Coronavirus Update, 6th May 2020
The global spread of coronavirus disease, which is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has been scaling up concerns among governments across many countries as they continue to struggle to flatten the exponential growth curve despite imposing lockdowns and enforcing stringent social distancing regulations.
Clearly, the pandemic has not peaked yet while the number of deaths reported to the WHO has already crossed 274,488 (as at 6:37 pm CEST, 10 May, 2020). Since extensive social distancing is not being practiced in most of the countries, the time-to-peak for the pandemic is still uncertain. On the other front, the slump in global economic growth is weakening many countries’ efforts to fight the virus. Countrywide lockdowns, which include restrictions on movement of people and on economic activities across sectors, might translate into a shrink of around 1% in the global GDP for the year 2020 (Source: The United Nations) if they continue throughout the second quarter. The GDP could shrink further if the restrictions pertaining to economic activities extend till third quarter and if the fiscal responses prove ineffective in supporting income and consumer spending. Rising unemployment across the globe is transforming shocks on the supply side to higher-intensity shocks on the demand side. Since this, if continues, could push a significant proportion of global population into poverty and worsen already high levels of income inequality across countries, governments are planning on easing lockdown restrictions in order to restore economic growth by allowing industrial activity. However, very high risk of increase in rate of disease spread associated with this move remains a big concern for the governments, and thus, has been pushing them to catalyse the process of drug discovery and development. Although the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has already issued emergency use authorizations for hydroxychloroquine sulfate, chloroquine phosphate and for the investigational antiviral remdesivir by Gilead Science, Inc., there are no FDA-approved drugs or vaccines for COVID-19 in the market. With support from governments, companies are making huge investments into research and development in order to gain competitive advantage in this race for drug development. Since some research in immunology indicates towards the possibility of a vaccine for COVID-19 already in existence, many research universities and clinical centers across the globe are focusing their efforts to test the efficacy of candidates. Bacillus Calmette–Guérin, a live tuberculosis vaccine which has been in use for around 100 years, is one such candidate, and is gaining researchers’ attention as they believe this vaccine could prove effective in minimizing the risk of contracting the coronavirus disease. O.P.V, a vaccine for polio, is also being tested as a potential vaccine for fighting COVID-19 pandemic. Although this theory sounds counterintuitive, as these vaccines were developed to protect against an entirely different pathogen, and this is not how vaccines are believed to work, researchers’ understanding of innate immunity, an arm of immunology, makes these vaccines potential candidates in this race. Apart from these vaccines, more than 100 candidates are at various stages of development across laboratories worldwide. Pfizer Inc., for instance, is working with BioNTech SE on four vaccine candidates, each of which represents a different mRNA format and target antigen. While two of these vaccine candidates use a nucleoside modified mRNA (modRNA), the third and the fourth candidate leverages a uridine containing mRNA (uRNA) and a self-amplifying mRNA (saRNA) respectively. After starting phase 1/2 clinical trial in Germany, the companies have started Phase 1/2 trials in the United States as well. Novel approach of these companies, which allows them to assess different mRNA candidates simultaneously, and determine the safest and most effective candidate for COVID-19, has made them one of the few frontrunners in this race for cure. Moderna, Inc., another biotechnology company based in the United States, also has a promising vaccine in development. In April, 2020, the company snared a US$483 million funding from the U.S. government which was aimed at catalysing the process of drug development for COVID-19. The company has received approval from the FDA to begin phase 2 clinical trials for its vaccine candidate and has plans to start phase 3 trials very soon. Although Sinovac Biotech is struggling to find subjects to conduct phase 1 and phase 2 trials on, since China managed to contain the spread while development of this vaccine was still at phase 1, it is in talks with the WHO and regulators in many countries to get approval for conducting clinical trial in countries with rising number of cases, and is thus another leading player with a promising vaccine in pipeline.
However, despite combined and focused efforts by many companies and governments, aimed at catalysing the process of drug development, a cure is somewhat unlikely to enter the market in the very near future. Yet, some vaccine candidates have better chances of early entry into the market than many others. Oxford University, for instance, seems to be leveraging the head start it got by already having a vaccine candidate at hand. Since researchers at the Oxford University were working on vaccine for Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), the cause of which is also coronavirus, they started evolving the technique and started development of vaccine for COVID-19 at the very first hint of the pandemic. Although this is far from certain, it is plausible that their vaccine can become available by as early as September, 2020. At another front, development of antidote for coronavirus is also gaining momentum. Israel Institute for Biological Research (IIBR), for instance, in a significant breakthrough, has developed a monoclonal neutralising antibody which can neutralize the SARS-CoV-2 inside carrier’s body. According to a statement from Israel’s defence minister, IIBR is working towards getting the formula patented, which will be followed by its mass production. Although duration of this pandemic is uncertain and so is the degree of impact it would have had on lives and economy by the time it gets eradicated, such breakthroughs give a positive outlook of the sectors like cellular or molecular biology and biochemistry among others.
Coronavirus Update, 29th April 2020
The spread of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) across the globe continues to gain momentum despite combined and focused efforts by governments and political organizations. Although some countries have started witnessing a drop in the daily number of new cases, flattening the curve of this pandemic still remains a global challenge. According to a data from the World Health Organization (WHO), the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases (as on 2:00 am CEST, May 1, 2020) stood at 3,145,407, with around 221,823 deaths reported. Europe and Americas account for the largest share of the burden as the number of cases in these regions crosses 1,434,649 and 1,291,917 respectively. Where on one hand, countries like Iran, Spain, New Zealand, and Australia are moving towards easing of lockdown restrictions, as part of their plan to restore economic growth after achieving remarkable success in flattening and pulling down the curve, other countries on the other hand are still struggling to fight the pandemic and minimize losses associated with it.According to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), the aftermath of COVID-19 outbreak is expected to last in the U.S. for a fairly long time as many people in the country will remain vulnerable and may get exposed to this virus either this year or over the next year.
The impact of this pandemic is not confined just to the people, who continue to face hardships due to a blow on their source(s) of earning, since industrial growth across the globe is witnessing a slump which might take them a couple of years to recoup from. Although countrywide lockdowns and self-isolation rules by the governments have disrupted the industrial activity across all countries, the global travel and tourism industry has totally decimated by this pandemic outbreak. Hotels, restaurants, and airline companies have witnessed a drastic decline in their revenues, leading to a huge number of layoffs. According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), an estimated 1.1 million flight cancellations are predicted by June 30, 2020 with the total loss in passenger revenue expected to total to $252 billion for this year.
Another industry that has faced a severe disruption is the already declining automotive industry. Nationwide lockdowns have made it difficult for automakers to continue production as this does not align well with governments’ guidelines associated with maintaining social distancing. Since a major share of the global automobile manufacturing heavily or solely relies on China for auto parts, global supply chain disruption, owing to this pandemic, has forced these companies to halt their production. In March, 2020, global auto giants- General Motors, Ford, and Fiat Chrysler- temporarily closed down their U.S. facilities as part of their effort to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus and plan on resuming some part of their manufacturing at their U.S.-based facilities by May 18. However, Daimler and Merced-Benz are some of the automakers which have already resumed activity at some of their plants with limited number of workers. Since governments continue to remain intolerant towards non-compliance with social-distancing and sanitization directives issued by them, these automakers are adopting stricter new protocols, which include mandatory wearing of face masks and temperature checks at entry gates, in order to comply with such directives and reduce the spread of the virus.
As the impact of this pandemic on these industries continues to scale up, other industrial sectors aligned to these industries, and to resources whose availability has been affected by the virus outbreak, are also taking the fall due to what is called a domino effect. According to the International Energy Agency’s latest oil market forecast, global oil demand is projected to decline in 2020, with expected fall to around 90,000 barrels a day as compared to the last year, as this pandemic has constricted travel and global economic activity.
While other economies are also facing repercussions of the virus, the impact of COVID-19 on China’s economy will have a major impact on the global oil and gas industry. Since China accounted for more than 80% of the global oil demand in 2019, deep contraction in the country’s oil consumption, coupled with major disruptions in the global travel and trade, are driving down the growth of the oil and gas industry. Restrictions on the movement of people and goods within countries, due to lockdowns imposed by the governments, have dramatically reduced the demand for transport fuels. In conjunction to this, very low demand for jet fuel, majorly attributed to a halt on civil aviation sector, is also affecting the global oil and gas industry. Since the time it would take the governments to mitigate this virus is still uncertain, the outlook of the global economy over the short and medium term remains shady. Although huge debts being taken by many countries, in order to fight this pandemic and revive their industrial sectors thereafter, might look like a part of a good revival plan in the short term, very high debt to GDP ratio might pose other severe threats over the period.
Coronavirus Update, 22th April 2020
Seeing the other side of the coin!
Who is benefiting from the COVID-19 outbreak?
The COVID19 outbreak was declared as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on 30 January 2020 and later on March 11th, 2020, The World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic causing an immense impact on the lives of people and the business and markets around the globe. Recently the total number of coronavirus cases crossed the 2 million mark globally, with the death count at more than 128,000, and these figures are expected to rise further. The good news is that the rate of recovery is improving and the coronavirus curve seems to be flattening aided by some strict measures by federal governments. As the countries across the globe continue to tackle the coronavirus (COVID – 19) pandemic, the businesses and stock market are facing an unprecedented situation. The effect of COVID 19 on the major countries has been boundless and with the forced lockdowns and low consumer confidence, the businesses are facing a huge task to remain operational while meeting their costs. Recently the International Monetary Fund has already suggested that the world has entered into a recession which would be far worse than the 2008 financial crises, and most of the major economies will be facing their biggest challenges in the year ahead.
However, though there are millions of businesses and individuals who are under the risk of financial crises, but there are some parts of the industry that are benefited from the changes forced on society in the recent time. Let’s discuss some of them.
Video Communication Platforms
Businesses and educational institutes in the various parts of the world are responding to the current pandemic by implementing travel restrictions and work from home and remote (online) learning policies. To secure business activity during the time of crises, companies are using easy to use communication tools to enable remote work and learning and video conferencing and group chat software are widely adopted. In other words, COVID-19 is expected to have a significant impact on how companies or organizations view remote work. Even, guidelines are also being laid out by health and government authorities to mandate work from home. Major giants are investing heavily to take the competitive edge in the e-learning market. Also, communication technology players like Zoom and Microsoft are witnessing a substantial increase in the level of subscription in recent times. For instance, Microsoft reported that its Teams added nearly 12 million new users as remote workers increases during the pandemic. Also, the company recently launched a comprehensive COVID-19 resource to provide updated, cross-company information. Further, UNICEF and Microsoft launched a global learning platform to help and address the COVID-19 crisis.
