Volkswagen Delays Reopening Production Plants Over Coronavirus, Major Auto Show Postponed

Scramble to Track Cambodia Cruise Passengers After Coronavirus Case Reported

SIHANOUKVILLE, Cambodia—Health authorities scrambled on Feb. 17 to track hundreds of passengers who disembarked from a cruise ship in Cambodia last week after a woman tested positive for coronavirus, heightening fears about the spread of the disease around the world. The new case raises questions about how companies and countries should handle monitoring and quarantine for people who may have been exposed to the new virus, since the American woman from the Westerdam cruise ship had passed the usually presumed incubation period of 14 days. Holland America Line, which is owned by cruise giant Carnival Corp., said it is working with governments and health experts to track passengers. “Guests who have already returned home will be contacted by their local health department and be provided further information,” the company said…

Volkswagen said that it has postponed the start of production at all Chinese plants that it runs in partnership with China’s SAIC, the joint venture between Volkswagen and Saic Motor Corp, due to concerns over the coronavirus outbreak.

The German carmaker, which operates 33 plants in various locations in China, on Tuesday cited “supply-chain and logistical,” issues among some of the reasons for the delay.

“We are working hard on getting back to our normal production schedule, while facing delays due to national supply chain and logistics challenges as well as limited travel options for production employees,” Nikolas Thorke, spokesman for Volkswagen’s China operation, told Deutsche Welle.

However, the company expects to resume production on Feb. 24, according to DW. Meanwhile, production at some of the plants that VW runs with the Chinese FAW Group resumed on Feb. 17, with the remaining plants expected to be back to normal operations in the coming days.

Volkswagen had initially ceased production in Chinese plants on Jan. 23 as the new coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, continues to spread throughout the country, causing havoc to both national and international businesses.

The new disease first emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late December last year, and has quickly spread to 29 countries.

Analysts at Swiss investment bank UBS said they expected car sales to halve in China in February due to ongoing fears over the virus, while a loss in production capacity of more than 20 percent is anticipated in the ongoing quarter.

Unlike Chinese and U.S. makers, German automakers have been leaders when it comes to innovation, and partnerships in China and have continued to steadily increase their market share in the East Asian country.

According to DW, China accounts for 4 out of every 10 Volkswagen cars sold worldwide and almost 3 out of every 10 BMW or Mercedes cars delivered globally.

In 2018, Volkswagen committed €15 billion ($17.6 billion) to research in China on topics such as e-mobility, connectivity, and autonomous driving, and CEO Herbert Diess said the company would be “systematically expanding its partnerships” in the country, according to CNN.

Also this week, Auto China—also known as Beijing International Automotive Exhibition and Beijing Motor Show—which is the dominant auto show held in Beijing every two years, postponed its upcoming event from April 21 to 30 this year.

In a statement organizers said the event, which typically attracts over 800,000 visitors, was postponed to “ensure the health and safety of exhibitors and participants,” but noted that it would be rescheduling in the future.

This article is from the Internet:Volkswagen Delays Reopening Production Plants Over Coronavirus, Major Auto Show Postponed

University Tells Professors to Stop Sending Students for Coronavirus Tests Over Coughing

After receiving complaints, the University of Florida (UF) has told its faculty members that they should not exclude students who may be visibly sick from class due to fears of the new coronavirus. There has been no confirmed case of the coronavirus, called COVID-19, on the UF campus that hosts some 6,000 international students, but at least one professor reportedly asked coughing and sniffing students to leave class and be tested for the virus, reflecting anxieties about the disease’s spread amid Florida’s flu season. “We are aware that some instructors have asked students who are showing visible cold- or flu-like symptoms to leave class and return with a letter from the Student Health Care Center confirming that they do not have coronavirus,” the school’s provost, Joseph Glover, wrote to deans…