Chipmakers, mobile phone makers, cars and electronics makers have all shut down their services in Shenzhen as China imposed a locked-down on the world's second-largest "Silicon Valley" and fourth-largest port as COVID-19 cases continue to surge within the region. Shenzhen, a Chinese city and a major tech hub with a population of over 17.5 million has been locked down, residents have been ordered not to leave unless necessary and public transport has been halted as the country battles its worst outbreak in two years.
The lockdown which was announced on Sunday, March 14 will last for at least 7 days and all non-essential workers have been are ordered to stay home, all adults in the city must undergo three PCR tests in the coming days. This will be the first time China has sealed off an entire province since the area surrounding Wuhan was isolated in early 2020.
Aside from residents, the southern city which borders Hong Kong is home to Foxconn, one of Apple's biggest suppliers, and other Chinese tech giants like Tencent (TCEHY) and Huawei. The city is also home to one of the world's largest container ports, the Yantian port.
While reacting to the lockdown Imposed, Foxconn, said it was halting operations at its Shenzhen sites, one of which makes iPhones, and would reallocate production to other plants in the country.
Others like Unimicron Technology Corp, a printed-circuit-board maker with operations in Shenzhen, also suspended output. Car and battery maker BYD Co. said it’s seeing some impact on production at its Shenzhen campus.
As it stands now, whether it is iPhones, cars or electronics, the subsequent lockdown of the Yantian port will cause shipping delays across a wide range of products and continue to harm supply chains that have experienced issues since the pandemic began.