Education institutions like colleges and universities are shut down globally as they are at a higher risk of spreading the disease due to the dense student population. In response to it, institutions are converting in-person curriculums into online courses and publish it in virtual classroom solutions which are allowing million of students to continue their education and learning from home. Video conferencing based remote learning helps in keeping the student engaged with features like annotation, break out rooms, and even group chats among others. Many universities are already leveraging video conferencing as one of the key elements of their educational system. For instance, Arizona State University (ASU), tests video conference in March 2020 and held nearly 170 classes with more than seven thousand students using Zoom. Also, the University of Bologna, switched nearly 90% of its courses to online using Microsoft Teams for its 80,000 students. As a result of such initiative, the subscription in online platforms is out breaking leading to a high risk of data security. As the world is focussing on the health and economic threats posed by COVID-19, cyber criminals around the world undoubtedly are capitalizing on this crisis, and not only businesses are being targeted but end-users are also being tricked, which is expected to boost the investment on cybersecurity by IT companies.
Cloud Computing
Today the use of mobile phones has made accessing social media, movies, and games a lot easier, the sheer variety of new games are online platforms have ensured that the people won’t run out of options during the lockdown period. Online media service provider companies like Netflix Inc. is now becoming even more important in the daily lives of people forced to stay at home and in front of their televisions. The rising interests and popularity in the video game industry and the increasing awareness about e-Sports will be the major driving factors of the e-Sports market. Also, many online multiplayer games such as PUBG, Call of Duty Mobile, and Counter-Strike have social media elements where players are enabled with the option to chat and team up with others. As a result, mobile-based online gaming platforms around the globe are reporting an exponential jump in its user base in March 2020. Also, the budding investments and the introduction of high prize pools of such tournaments will draw more participation, thus boosting the demand for this market.
Online Grocery and Food Delivery
Traditional industries such as manufacturing and travel & tourism have suffered immense losses from the shutdown policies around the globe. Such policies have indirectly benefitted online services, as mandatory isolation, restriction in movements have forced people to stay at home. During such time going to the offline distribution channel such as supermarkets, hyper marts seemed full of risk which is driving the growth of the online grocery shopping market. In addition, due to the closure of restaurant dine-in services in various parts of the world to avoid social gathering, online food ordering is now becoming a crucial business model for many players. As a result, online food delivery is widely adopted and players are now collaborating with manufacturing giants to deliver necessary products to its customers. For instance, in India, Domino’s Pizza partnered with ITC to deliver essential commodities such as wheat and spices to customers during the lockdown period. Also, Uber, BigBasket, and Flipkart partnered to deliver everyday essentials to people amid the ongoing COVID-19 lockdown.
Coronavirus Update, 15th April 2020
The total number of coronavirus cases crossed 2 million mark today, with the death count standing at 126,776. The good news is that the rate of recovery is improving and the curve seems to be flattening aided by some strict measures by federal governments. As the countries across the globe continue to tackle the coronavirus (COVID – 19) pandemic, the businesses are facing unprecedented situation. Concerns over fixed cost, employee retention, optimizing operational cost, and focus on revenue maximization despite the uncertainty over existing deals and contracts are some of the major issues that businesses across the globe are trying to mitigate. From forced lockdowns, to suspension of air and land travel, and movement restrictions, to policies enabling greater use of face masks. The fiscal stimulus and revival package continues to maintain some stability, but it may have an impact only in short term.
For some of the major economies such as the U.S., and United Kingdom the COVID infection curve still remains far from flattening, while India with a huge population seems to be doing better than most of the western counterparts aided by early screening and strict lockdown measures. Germany, Spain and Italy continue to remain the European hotspots for the coronavirus infection, while Middle Eastern region seem to be better placed though major economies are facing onslaught from declining oil prices which have declined to $19.81 as of April 14th 2020 from a high of $63.87 on 17th April 2019.
The chart below shows the total infections over the last one week in some of the biggest economies across the world. The U.S. which has recorded the most number of cases worldwide is still following the same trajectory. The situation in New York is worrisome with the state accounting for close to 33% of the total cases recorded in the country, though the tough measures with respect to social distancing and more tests seem to be working. As per the Governor Andrew Cuomo, the hospitalizations and deaths have both declined. It is imperative that the trend is sustained to ensure the curve has started flattening. The week also brought back focus on hydroxychloroquine, which has been touted as one of the treatment for COVID symptoms, with NIH conducting clinical trials. Big pharma companies and researchers are working towards the vaccine, but most of the estimates are expecting a timeframe of 12-18 months before it is available for widespread treatment.
Moving to Europe, Spain, Italy and France are worst hit by the pandemic accounting for 25% of the total number of cases of the total infections recorded in the top 5 countries. Italy has now recorded more than 21 thousand deaths, followed by Spain with 18,255 deaths, and France with more than 143 thousand cases and 15 thousand deaths. The UK is yet to reach peak with daily deaths and number of new infections seemingly increasing. The country has more than 81 thousand active cases as of April 14th 2020, and has recorded 12,107 deaths.
The Asia Pacific countries have been performing better as compared to the western economies. China has recovered with daily new cases being recorded in double-digits. Wuhan restrictions have been lifted and as per the reports, most of the city is now buzzing with economic activity. South Korea is continuing with the central policy of testing to identify the quantum of infection. Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe declared emergency for a month due to the measures being adopted so far were insufficient to control the infections. India, which has been relatively doing well due to early screening and complete lockdown is also witnessing the infections doubling rate reducing to 4.1 days from the earlier 7 days. The Prime Minister announced the existing lockdown to extend from 14th April 2020 to 3rd May 2020, with relaxations after 20th April 2020 for the areas which have been identified as COVID free zones.
The effect of COVID 19 on the major economies has been enormous. With forced lockdowns and low consumer confidence, the businesses are facing huge uphill task to remain operational while meeting their fixed costs. The IMF has already suggested that world has entered into recession which would be worst since the depression, and most of the major economies will be facing their biggest challenges in the year ahead.
The impact of the pandemic in conjunction with the GDP forecast, let’s analyze some major industries. Even though the world economy is expected to rebound next year, the shockwave due to the slowdown is going to be huge.
Manufacturing and Construction
The global slowdown is going to have a significant impact on the manufacturing industry. China being the global manufacturing hub has slowed with global companies cutting down or cancelling the existing orders. The companies are also looking for other avenues or shifting the production facilities out of the country due to the country being the focal point of the virus pandemic. The fixed cost remains high and the uncertainty in the global markets would continue to affect the industry over the 1st half of the next year. The large bailouts and stimulus packages will affect the spending in the construction sector. The industry has been facing challenges and with job losses and shrinking bank credit, the revival seems difficult in the short-term.
Communication and Technology
The demand for consumer electronics will remain slow with contracting supply chains. The revival depends on the economic improvement which seems to be low for the consumer confidence to pick-up. The replacement of existing products would remain stagnant. The new product launches would take time to reach the 2019 levels, as the companies would focus on strengthening the existing position in the times of uncertainty. The extension of lockdowns, WFH policies and the need for entertainment is creating the need for managing a large chunk of data, driven by need for storage requirements. The data center industry will continue to maintain the momentum but the demand for new data centers will be hampered by the shrinking IT budgets and low expenditure outlook.
Retail
The impact of COVID on retail industry is bare minimum as most of the essential items are sold through both online and offline retailers. Most of the countries into lockdown have allowed the online retail stores to continue remain open, the brick and mortar stores are being allowed to operate if they are following social distancing parameters. The e-commerce channel would continue to drive the momentum of the retail sales.
Advanced Technologies
Advanced technologies such as 3D printing, nanotech and next generation imaging should remain robust. The FDA approved a 3D printed mask design and the immediate focus is on ramping up the PPE production to assist the first line responders. The adoption of nanotech should remain stable driven by the research and development to identify the potential of the technology for a wide range of applications. The healthcare sector should continue to witness product launches and advanced imaging solutions.
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Coronavirus Update, 7th April 2020
The rising novel coronavirus pandemic has affected the world on a societal as well economic front. Governments across the globe are trying to deal with the challenges that this struggle has brought with it. As per the latest numbers by John Hopkins University, which is tracking the coronavirus cases across the globe, over 1.3 million positive cases have been reported by the 7th of April 2020 with 78,269 causalities. 292,467 people globally have recovered from the disease as of now. The pandemic which is reported to have been originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan has spread to 211 countries across the globe as reported by the World Health Organization.
Positive cases rising by the day
As can be seen in the snapshot below, the United States is the worst affected region in terms of number of cases, with positive cases in the region climbing to 368,449 till date. While, the European region has become a hotspot for the disease. Major economies in the region such as Italy, Spain, Germany, and the United Kingdom appear to be the most affected. Italy has suffered the highest deaths with the death count at 16,253 which is majorly being attributed to a high geriatric population as the disease seems to worst affect the elderly population having a weaker immune system as compared to the younger population. Although, the country is now reporting a lower number of new cases every day. On the other hand, Spain is also witnessing a high number of new cases with more than 5,000 new cases reported in the last 24 hours. The country is also witnessing a high death toll with 13,798 reported deaths till 7th April 2020. The daily death count increased to 743 on 6th April 2020 after the country reported a decrease in deaths for 4 consecutive days.
The United Kingdom which appeared to be less affected as compared to its other European counterparts has witnessed a sudden rise in the number of cases in the last 10 days from 29th march till 7th April 2020 with new cases increasing at an alarming rate with each passing day. The country reported 621 deaths in the last 24 hours. Boris Johnson, the British Prime Minister who himself has been tested positive for COVID-19 and has been transferred to intensive care, has vowed to ramp up testing to tackle the pandemic.
Japan, another nation which is witnessing a steady rise in the number of positive COVID-19 cases, declared a state of emergency targeting the country capital Tokyo and 6 other prefectures after the city witnessed a sudden surge in positive coronavirus cases.
Positive signs and flattening the curve
While the US, France, and UK and few other major affected countries are still reporting increase in the number of cases every day, latest numbers from some regions specifically Italy, Spain, Iran, and Germany which seemed to be the most affected offer some hope. Going by the latest reports as on 7th April 2020, all these countries have reported a dip in the number of new cases in the last 5 days. Though it is still early to make a judgement and a high number of new cases are being reported every day, the decline in the number of new cases in these European nations provide a ray of hope to the other parts of the world dealing with this pandemic.
A major term being used in this time is “flattening the curve” which basically refers to reducing the number of new cases with each passing day. A decline in the number of new cases from the previous day will be represented on a trend line as the name itself “flat”. On a column chart it will be represented by a downward trend. Countries are working towards flattening this curve and some have started succeeding with China leading by example, and similar trends being observed in South Korea, Italy, Spain, and Iran providing encouraging signs to the rest of the world.
Economic Impact
Countries across the globe are implementing total and partial lockdowns, state curfews, mass testing, and travel bans to deal with this global issue. The novel coronavirus along with the threat that it has brought with itself to the human population has also given rise to other major problems such as threat to economies and livelihood of a large part of the global population. Economies across the globe have started witnessing slowdown and major organizations such as the UN, WHO, and World Bank fearing the worst is yet to come. The United Nations recently in a trade report analyzed that the entire world economy is facing a threat of recession with the two likely exceptions: India and China. Top economists believe the world has already entered into recession and a latest poll by Reuters between the16th and 19th of March 2020 which saw a response from 41 economies also opined the same.
