
disruptions lingering throughout the year,” IDC
researchers said in a report. If that happens, “the
industry is permanently reshaped” once it starts
to recover next year or in 2022.
Huawei Technologies Ltd., a Chinese maker
of smartphones and network equipment, has
said it expects no change in its supply chain
in the next three to six months. The company