The pandemic has affected almost all industry sectors with travel and tourism being one of the worst affected. As various regions are witnessing mass lockdowns the manufacturing sector has also taken a hit with companies operating at minimum capacity and focusing on essential goods right now. Although various sectors have been affected by this global crisis, the food and beverage, healthcare, and agriculture sectors are witnessing a high demand being the essential components to support the need of the large global population.
Among this crisis, major economies as well as other parts of the world have particularly struggled in dealing with the high demand for hospital supplies needed to attend to a large patient count. Many countries have reported shortage of medical supplies and equipment which is leading to high death toll and is proving to be a major obstacle in dealing with this pandemic. The World Health Organization as per March 1st 2020 has already shipped nearly half a million sets of protective equipment to 47 countries. The United States government has witnessed a shortage of medical supplies in dealing with the exponentially rising number of coronavirus cases in the country. President Donald Trump on March 18th, 2020 stated that his government will invoke Defense Protection Act that will give the Federal Government sweeping power to ramp manufacturing capacity keeping in view the shortage of hospital supplies as suggested by the healthcare experts. This move will help the government to force private companies to manufacture specific products that can help the government to deal with this nationwide crisis.
Other regions across the globe are taking hep from medical experts along with importing medical supplies to help their medical staff stay safe while taking care of the patients. Furthermore, protective gears such as masks and hand sanitizers are being supplied to common people to curb the spread of the disease.
Long term impact
Most studies suggest that the nearest vaccines for the disease are atleast 12 to 18 months away. Social and economic impact are yet to be assessed. Though it is believed it might take another year for the world to completely recover on a health as well as economic front. While it is still too early to predict the long term impact that this pandemic will have on the world, social distancing, mass testing and adhering to government, WHO, and healthcare organization guidelines seem to be the safest bet to tackle the present situation in order to contain the virus and minimizing its long term impact.
Agricultural Biologicals – An Important Tool for Crop Protection and Production
BlogAgricultural biologicals are those products that are used to benefit the production of crops as they are derived from natural ingredients. These biologicals are used to protect the crops from diseases, weeds, and pests among others. They are tiny fungal organisms or microbes which of these are extracted from the pants. The major factors that are driving the agricultural biologicals market growth include the growing awareness among the farmers around the globe towards the use of safer products instead of using harmful chemically treated products. Also, an inclination of the people towards organic food is also one of the key factors driving growth throughout the forecast period. Furthermore, increasing global demand for food owing to the growing global population base is the major driver of the global agricultural biologicals market. Increasing cases of crop diseases across the globe are also fuelling the demand for agricultural biologicals significantly. Increasing emphasis on sustainable farming practices is further bolstering the growth of the global agricultural biologicals market.
Increasing global demand for food
One of the prime factors that is driving the agricultural biologicals market growth is the globally growing demand for food due to the rising population around the globe. According to the FAO statistics, the world population is projected to grow by over a third, that is, 2.3 billion people, between 2009 and 2050. This, in turn, is anticipated to increase the pressure on limited available resources which includes land, air, and water among others as rapid urbanization and industrialization have further caused a major deterioration in the condition of these resources. Also, according to the statistics provided by the FAO, around 821 million in the world are undernourished. This is further increasing the propensity of the farmers towards an increase in the production of crops by the means of increasing the amount of agricultural land or by enhancing crop productivity on existing agricultural lands. However, due to rapid urbanization, the expansion of agricultural land is considered comparatively tougher which is further inclining the farmers to adopt new urban farming practices or using environmental-friendly products. This is significantly driving the adoption of agricultural biologicals such as biofertilizers, biopesticides, and biostimulants among others. These biologicals help to improve crop performance and enrich the soil while enabling plants to adapt even when growing conditions shifts (changes in climatic conditions) so as to provide food the whole year without being dependent on weather conditions.
The growing emphasis on sustainable farming practices
Increasing emphasis on sustainable farming practices across the globe is another factor that is bolstering the growth of the global agricultural microbial market. The use of chemical fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides derived from fossil fuels has led to increased agricultural production on limited arable land across the globe. However, growing awareness and concern over their adverse effects on soil productivity and environmental quality is forcing scientists to discover alternatives. Agricultural biologicals protect crops from pests, weeds, and diseases while keeping crops healthy. Furthermore, the growing investments by the key players of the market in the form of R&D for the development of new products and expansion of product portfolios, agreements, and partnerships further show the potential for the market to surge in the near future. In May 2019, Marrone Bio Innovation an integrated pest management solutions company announced its strategic collaboration with Compass Minerals Plant Nutrition for the development of a new plant nutrition solution which was enhanced with microorganisms. Similarly, in March 2019, FiBL, one of the world’s leading organic farming information and research centers based out of Switzerland announced the approval of six special fertilizers of Biolchim for organic farming.
Rising demand for organic fruits and vegetables
The increase in the demand for fruits and vegetables produced organically is likely to offer ample opportunities for the key players to invest in the market and further tap the potential that the market holds. One of the major factors that is boosting the demand for organically produced fruits and vegetables is the rising concerns regarding a healthy lifestyle and fitness, especially in the developed economies as the awareness regarding effects of various agrochemicals on human health and environment is being focused upon. Furthermore, according to the data from the IFOAM Organics International Statistics, a total of 71.5 million hectares of land was organically by the end of 2018 from 69.8 million hectares in 2017. Also, around 2.8 million organic farmers were reported during the same period. Since agricultural biologicals are produced naturally and do not contain any harmful chemicals, the use of these sustainable organisms leads to the production of chemical-free fruits and vegetables. Hence, the high demand for organic fruits and vegetables will continue to bolster the growth of the agricultural biologicals market until the end of the forecast period.
The APAC region is expected to offer numerous growth opportunities
Geographically, the market has been segmented on the basis of North America, South America, Europe, Middle East and Africa, and Asia Pacific. The market in the Asia Pacific region is projected to grow at a rapid pace owing to high population growth in the major emerging economies such as India and China among others. Moreover, rapid industrialization and expanding urbanization in emerging economies such as China, India, and South Korea is leading to the deterioration of arable land in the region owing to which farmers need to increase the crop yield given the limited cultivable land area. All these factors are encouraging farmers across APAC countries to move towards sustainable agriculture practices.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Rachit Gulati is a Market Research Analyst at Knowledge Sourcing Intelligence, working on estimates and global/regional specific reports on multiple industries ranging from automation to food and beverages, with a special knack for automotive and healthcare. With the addition of his formal education in Economics, Commerce, and Finance, he is able to provide more light on the macro aspects of the story. To read more articles by him, and for more information regarding multiple global markets, visit www.knowledge-sourcing.com.
Baby Care Products – Necessity for Baby Care
BlogThe major factors that are driving the baby care products market growth are the rising concerns among the parents regarding the health and well-being of their babies. Baby care products are those types of products that include toys, foods, drinks, skincare products, body care products, and safety and convenience products made specifically for infants, roughly between the ages of four to six months to 2 years. Furthermore, the rapid urbanization, growing middle-class population, and further the availability of a variety of different products in the market are also some of the key factors bolstering the growth of the global baby care products market throughout the forecast period. Moreover, the changing lifestyles of the people, especially across the developed economies has further resulted in the growing demand for the convenience-oriented goods and services, which in turn is boosting the demand for various baby care products which majorly include, food and beverages, and safety and convenience products such as prams and car seats among others.
The expansion of distribution channels also provides an impetus for the market to surge in the near future throughout the globe due to the rising penetration of the internet and smartphones has further led to an inclination of parents towards online shopping due to more convenience and numerous economic benefits. Also, the rising investments by key players in the market for R&D to develop new products with plant-based or organic materials to cater to the growing market requirements further propel the opportunities for the market to grow in the coming years.
The rising women workforce is further driving the demand for various baby care products
One of the prime factors that is significantly boosting the demand for various baby care products is the rising women workforce. As a result of the increasing number of working women, growing parental concerns about nutrition, and modern-day time constraints, industry-processed baby food plays an ever more significant role in meeting the nutritional demands of infants and toddlers worldwide. As more and more women take up a full-time job and enter fast-paced modern lifestyles, consumers continue to seek convenience and simplicity, increasing the reliance of the on the packaged food. Furthermore, due to the changing and hectic lifestyle of the parents, the demand for convenience products such as prams, car seats among others is booming especially in developed economies around the world. Furthermore, numerous government rules and regulations in some countries regarding the safety of the babies is also bolstering the growth of the car seat segment during the coming years.
Baby food is projected to dominate the market
On the basis of type, the global baby care products have been classified into segmented on the basis of type, distribution channel, and geography. By type, the market has been classified into baby food, body care, and safety and convenience among others. The body care segment has been further segmented as diapers and wipes and skin and hair care products. The safety and convenience segment has been segmented on the basis of prams and strollers and car seats. The baby food segment is projected to hold a major market share throughout the forecast period. Rising awareness about the benefits of various types of baby foods depending on the age of the babies, supported by increasing disposable income and rapid urbanization, especially in developing economies with high birth rates is contributing to this dominant demand for baby food over the forecast period.
The body care segment is projected to witness notable growth during the next five years due to the growing adoption of numerous products by the parents in the developing economies around the world. Also, the rapid innovations by key market players for developing the products from organic materials further supplement the growth of this segment during the next five years.
Online sales projected to show robust growth
On the basis of the distribution channel, the baby care products market has been segmented on the basis of online and offline. The offline segment is projected to hold a substantial share during the next five years primarily on the account of reluctance of a major share of the population towards online shopping. Furthermore, the increase in the number of retail outlets along with the opening of new chains of hypermarkets and supermarkets in the developing economies is further bolstering the growth of the offline segment during the forecast period.
The online segment is projected to surge at a robust growth owing to the burgeoning adoption of online distribution channels due to rising smartphone penetration along with the increasing penetration of fast and cheap internet services in both developing and developed economies of the world.
Competitive Scenario
The growing investments by key market players as well as small players in the market in the form of R&D for developing new products and expanding the product portfolio along with facility expansions and acquisitions and partnerships in order boost the production to cater to the rising market demand and also to tap the potential that the market holds further shows the potential for the market to surge during the next five years. For instance, in September 2019, Nestle announced and investment in its organic baby-food producing facility in Portugal for the expansion of its product portfolio and added new products to its range of baby food, NaturNes Bio NutriPuffs. Similarly, in July 2019, Kimberly Clark Corporation announced its new diapers made from plant-based materials for providing extra care to the sensitive skin of the babies.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Rachit Gulati is a Market Research Analyst at Knowledge Sourcing Intelligence, working on estimates and global/regional specific reports on multiple industries ranging from automation to food and beverages, with a special knack for automotive and healthcare. With the addition of his formal education in Economics, Commerce, and Finance, he is able to provide more light on the macro aspects of the story. To read more articles by him, and for more information regarding multiple global markets, visit www.knowledge-sourcing.com.
Amniocentesis Needle – Instrumental in Detecting Congenital Defects
BlogA needle that is used to carry out the amniocentesis test is known as the amniocentesis needle. This amniocentesis test is a type of a prenatal test, in which a small amount of the amniotic fluid is removed from the sac that surrounds the foetus. The fluid is then used for testing purposes and a fine needle used to remove the fluid, which is inserted into the abdomen being guided through ultrasound. After this, a laboratory analysis of the fluid is carried out.
The ultrasonic scan that is used to guide the guide the need le foe the extraction of the fluid and makes the use of high frequency sound waves in order to produce an image of the womb. It allows the doctors and the healthcare professionals to check the position the baby is in, facilitate in the finding of the best place, from where the amniotic fluid can be removed and lastly, ensure that the needle can be pass safely through the walls of the abdomen and the womb.
The first step in carrying out the test is the cleaning of the abdomen and then a syringe is used to insert a long and thin needle, called the amniocentesis needle to remove the sample of amniotic fluid then the next step is the lab analysis and observation the fluid is being sent for. However, in some of the women, that is around six women out of every hundred women, a problem does occur in extracting the fluid. Therefore, the needle then has to be inserted again to facilitate the proper removal of the fluid.
The importance of the test in the detection of various defect and diseases that pose a risk
Amniocentesis test is basically carried out in order to detect any birth defects that might be present in the baby, such as the Down syndrome, which is an abnormality that rises due to chromosomes. In addition, the amniocentesis test is able to detect other conditions such as sickle cell disease, cystic fibrosis or muscular dystrophy, and even Tay-Sachs among other diseases.
Amniocentesis test is used for the detection of neural tube defects, which are defects in which the brain and spinal column do not develop properly, such as spins bifida and anencephaly. Therefore, to limit the number of deaths that are caused due to congenital defects the demand for the amniocentesis needles, so that defects can be detected faster and thus, this is causing a surge in the development of the healthcare industry.
Measures to be taken before and after the test
One of the most important and essential parts of the test is to clean the abdomen, to minimize the risks of getting infections, then the next important step is to numb the desired are where the needle is to be injected with the amniocentesis needle. This procedure may or may not be necessary, but that depends on the condition of the patient.
After the test, the appropriate measures must be taken to avoid the pain, painkillers or over the counter drugs can be taken to quell the pain such as Paracetamol, but not Ibuprofen.
Product Offerings by Industry Players in Amniocentesis Needle Market
There are an increasing number of market players, involved in the provision of the enhanced and advanced products to cater to the demands for amniocentesis needles from different end-users such as hospitals, and diagnostic centres so that they can cement their market position further and increase their market share over the forecast period. For instance, Cooper Surgical Inc., provide amniocentesis needles that for single use and are packaged with full sterilization in sterilized packs. The product that they provide is called “Wallace Amniocentesis Needles” and have spiral tips to provide a much clearer visibility of the inner abdomen under the guidance of the ultrasound test. The parts and accessories that are available with this product are a 90 mm needle that weighs just 22g, a 120mm needle that weighs 21g and a 150mm needle weighing 21g, with 10 present in each of the box of this product. Laboratoire CCD, offers a product that is able to provide enhanced control over the procedure. The needle that they provide is sandblasted distal tip, which also sports a triple-bevels for facilitating an easier insertion. A stylet is used in order to increase the rigidity of the product, and the product is developed under strict adherence to Class IIa medical devices in packaged in sterile conditions.
Cook, another company that deals in the provision of medical devices and products offer their product called the “EchoTip Disposable Amniocentesis Needles” , which are used for the extraction of the fluid safely from the amniotic sac present in the abdomen. The EchoTip technology that the product makes use of is able to enhance the visualization of the needle tip under ultrasound screening, the needle also has a distal side port in order to get rid of the debris that may be accumulated on the needle during the test. In addition, the product is for single use and should be disposed after use in the test. LabIVF Asia Pte Ltd., is a company dealing in the provision of different types of equipment in order to cater to the rising demand from various end-users involved in provision of healthcare services. They offer their product called the “Amniocentesis Needles”, which are provided with stylets, are sterile and easily visible in the ultrasound and used for the sampling the amniotic fluids. The most valuable feature of the product is that the hubs of the needles are colour coded so that they can easily provide identification of the needle gauge and the needle length and the stylets of these needles can locate them selves so that blockages are prevented effectively. Therefore, the provision of these products, by the market players, is contributing to the increase in the amniocentesis needle market sizeover the forecast period.
Conclusion:
Currently, there are different lengths and gauges of amniocentesis needles are being used, but the 100-150mm needles are most common and are expected to hold a significant share in this market and is anticipated to witness a fast growth rate in the upcoming years due to the burgeoning demand from the hospitals and diagnostic centres. With respect to current market trends, it is anticipated that the Echotip and the colour coded hub needles will flourish in the upcoming years with demand being generated owing to the high amount of usage in the diagnostic centres. There is a growing need for a well-developed and good-quality product, which has good durability, reliability an efficiency among other essential characteristics. This is one of the major factors, which will continue to play a role in driving this market. In addition, it will attract many new entrants who will bring new and better changes and enhancement in amniocentesis needles. Thus, the market will remain competitive and it is projected to show modest growth in the upcoming years.
Hand Sanitizer – A New Way of Hand Hygiene
BlogThe rising outbreaks of deadly diseases coupled with the growing health concerns regarding the use of hand sanitizers are the prime factors that are significantly driving the hand sanitizer market growth in the coming years. Furthermore, the rising prevalence of communicable diseases is also projected to bolster the hand sanitizer market growth during the next five years. The awareness regarding well-maintained hygiene is gaining a lot of traction these days and the burgeoning adoption of convenience products is also driving the demand for hand sanitizers, as sanitizers are considered more convenient than hand washes. This, in turn, is booming the use of hand sanitizers and adding up to the market growth during the next five years. Hand Sanitizers are liquids that are used for decreasing infectious agents especially on the hands. These are alcoholic formulations that are expected to be more efficient over soaps which are leading to the growing importance of sanitizers across the globe.
The expansion of distribution channels also plays an important role in booming the hand sanitizer market growth around the globe as the rising internet penetration is leading to a notable growth of the e-commerce business and shifting consumer preferences towards online shopping is also propelling the growth opportunities for the market to surge throughout the forecast period and beyond.
Rapid disease outbreaks are boosting the demand
The growing number of communicable diseases is one of the major factors which is propelling the adoption of hand sanitizers and boosting the market growth. Furthermore, the recent outbreaks of deadly diseases such as COVID-19 (Coronavirus) is leading to the growing government focus towards the promotion of hand care and hand hygiene products, primarily with an aim to mitigate the health issues and spread the awareness are some of the factors positively impacting the market growth during the coming years. For instance, according to the reports from the WHO, the total positive COVID cases in Italy increased to 181,228 as of 21st April 2020 from just 47,021 on 21st March 2020. Also, the growing number of cases around the world is further instigating the demand for hand sanitizers due to continuously growing awareness regarding its uses and benefits. In addition, organizations like the FDA and WHO are taking various initiatives to promote the use of hand sanitizers, especially in the underdeveloped economies where good healthcare facilities and treatments are not available.
Gel type to hold a notable share
On the basis of product type, the global hand sanitizer market has been classified into gel, foam, spray, and others. The market for gel type hand sanitizers is anticipated to hold a notable share in the market on account of ease of availability and higher convenience offered by gel-based sanitizers.
The foam segment is projected to grow at a decent rare owing to the rising adoption of foam-based hand sanitizers in the coming years as foam-based sanitizers are considered more reliable due to the longevity after its application on the hands.
Online sales projected to show robust growth
On the basis of the distribution channel, the global hand sanitizer market has been segmented on the basis of online and offline. The offline segment has been further classified into departmental stores, pharmacy stores, and others. The online distribution channels are projected to grow at a notable rate throughout the forecast period owing to shifting h preferences towards online shopping. In addition, the rising penetration of various online platforms particularly focused on pharmaceutical and health and wellness products is also supporting the growth of this segment over the coming years.
The offline segment is projected to hold a noteworthy share owing to the fact that still, a large proportion of the population prefers offline shopping due to personal touch. The growing number of hypermarkets and supermarkets in the developing economies is also supporting the share of this segment over the next five years.
Asia Pacific to show robust growth
On the basis of region, the global hand sanitizer market has been segmented into North America, South America, Europe, Middle East and Africa, and Asia Pacific. The Asia Pacific region is projected to show notable growth over the forecast period due to the growing healthcare sector in the major developing countries of the region such as India, China, and Indonesia among others. Furthermore, the recent outbreak of COVID-19 also supports market growth in the APAC region. North America is projected to hold a significant share as hygiene maintenance is one of the top priorities of the people in this region. Furthermore, the presence of key players in the market also supports the market share of the region during the next five years. Similarly, the recent outbreak of coronavirus along with its growing intensity is one of the major factors which is projected to drive the hand sanitizer market growth across every region for the coming years.
Competitive scenario
The growing investments by key market players as well as small players in the market in the form of R&D for developing new products and expanding the product portfolio along with facility expansions in order boost the production to cater to the rising market demand also shows the potential for the market to surge during the next five years. For instance, in April 2020, Zydus Group, India’s leading one of the leading pharmaceutical companies announced the launch of its new business segment of hand sanitizers under the brand, Nycil. Furthermore, in March 2020, the University of Rhode Island Pharmaceutical Development Institute announced that they have started the production of hand sanitizers with an aim to meet the growing demand of hand sanitizers and help to reduce the spread of COVID-19. Similarly in Bangladesh, a state-owned company, Carew & Co announced an expansion on the production of hand sanitizers as the demand is growing at a high pace.
Rubber Process Oil: An Indispensable Industrial Use Substance
BlogRubber Process Oil is defined as a mixture of different processing products, such as paraffinic, naphthenic, and aromatic compounds that can be of any molecular weight. It is used mainly in the rubber industry, followed by some other end-user industries. Rubber oil is produced when the crude oil undergoes the distillation process and is obtained during the composition, the chemical reactions, and the isolation of materials that are extracted and are called the Raffinate, and in addition is compatible with the polymers of rubber. Rubber process oils are used across a wide variety of industries and are available in different grades and viscosities in order to cater to the different applications.
Current Scenario in Rubber Processing Oil Space
There is a rising demand from different industries such as automotive, manufacturing, construction, electronics, and electrical, among others. In the automotive industry, it is used or applications such as the production of tires. It can be made into tires of various sizes for use in a variety of vehicles, such as military and defense vehicles, large trucks, carrier vehicles, small trucks, passenger cars, commercial vehicles, among others. It is used as a type of flooring material in the construction industry, it is used to make footwear that is durable, and is an essential component in the lifestyle of the population, and also, it finds various other uses.
Product offerings in rubber process oils to unlock more possibilities
There are market players that are involved in the provision of enhanced and advanced product offerings in order to cater to the rising demand for rubber processing oils from different industries. Some of the examples are listed below-
Therefore, these efforts being made by the market players will aid in increasing the rubber processing oils market size.
The availability of different types of rubber processing oil and the importance of different grades, densities, and viscosities among other properties
Rubber processing oils are available in different types, which have different properties and are able to cater to different applications more effectively. The different types of rubber processing oils are-
Distillate Aromatic Extract (DAE) is a type of aromatic oil that has undergone a large number of aromatic cycles in its composition, and is often characterized due to their low aniline points and used mainly for the manufacture of polarized rubbers that belong to the styrene-butadiene category or are of natural rubber type.
Treated Distillate Aromatic Extract (TDAE) is a type of oil that does not harm the environment, finds applications in tire production, tape and rubber industries. It is used in generally carrier oils, as a plasticizer as a diluent of as a filling agent.
Residual Aromatic Extract (RAE) is a type of rubber that has a high viscosity and is an aromatic process oil that is derived from the residual oil fractions and is generally used as an extender oil in the automobile industry for the production of rubber tires. In addition, the Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon content is less than 1 parts per million (ppm), and the total PAH content is less than 10 parts per million (ppm).
The viscosities and the grades, among other properties of the rubber process oils, are also important as these should lie between specific values at the specific temperatures at which the oil is being used in order to yield the full capabilities of the oil. The properties, such as the kinematic viscosity, which defines the capacity of the fluid to resist the internal forces and the gravitational forces, and the flashpoint, which defines the lowest temperature at which the liquid gives off vapor. That means that the lower the flash point is, the liquid is to ignite.
Lidar Drones: Detection, Mitigation & Everything In-Between
BlogThe very term product LiDAR Drones have a two-pronged implication on the market. Taking the word ‘drones’ first, it has undoubtedly permeated all segments of our daily lives which are steering various end-users ranging from agriculture to defense towards its adoption. The other part is the technology that it is incorporated with called is LiDAR that is known for its capability to measures distance to a target with the help of lasers. The aforesaid function of Light Detection and Ranging or LiDAR encompasses sensors that emit laser beams that shoot down to the ground and bounces back. The distance of the laser and back to the sensor is then measured and recorded. The degree of accuracy and detail, for example, the extent of foliage on the ground and its density makes it all the more a uniquely positioned device that has enabled the players of this market to find great prospects archaeology, e-commerce, forestry, geology, geomatics, seismology, among others. Therefore, there is an increasing interest, consequent investments in research and development and other strategic initiates among the players of this market.
For example, LiDAR drones that are being flown over certain areas are enabling the creation of maps, which are being developed to highlight, survey, and monitor grounds where key infrastructural development such as towers and wind turbines could and have been built. Moreover, the areas that are subjected to natural calamities like flooding, for example, LiDAR drones are being deployed to an enhanced and accurate degree of measurements that can help improve risk assessment outcomes that ultimately aid in an efficient and effective emergency planning process making disaster management efforts hassle-free. Further, the areas that are affected by drought, these scientific marvels are deployed to measure the vegetation density thus aiding in the improvement of drainage systems helping experts to design are more water conservation friendly drainages system whereby the scarce commodity could be judiciously used. Thus with such extensive use, the semiconductor sector in this space is poised to witness growing investment in the form of R&D and various strategic decisions that are poised to throttle the growth of the Global LiDAR Drone Market trend.
Certain key strategic initiatives in the LiDAR Drones Market
For example, as late as April 2020, Woolperthas been contracted by the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) to develop a strategic plan and concept of operations for Indiana’s unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) program. Woolpert has decades of transportation engineering and survey experience and works directly with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulatory leaders and provides strategic consulting. Woolpert will be responsible for creating policies, procedures, and standards for INDOT to manage, share and align with designated agencies throughout the state. Further, the firm recently concluded a contract with Indiana to acquire and process high-resolution orthoimagery and lidar data throughout the state as part of IndianaMap, which houses and shares Indiana’s geospatial data and services. This is an extension of UAS contract, complementing the firm’s support of these technologies across the state. Therefore from the aforesaid, it can be discerned that government initiatives, like that of state administration exemplified above, are also major driving factors for Global LiDAR Drone Market growth.
Earlier in JULY, 2019, geospatial hardware and software provider, GeoCue announced True View, a new line of drone sensors. The first variety is True View 410, a mapping camera configuration for commercial drone platforms that enables surveyors to produce 3D colorized point clouds, oblique imagery and orthophotos with a single flight. Moreover, it is the first integrated lidar/camera fusion platform in a payload package, in the industry that weighs less than 2 kg. Further, in January 2020, the globally acclaimed and industrial renown DJI through its Open Innovation Initiative has brought to the fore Livox which unveiled two new sensors, the Horizon, and the Tele-15. Earlier in October 2019, RedTail LiDAR Systems – a division of 4D Tech Solutions, Inc. Introduced the RTL-400 LiDAR mapping system that has been designed to specifically provide high-resolution 3D images of objects on the ground from small drones flying at an altitude up to 400 feet. With unique scanning capabilities for a wide range of applications – from precision agriculture to construction site monitoring and management the RTL-400 has been developed with technology licensed from the U.S. Army Research Laboratory (ARL).
Again, in July 2029, The Genius drone LiDAR system weighing only 1,168 grams SureStar’s UAV-based LiDAR sensor with Applanix’ APX OEM module for a lightweight UAV mapping solution which enables an efficient and swift mapping or surveying through the means of UAV to produce high-quality deliverables. Later in November 2019, Middle East Survey Engineering (MESE) – an UAE-based geospatial solutions provider that provides engineering, mapping, marine and surveying, services to government authorities and private entities in the GCC and MENA regions launched the first Lidar-based unmanned aerial system (UAS) in the UAE. It has been reported that the drone equipped with a laser head (UAS with Lidar) utilizes both fixed-wing and multirotor capacities to capture georeferenced data with high accuracy, simultaneously doing away with pixel and GSD challenges associated with a mapping corridor of 400m. While the aforesaid is majorly hardware and technology-centric development, there has been another development that has been brought about along the lines of the pricing model to foster more transactions in the market. To this end, it may be noted that in September 2019, GeoCue Group introduced its new hardware as a service (HaaS) Evergreen Subscription for their True View UAV LIDAR/Imagery Fusion Sensors to the drone industry. access to the True View 410 LIDAR/dual camera imaging sensor under an “Evergreen” subscription pricing model are provided to customers under This breakthrough business model. A True View 410 subscription includes the sensor hardware, all processing software, maintenance, and support and is a turnkey system to ensure the concerned projects are completed on time without any hitch. Therefore, it is evident that with such development the LiDAR drone market is poised to witness a meteoric growth during the forecast period.
Fluorochemicals: Harmful yet an Inseverable Component From Our Life
BlogThe global fluorochemicals market is anticipated to show a nominal growth over the forecast period. The major factors that are projected to drive the market growth is the constantly growing demand for air-conditioners and refrigerators around the globe owing to the rapid urbanization, rising disposable income and also due to the growing middle-class population, especially in the developing economies of the world. Also, a notable increase in the HVAC installations across the globe is also one of the key factors which is propelling the demand for fluorochemicals and adding up to the market growth during the next five years.
Furthermore, the wide applications of these chemicals across numerous industries such as for aluminum production, as blowing agents fire extinguishers and others are also significantly adding up to the market growth during the forecast period. Also, the versatile properties of these chemicals is leading to the growing acceptance of fluorochemicalsacross various industries. Furthermore, the globally growing production of aluminum due to its growing applications in the automotive sector along with decent growth in the production of automobiles also supplement the fluorochemicals market growth in the near future.
The growing demand for air conditioners and refrigerators across the globe on account of the on account impressive economic growth, rising disposable income, and improvement in the standard of living especially in developing economies such as China, India, and Brazil among others is projected to propel the market growth during the next five years.Simultaneously, the production of these products is increasing due to growing demand which is further anticipated to augment the market growth opportunities for the manufacturers during the forecast period. For instance, as per the report from the Japan Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Industry Association, the global air conditioner demand increased from 104,367 thousand units in 2013 to 110,971 thousand units in 2018.Furthermore, the increasing household consumption expenditure also plays an important role in driving the demand for these products also, which is further expected to propel the market growth for the coming years. Per the World Bank Group, the household’s and NPISHs Final consumption expenditure has grown remarkably from US$37.838 trillion in 2010 to US$48.611 trillion in 2018.
Moreover, the burgeoning automotive production is also considered to significantly drive market growth during the coming years. As the growth in the production of vehicles will lead to a significant increase in the installation of air conditioning systems in these vehicles. In addition, the booming government initiatives for boosting the production of electric vehicles is also one of the key opportunities for the market to surge over the forecast period and beyond. The growth in the sales of the passenger vehicles is leading to a nominal growth in the production also. For example, as per the data from OICA, the production of passenger vehicles increased from 67,530,621 per year in 2014 to 70,567,581 by 2018. Additionally, the booming deployment of electric vehicles across the globe at a growing pace is also anticipated to continue over the coming which is also a key factor that is expected to propel the opportunities for the fluorochemicals market growth in the coming years.
By application, the fluorochemicals market has been classified into aluminum production, refrigerants, blowing agents and others. The refrigerant application of fluorochemicals is anticipated to hold a notable share in the market owing to the growing demand for clean air systems across the manufacturing sector. The booming demand for AC systems and refrigerators also supports the growth of this segment in the coming years.The growth in the aluminum production owing to the high adoption across the automotive sector owing to numerous capabilities of aluminum is also considered to be one of the key factors for this segment to grow substantially over the forecast period. The growing sales of automobiles in various developing economies such as India, China, Brazil, and Argentina is also projected to bolster the growth of the market throughout the forecast period and beyond.
Geographically, the fluorochemicals market has been segmented into North America, South America, Middle East and Africa, Europe and the Asia Pacific. North American region is anticipated to hold a noteworthy share owing to the well-established and a state-of-art chemicals and materials industry. Furthermore, the presence of key players in the market in countries such as the United States is also one of the factors which is anticipated to support the significant share of this region in the next five years. The Asia Pacific region is anticipated to show a notable growth in the market owing to the fact that there is a growing demand for ACs and refrigerators in major developing countries such as India and China among others. Also, the booming automotive sales due to impressive economic growth and the growing middle-class population also supplement the market growth in the APAC region during the forecast period.
Competitive Scenario in the market
The key players in the market are investing heavily in the form of R&D for the development of new products for the expansion of the product portfolio. Also, investments in the facility expansions and partnerships and agreements is also supplementing the market growth during the forecast period. Some of the key developments in the fluorochemicals market are listed below:
Recently in February 2020, Navin Fluorine International Ltd. a leading company fluorochemical manufacturing company based out of India announced a 7 year US$410 million contract with a global company for the supply of high-performance products in the fluorochemicals segment.
In September 2019, Daikin, the world’s one of the largest producers of fluorochemicals in the world announced an investment of around US$195 million in its Decatur production facility. The company aims to expand its production capacity over the coming years along with infrastructure enhancements and R&D capabilities. The investment is also done with an aim to ramp up the polymer production capability and associated monomer production.
Automotive Refrigerants: The Lifeblood of Automotive AC Systems
BlogThe global market for automotive refrigerants is poised to grow at a CAGR of 3.56% throughout the forecast period. The major factors that supplement the global automotive refrigerants market include the growth in the demand for luxurious vehicles coupled with the burgeoning consumer requirements regarding the proper functioning of the air conditioning systems of the vehicles which is considered as one of the main features that add up to the comfort of the vehicles. The growing disposable income along with a rise in the middle-class population is also leading to an increased demand for vehicle comfort and features which is also projected to positively impact the demand for these refrigerants and add up to the market growth significantly throughout the forecast period and beyond. Also, a significant increase in the demand for vehicles across the globe, especially across the developing economies, is also leading to a decent increase in the production also. This, in turn, is also anticipated to boost the demand for automotive refrigerants in the coming years.
Furthermore, the growing investments by the major automotive manufacturers across the globe with an aim to ramp up their production output in order to meet the growing demand along with the initiatives by the governments of various countries for the expansion of the automotive sector to improve the economic stability also shows the potential for the market to surge over the forecast period and beyond. For instance, in March 2017, Ford announced its investment of $1.2 billion to expand the production of trucks and SUVs in its facilities in the United States. Similarly, during the same period, March 2017 the Government made an announcement regarding the latest plan for the auto industry in the country, known as the One Million Plan (Plan 1 Millón). According to this plan, the country is focused on producing around 750,000 cars in a year by 2019, and around one million units annually by 2023. Furthermore, the growing investments by players in countries like India, China, Spain, and France among others also play an important role in bolstering the market growth during the forecast period.
In addition, the rising investments by key market players in the automotive refrigerants market with an aim to expand the market share and gain a competitive edge over other players further propel the opportunities for the market to surge in the near future. For instance, in October 2018, Honeywell International announced the start of its new US$300 million automotive refrigeration production facility in Geismar, La, with an aim to ramp up the production to meet the globally growing demand for its next-generation mobile air conditioning refrigerant.
On the basis of vehicle type, the global automotive refrigerants market has been classified into passenger vehicles and commercial vehicles. The market for commercial vehicles is projected to show good growth in the coming years owing to the fact that rapid industrialization in the various developing economies such as India, China, and Brazil is leading to a growing dependence on freight transport which is boosting the manufacturing of trucks. Also, the growth of the e-commerce industry is also one of the major factors which is expected to drive the demand for light commercial vehicles. Furthermore, the burgeoning logistics sector also drives the demand for the LCVs which is simultaneously anticipated to boost the growth of the market throughout the forecast period.
Geographically, the automotive refrigerant market has been segmented into North America, South America, Middle East and Africa, Europe and the Asia Pacific. North American region is anticipated to hold a noteworthy share owing to the early technology adoption and the presence of a well-established automotive industry. Also, the presence of key market players in the region along with the key automotive manufacturers in the countries such as the United States and Canada, also support the significant share of North America in the global market during the coming years.
Increasing investments in electric and hybrid vehicles
The growing demand for electric vehicles is one of the prime opportunities for global automotive refrigerants market growth owing to the fact that these refrigerants are considered as an important and a suitable part for the air conditioning systems of the automobiles. A surge in the demand is anticipated to propel the production of electric and hybrid cars, thereby complement the growth of these refrigerants. In addition, favorable government policies regarding the promotion of electric vehicles is further projected to augment the demand for automotive refrigerants during the forecast period. Moreover, the deployment of electric vehicles has also been growing at a remarkable pace during the past years.
According to the data from the International Energy Agency, the electric car deployment increased from 0.23 million units in 2013 to 3.29 million units by 2018. Moreover, the value of the NEV cars is also projected to grow at a noteworthy CAGR of 28.04% (Source: Knowledge Sourcing Intelligence), which is also anticipated to positively impact the growth of the market. Also, the increasing focus towards environmental protection is further leading to increasing investments by the government of major developing economies to boost the production of these vehicles. For instance, under the Made in China 2025 program, in which the NEVs are considered as an important part of the program and the goal of the Chinese government is to facilitate manufacturing 1 million electric and plug-in hybrid cars in China by 2020.
In addition, rising investments by automotive manufacturers towards the expansion of their product portfolio, R&D, facility expansions and addition of EVs in their business segment also bolsters the market growth in the coming years. For instance, in May 2018, Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz announced its plan to spend $589 million to manufacture a compact electric vehicle at its 20-year old factory in Hambach, eastern France. The production of this first Mercedes passenger car produced in France will start in 2022. Similarly, in July 2018, Renault also announced to invest $1.2 billion to increase electric vehicle production capacity in France.
Coronavirus (COVID-19) Updates, Trends, and Impact
BlogCoronavirus Update, 6th May 2020
The global spread of coronavirus disease, which is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has been scaling up concerns among governments across many countries as they continue to struggle to flatten the exponential growth curve despite imposing lockdowns and enforcing stringent social distancing regulations.
Clearly, the pandemic has not peaked yet while the number of deaths reported to the WHO has already crossed 274,488 (as at 6:37 pm CEST, 10 May, 2020). Since extensive social distancing is not being practiced in most of the countries, the time-to-peak for the pandemic is still uncertain. On the other front, the slump in global economic growth is weakening many countries’ efforts to fight the virus. Countrywide lockdowns, which include restrictions on movement of people and on economic activities across sectors, might translate into a shrink of around 1% in the global GDP for the year 2020 (Source: The United Nations) if they continue throughout the second quarter. The GDP could shrink further if the restrictions pertaining to economic activities extend till third quarter and if the fiscal responses prove ineffective in supporting income and consumer spending. Rising unemployment across the globe is transforming shocks on the supply side to higher-intensity shocks on the demand side. Since this, if continues, could push a significant proportion of global population into poverty and worsen already high levels of income inequality across countries, governments are planning on easing lockdown restrictions in order to restore economic growth by allowing industrial activity. However, very high risk of increase in rate of disease spread associated with this move remains a big concern for the governments, and thus, has been pushing them to catalyse the process of drug discovery and development. Although the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has already issued emergency use authorizations for hydroxychloroquine sulfate, chloroquine phosphate and for the investigational antiviral remdesivir by Gilead Science, Inc., there are no FDA-approved drugs or vaccines for COVID-19 in the market. With support from governments, companies are making huge investments into research and development in order to gain competitive advantage in this race for drug development. Since some research in immunology indicates towards the possibility of a vaccine for COVID-19 already in existence, many research universities and clinical centers across the globe are focusing their efforts to test the efficacy of candidates. Bacillus Calmette–Guérin, a live tuberculosis vaccine which has been in use for around 100 years, is one such candidate, and is gaining researchers’ attention as they believe this vaccine could prove effective in minimizing the risk of contracting the coronavirus disease. O.P.V, a vaccine for polio, is also being tested as a potential vaccine for fighting COVID-19 pandemic. Although this theory sounds counterintuitive, as these vaccines were developed to protect against an entirely different pathogen, and this is not how vaccines are believed to work, researchers’ understanding of innate immunity, an arm of immunology, makes these vaccines potential candidates in this race. Apart from these vaccines, more than 100 candidates are at various stages of development across laboratories worldwide. Pfizer Inc., for instance, is working with BioNTech SE on four vaccine candidates, each of which represents a different mRNA format and target antigen. While two of these vaccine candidates use a nucleoside modified mRNA (modRNA), the third and the fourth candidate leverages a uridine containing mRNA (uRNA) and a self-amplifying mRNA (saRNA) respectively. After starting phase 1/2 clinical trial in Germany, the companies have started Phase 1/2 trials in the United States as well. Novel approach of these companies, which allows them to assess different mRNA candidates simultaneously, and determine the safest and most effective candidate for COVID-19, has made them one of the few frontrunners in this race for cure. Moderna, Inc., another biotechnology company based in the United States, also has a promising vaccine in development. In April, 2020, the company snared a US$483 million funding from the U.S. government which was aimed at catalysing the process of drug development for COVID-19. The company has received approval from the FDA to begin phase 2 clinical trials for its vaccine candidate and has plans to start phase 3 trials very soon. Although Sinovac Biotech is struggling to find subjects to conduct phase 1 and phase 2 trials on, since China managed to contain the spread while development of this vaccine was still at phase 1, it is in talks with the WHO and regulators in many countries to get approval for conducting clinical trial in countries with rising number of cases, and is thus another leading player with a promising vaccine in pipeline.
However, despite combined and focused efforts by many companies and governments, aimed at catalysing the process of drug development, a cure is somewhat unlikely to enter the market in the very near future. Yet, some vaccine candidates have better chances of early entry into the market than many others. Oxford University, for instance, seems to be leveraging the head start it got by already having a vaccine candidate at hand. Since researchers at the Oxford University were working on vaccine for Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), the cause of which is also coronavirus, they started evolving the technique and started development of vaccine for COVID-19 at the very first hint of the pandemic. Although this is far from certain, it is plausible that their vaccine can become available by as early as September, 2020. At another front, development of antidote for coronavirus is also gaining momentum. Israel Institute for Biological Research (IIBR), for instance, in a significant breakthrough, has developed a monoclonal neutralising antibody which can neutralize the SARS-CoV-2 inside carrier’s body. According to a statement from Israel’s defence minister, IIBR is working towards getting the formula patented, which will be followed by its mass production. Although duration of this pandemic is uncertain and so is the degree of impact it would have had on lives and economy by the time it gets eradicated, such breakthroughs give a positive outlook of the sectors like cellular or molecular biology and biochemistry among others.
Coronavirus Update, 29th April 2020
The spread of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) across the globe continues to gain momentum despite combined and focused efforts by governments and political organizations. Although some countries have started witnessing a drop in the daily number of new cases, flattening the curve of this pandemic still remains a global challenge. According to a data from the World Health Organization (WHO), the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases (as on 2:00 am CEST, May 1, 2020) stood at 3,145,407, with around 221,823 deaths reported. Europe and Americas account for the largest share of the burden as the number of cases in these regions crosses 1,434,649 and 1,291,917 respectively. Where on one hand, countries like Iran, Spain, New Zealand, and Australia are moving towards easing of lockdown restrictions, as part of their plan to restore economic growth after achieving remarkable success in flattening and pulling down the curve, other countries on the other hand are still struggling to fight the pandemic and minimize losses associated with it.According to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), the aftermath of COVID-19 outbreak is expected to last in the U.S. for a fairly long time as many people in the country will remain vulnerable and may get exposed to this virus either this year or over the next year.
The impact of this pandemic is not confined just to the people, who continue to face hardships due to a blow on their source(s) of earning, since industrial growth across the globe is witnessing a slump which might take them a couple of years to recoup from. Although countrywide lockdowns and self-isolation rules by the governments have disrupted the industrial activity across all countries, the global travel and tourism industry has totally decimated by this pandemic outbreak. Hotels, restaurants, and airline companies have witnessed a drastic decline in their revenues, leading to a huge number of layoffs. According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), an estimated 1.1 million flight cancellations are predicted by June 30, 2020 with the total loss in passenger revenue expected to total to $252 billion for this year.
Another industry that has faced a severe disruption is the already declining automotive industry. Nationwide lockdowns have made it difficult for automakers to continue production as this does not align well with governments’ guidelines associated with maintaining social distancing. Since a major share of the global automobile manufacturing heavily or solely relies on China for auto parts, global supply chain disruption, owing to this pandemic, has forced these companies to halt their production. In March, 2020, global auto giants- General Motors, Ford, and Fiat Chrysler- temporarily closed down their U.S. facilities as part of their effort to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus and plan on resuming some part of their manufacturing at their U.S.-based facilities by May 18. However, Daimler and Merced-Benz are some of the automakers which have already resumed activity at some of their plants with limited number of workers. Since governments continue to remain intolerant towards non-compliance with social-distancing and sanitization directives issued by them, these automakers are adopting stricter new protocols, which include mandatory wearing of face masks and temperature checks at entry gates, in order to comply with such directives and reduce the spread of the virus.
As the impact of this pandemic on these industries continues to scale up, other industrial sectors aligned to these industries, and to resources whose availability has been affected by the virus outbreak, are also taking the fall due to what is called a domino effect. According to the International Energy Agency’s latest oil market forecast, global oil demand is projected to decline in 2020, with expected fall to around 90,000 barrels a day as compared to the last year, as this pandemic has constricted travel and global economic activity.
While other economies are also facing repercussions of the virus, the impact of COVID-19 on China’s economy will have a major impact on the global oil and gas industry. Since China accounted for more than 80% of the global oil demand in 2019, deep contraction in the country’s oil consumption, coupled with major disruptions in the global travel and trade, are driving down the growth of the oil and gas industry. Restrictions on the movement of people and goods within countries, due to lockdowns imposed by the governments, have dramatically reduced the demand for transport fuels. In conjunction to this, very low demand for jet fuel, majorly attributed to a halt on civil aviation sector, is also affecting the global oil and gas industry. Since the time it would take the governments to mitigate this virus is still uncertain, the outlook of the global economy over the short and medium term remains shady. Although huge debts being taken by many countries, in order to fight this pandemic and revive their industrial sectors thereafter, might look like a part of a good revival plan in the short term, very high debt to GDP ratio might pose other severe threats over the period.
Coronavirus Update, 22th April 2020
Seeing the other side of the coin!
Who is benefiting from the COVID-19 outbreak?
The COVID19 outbreak was declared as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on 30 January 2020 and later on March 11th, 2020, The World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic causing an immense impact on the lives of people and the business and markets around the globe. Recently the total number of coronavirus cases crossed the 2 million mark globally, with the death count at more than 128,000, and these figures are expected to rise further. The good news is that the rate of recovery is improving and the coronavirus curve seems to be flattening aided by some strict measures by federal governments. As the countries across the globe continue to tackle the coronavirus (COVID – 19) pandemic, the businesses and stock market are facing an unprecedented situation. The effect of COVID 19 on the major countries has been boundless and with the forced lockdowns and low consumer confidence, the businesses are facing a huge task to remain operational while meeting their costs. Recently the International Monetary Fund has already suggested that the world has entered into a recession which would be far worse than the 2008 financial crises, and most of the major economies will be facing their biggest challenges in the year ahead.
However, though there are millions of businesses and individuals who are under the risk of financial crises, but there are some parts of the industry that are benefited from the changes forced on society in the recent time. Let’s discuss some of them.
Video Communication Platforms
Businesses and educational institutes in the various parts of the world are responding to the current pandemic by implementing travel restrictions and work from home and remote (online) learning policies. To secure business activity during the time of crises, companies are using easy to use communication tools to enable remote work and learning and video conferencing and group chat software are widely adopted. In other words, COVID-19 is expected to have a significant impact on how companies or organizations view remote work. Even, guidelines are also being laid out by health and government authorities to mandate work from home. Major giants are investing heavily to take the competitive edge in the e-learning market. Also, communication technology players like Zoom and Microsoft are witnessing a substantial increase in the level of subscription in recent times. For instance, Microsoft reported that its Teams added nearly 12 million new users as remote workers increases during the pandemic. Also, the company recently launched a comprehensive COVID-19 resource to provide updated, cross-company information. Further, UNICEF and Microsoft launched a global learning platform to help and address the COVID-19 crisis.
Education institutions like colleges and universities are shut down globally as they are at a higher risk of spreading the disease due to the dense student population. In response to it, institutions are converting in-person curriculums into online courses and publish it in virtual classroom solutions which are allowing million of students to continue their education and learning from home. Video conferencing based remote learning helps in keeping the student engaged with features like annotation, break out rooms, and even group chats among others. Many universities are already leveraging video conferencing as one of the key elements of their educational system. For instance, Arizona State University (ASU), tests video conference in March 2020 and held nearly 170 classes with more than seven thousand students using Zoom. Also, the University of Bologna, switched nearly 90% of its courses to online using Microsoft Teams for its 80,000 students. As a result of such initiative, the subscription in online platforms is out breaking leading to a high risk of data security. As the world is focussing on the health and economic threats posed by COVID-19, cyber criminals around the world undoubtedly are capitalizing on this crisis, and not only businesses are being targeted but end-users are also being tricked, which is expected to boost the investment on cybersecurity by IT companies.
Cloud Computing
Today the use of mobile phones has made accessing social media, movies, and games a lot easier, the sheer variety of new games are online platforms have ensured that the people won’t run out of options during the lockdown period. Online media service provider companies like Netflix Inc. is now becoming even more important in the daily lives of people forced to stay at home and in front of their televisions. The rising interests and popularity in the video game industry and the increasing awareness about e-Sports will be the major driving factors of the e-Sports market. Also, many online multiplayer games such as PUBG, Call of Duty Mobile, and Counter-Strike have social media elements where players are enabled with the option to chat and team up with others. As a result, mobile-based online gaming platforms around the globe are reporting an exponential jump in its user base in March 2020. Also, the budding investments and the introduction of high prize pools of such tournaments will draw more participation, thus boosting the demand for this market.
Online Grocery and Food Delivery
Traditional industries such as manufacturing and travel & tourism have suffered immense losses from the shutdown policies around the globe. Such policies have indirectly benefitted online services, as mandatory isolation, restriction in movements have forced people to stay at home. During such time going to the offline distribution channel such as supermarkets, hyper marts seemed full of risk which is driving the growth of the online grocery shopping market. In addition, due to the closure of restaurant dine-in services in various parts of the world to avoid social gathering, online food ordering is now becoming a crucial business model for many players. As a result, online food delivery is widely adopted and players are now collaborating with manufacturing giants to deliver necessary products to its customers. For instance, in India, Domino’s Pizza partnered with ITC to deliver essential commodities such as wheat and spices to customers during the lockdown period. Also, Uber, BigBasket, and Flipkart partnered to deliver everyday essentials to people amid the ongoing COVID-19 lockdown.
Coronavirus Update, 15th April 2020
The total number of coronavirus cases crossed 2 million mark today, with the death count standing at 126,776. The good news is that the rate of recovery is improving and the curve seems to be flattening aided by some strict measures by federal governments. As the countries across the globe continue to tackle the coronavirus (COVID – 19) pandemic, the businesses are facing unprecedented situation. Concerns over fixed cost, employee retention, optimizing operational cost, and focus on revenue maximization despite the uncertainty over existing deals and contracts are some of the major issues that businesses across the globe are trying to mitigate. From forced lockdowns, to suspension of air and land travel, and movement restrictions, to policies enabling greater use of face masks. The fiscal stimulus and revival package continues to maintain some stability, but it may have an impact only in short term.
For some of the major economies such as the U.S., and United Kingdom the COVID infection curve still remains far from flattening, while India with a huge population seems to be doing better than most of the western counterparts aided by early screening and strict lockdown measures. Germany, Spain and Italy continue to remain the European hotspots for the coronavirus infection, while Middle Eastern region seem to be better placed though major economies are facing onslaught from declining oil prices which have declined to $19.81 as of April 14th 2020 from a high of $63.87 on 17th April 2019.
The chart below shows the total infections over the last one week in some of the biggest economies across the world. The U.S. which has recorded the most number of cases worldwide is still following the same trajectory. The situation in New York is worrisome with the state accounting for close to 33% of the total cases recorded in the country, though the tough measures with respect to social distancing and more tests seem to be working. As per the Governor Andrew Cuomo, the hospitalizations and deaths have both declined. It is imperative that the trend is sustained to ensure the curve has started flattening. The week also brought back focus on hydroxychloroquine, which has been touted as one of the treatment for COVID symptoms, with NIH conducting clinical trials. Big pharma companies and researchers are working towards the vaccine, but most of the estimates are expecting a timeframe of 12-18 months before it is available for widespread treatment.
Moving to Europe, Spain, Italy and France are worst hit by the pandemic accounting for 25% of the total number of cases of the total infections recorded in the top 5 countries. Italy has now recorded more than 21 thousand deaths, followed by Spain with 18,255 deaths, and France with more than 143 thousand cases and 15 thousand deaths. The UK is yet to reach peak with daily deaths and number of new infections seemingly increasing. The country has more than 81 thousand active cases as of April 14th 2020, and has recorded 12,107 deaths.
The Asia Pacific countries have been performing better as compared to the western economies. China has recovered with daily new cases being recorded in double-digits. Wuhan restrictions have been lifted and as per the reports, most of the city is now buzzing with economic activity. South Korea is continuing with the central policy of testing to identify the quantum of infection. Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe declared emergency for a month due to the measures being adopted so far were insufficient to control the infections. India, which has been relatively doing well due to early screening and complete lockdown is also witnessing the infections doubling rate reducing to 4.1 days from the earlier 7 days. The Prime Minister announced the existing lockdown to extend from 14th April 2020 to 3rd May 2020, with relaxations after 20th April 2020 for the areas which have been identified as COVID free zones.
The effect of COVID 19 on the major economies has been enormous. With forced lockdowns and low consumer confidence, the businesses are facing huge uphill task to remain operational while meeting their fixed costs. The IMF has already suggested that world has entered into recession which would be worst since the depression, and most of the major economies will be facing their biggest challenges in the year ahead.
The impact of the pandemic in conjunction with the GDP forecast, let’s analyze some major industries. Even though the world economy is expected to rebound next year, the shockwave due to the slowdown is going to be huge.
Manufacturing and Construction
The global slowdown is going to have a significant impact on the manufacturing industry. China being the global manufacturing hub has slowed with global companies cutting down or cancelling the existing orders. The companies are also looking for other avenues or shifting the production facilities out of the country due to the country being the focal point of the virus pandemic. The fixed cost remains high and the uncertainty in the global markets would continue to affect the industry over the 1st half of the next year. The large bailouts and stimulus packages will affect the spending in the construction sector. The industry has been facing challenges and with job losses and shrinking bank credit, the revival seems difficult in the short-term.
Communication and Technology
The demand for consumer electronics will remain slow with contracting supply chains. The revival depends on the economic improvement which seems to be low for the consumer confidence to pick-up. The replacement of existing products would remain stagnant. The new product launches would take time to reach the 2019 levels, as the companies would focus on strengthening the existing position in the times of uncertainty. The extension of lockdowns, WFH policies and the need for entertainment is creating the need for managing a large chunk of data, driven by need for storage requirements. The data center industry will continue to maintain the momentum but the demand for new data centers will be hampered by the shrinking IT budgets and low expenditure outlook.
Retail
The impact of COVID on retail industry is bare minimum as most of the essential items are sold through both online and offline retailers. Most of the countries into lockdown have allowed the online retail stores to continue remain open, the brick and mortar stores are being allowed to operate if they are following social distancing parameters. The e-commerce channel would continue to drive the momentum of the retail sales.
Advanced Technologies
Advanced technologies such as 3D printing, nanotech and next generation imaging should remain robust. The FDA approved a 3D printed mask design and the immediate focus is on ramping up the PPE production to assist the first line responders. The adoption of nanotech should remain stable driven by the research and development to identify the potential of the technology for a wide range of applications. The healthcare sector should continue to witness product launches and advanced imaging solutions.
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Coronavirus Update, 7th April 2020
The rising novel coronavirus pandemic has affected the world on a societal as well economic front. Governments across the globe are trying to deal with the challenges that this struggle has brought with it. As per the latest numbers by John Hopkins University, which is tracking the coronavirus cases across the globe, over 1.3 million positive cases have been reported by the 7th of April 2020 with 78,269 causalities. 292,467 people globally have recovered from the disease as of now. The pandemic which is reported to have been originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan has spread to 211 countries across the globe as reported by the World Health Organization.
Positive cases rising by the day
As can be seen in the snapshot below, the United States is the worst affected region in terms of number of cases, with positive cases in the region climbing to 368,449 till date. While, the European region has become a hotspot for the disease. Major economies in the region such as Italy, Spain, Germany, and the United Kingdom appear to be the most affected. Italy has suffered the highest deaths with the death count at 16,253 which is majorly being attributed to a high geriatric population as the disease seems to worst affect the elderly population having a weaker immune system as compared to the younger population. Although, the country is now reporting a lower number of new cases every day. On the other hand, Spain is also witnessing a high number of new cases with more than 5,000 new cases reported in the last 24 hours. The country is also witnessing a high death toll with 13,798 reported deaths till 7th April 2020. The daily death count increased to 743 on 6th April 2020 after the country reported a decrease in deaths for 4 consecutive days.
The United Kingdom which appeared to be less affected as compared to its other European counterparts has witnessed a sudden rise in the number of cases in the last 10 days from 29th march till 7th April 2020 with new cases increasing at an alarming rate with each passing day. The country reported 621 deaths in the last 24 hours. Boris Johnson, the British Prime Minister who himself has been tested positive for COVID-19 and has been transferred to intensive care, has vowed to ramp up testing to tackle the pandemic.
Japan, another nation which is witnessing a steady rise in the number of positive COVID-19 cases, declared a state of emergency targeting the country capital Tokyo and 6 other prefectures after the city witnessed a sudden surge in positive coronavirus cases.
Positive signs and flattening the curve
While the US, France, and UK and few other major affected countries are still reporting increase in the number of cases every day, latest numbers from some regions specifically Italy, Spain, Iran, and Germany which seemed to be the most affected offer some hope. Going by the latest reports as on 7th April 2020, all these countries have reported a dip in the number of new cases in the last 5 days. Though it is still early to make a judgement and a high number of new cases are being reported every day, the decline in the number of new cases in these European nations provide a ray of hope to the other parts of the world dealing with this pandemic.
A major term being used in this time is “flattening the curve” which basically refers to reducing the number of new cases with each passing day. A decline in the number of new cases from the previous day will be represented on a trend line as the name itself “flat”. On a column chart it will be represented by a downward trend. Countries are working towards flattening this curve and some have started succeeding with China leading by example, and similar trends being observed in South Korea, Italy, Spain, and Iran providing encouraging signs to the rest of the world.
Economic Impact
Countries across the globe are implementing total and partial lockdowns, state curfews, mass testing, and travel bans to deal with this global issue. The novel coronavirus along with the threat that it has brought with itself to the human population has also given rise to other major problems such as threat to economies and livelihood of a large part of the global population. Economies across the globe have started witnessing slowdown and major organizations such as the UN, WHO, and World Bank fearing the worst is yet to come. The United Nations recently in a trade report analyzed that the entire world economy is facing a threat of recession with the two likely exceptions: India and China. Top economists believe the world has already entered into recession and a latest poll by Reuters between the16th and 19th of March 2020 which saw a response from 41 economies also opined the same.
The pandemic has affected almost all industry sectors with travel and tourism being one of the worst affected. As various regions are witnessing mass lockdowns the manufacturing sector has also taken a hit with companies operating at minimum capacity and focusing on essential goods right now. Although various sectors have been affected by this global crisis, the food and beverage, healthcare, and agriculture sectors are witnessing a high demand being the essential components to support the need of the large global population.
Among this crisis, major economies as well as other parts of the world have particularly struggled in dealing with the high demand for hospital supplies needed to attend to a large patient count. Many countries have reported shortage of medical supplies and equipment which is leading to high death toll and is proving to be a major obstacle in dealing with this pandemic. The World Health Organization as per March 1st 2020 has already shipped nearly half a million sets of protective equipment to 47 countries. The United States government has witnessed a shortage of medical supplies in dealing with the exponentially rising number of coronavirus cases in the country. President Donald Trump on March 18th, 2020 stated that his government will invoke Defense Protection Act that will give the Federal Government sweeping power to ramp manufacturing capacity keeping in view the shortage of hospital supplies as suggested by the healthcare experts. This move will help the government to force private companies to manufacture specific products that can help the government to deal with this nationwide crisis.
Other regions across the globe are taking hep from medical experts along with importing medical supplies to help their medical staff stay safe while taking care of the patients. Furthermore, protective gears such as masks and hand sanitizers are being supplied to common people to curb the spread of the disease.
Long term impact
Most studies suggest that the nearest vaccines for the disease are atleast 12 to 18 months away. Social and economic impact are yet to be assessed. Though it is believed it might take another year for the world to completely recover on a health as well as economic front. While it is still too early to predict the long term impact that this pandemic will have on the world, social distancing, mass testing and adhering to government, WHO, and healthcare organization guidelines seem to be the safest bet to tackle the present situation in order to contain the virus and minimizing its long term impact.
Aseptic Packaging, An Eco-Friendly Way of Packaging
BlogThe aseptic packaging is a specialized manufacturing process in which food, pharmaceutical, or other contents are sterilized separately from the packaging. The aseptic packaging uses aseptic processing which is a processing technique where commercially thermally sterilized liquid products majorly medicine and food are packaged into previously sterilized containers under the sterile conditions to produce shelf-stable products that do not require refrigeration. It involves three steps thermal sterilization of the product, sterilization of the packaging material, and conservation of sterility during packaging. Most of the aseptic packaging uses ultra-high temperature (UHT) sterilization to sterilize the food product before it is packaged. The ultra-high temperature sterilization allows faster processing and better retention of sensory and nutritional characteristics. The containers are required to sterilize for killing microorganisms present on the container during forming and transport and before filling. The aseptic packaging is used for various food products and beverages like soup, milk, puddings and many more. The aseptic packaging is even used for the pharmaceutical industry for ensuring that medications aren’t polluted with bacteria. The aseptic packaging uses a variety of materials like paper, plastic, glass, and metal. The advancing technology in the packaging industry and high utilization of packaging by different industry verticals is expected to grow the market share of the Packaging Industry.
Sterilization Agents are: –
Heat
The heat is used as the sterilant for aseptic systems as a natural extension of thermal processing. The product supply lines and fillers are commonly sterilized by ‘moist’ heat in the form of hot water or saturated steam under pressure. Systems employing moist heat are frequently sterilized at temperatures ranging from 121°C to 129°C, while 176°C to 232°C is used for sterilization by dry heat.
Chemicals
Hydrogen peroxide is majorly used a chemical sterilant. Other types of chemicals are used for sterilants like various acids, ethanol, ethylene oxide, and peracetic acid.
Radiation
The gamma radiation has been used over the decades to decontaminate packaging materials for use in aseptic systems for packing acid and acidified food. Due to the penetrating power of gamma-radiation, packages are used in bulk amounts at the same time at commercial irradiators. The other types of radiation are not widely used in aseptic systems due to low penetration and problems associated with shadowing, limit the use of UV-C for aseptic systems packaging of low acid food.
Advantages of Aseptic Packaging: –
Increased Shelf life
The aseptic packaging helps in increasing the shelf life of food and beverage products and this too without the use of refrigeration. The increase in product lifespan helps in keeping the product fresh for a longer period and for providing safe and protective measures from the external environment. The increase in shelf life helps in giving manufacturers extra time for selling their products on the retailer’s shelves. It provides customers with more time for the consumption of food or beverage before the product expires. The increased use of aseptic packaging for increasing the shelf life is increasing the demand in the aseptic packaging market.
Reduces Shipping and Distribution Cost
The aseptic packaging helps in reducing shipping and distribution costs, as aseptic packaging uses lightweight and compact materials as compared to traditional packaging types. This helps manufacturers to save costs by reducing the shipping weight and by eliminating the need to refrigerate products especially for the products that require cooler environments during distribution. The use of unique materials in aseptic packaging can help in storing selective products at ambient temperatures. This feature of aseptic packaging helps in reducing costs.
Eco-Friendly
The aseptic packaging is eco-friendly as it uses a sustainable method. The aseptic packaging uses renewable resources like paper, cartons, etc. the increasing awareness among people regarding environmental concerns like climate change and global warming is resulting in more people opting for eco-friendly products. The governments are imposing strict rules and regulations for improving the environment; this is further making manufacturers use e renewable and sustainable methods for manufacturing. The increased use of eco-friendly packaging is growing the aseptic packaging market share.
No Preservatives Required
There are no need preservatives in aseptic packaging as the sterilization process protects against bacteria. The increasing demand for packaging techniques that are capable of providing longer shelf life and quality of food, beverage, dairy products, and medicines without the need for adding preservatives is growing the demand for aseptic packaging.
Maintain Quality Standards
The aseptic packaging helps in maintaining the quality of food, beverage, and medicines. It maintains the taste, smell, and nutritional values of the food. This helps in not compromising with foods' overall quality and providing fresh food to the consumer. The food contains more nutrients due to less heat damage. No preservatives are added.
Other Advantages
The aseptic packaging has more advantages like low packaging to product ratio. It means more of the product can be stored then the packaging material. It has high storage efficiency as brick shapes are easier to pack in bulk than cans or jars. It is convenient, portable and light to transport.
Choosing Aseptic Packaging
Choosing the aseptic package depends upon the type of aseptic packs and types of aseptic packaging material based on requirements. Types of Aseptic Pack include bags and pouches, cups and tray, bottles and jars, metal cans, plastic cans, and composite cans. The Bags and Pouchesand is used inthe three-sided sealed pouch are used for aseptic packaging of products up to particle sizes of 12ounces and bag sizes from 1-5 liters. Pillow pouches are used for milk. The bags and pouches can be used for storing vegetables and fruits. The Cups and Traysare used pre-made or formed, filled, and sealed in thermoform/fill/seal machines. They are suitable for microwave heating. Bottles and Jars are used for containing baby food, drinks, liquid, milk and many more. Nowadays the company is using returnable bottles for sustainable use. The metals cans are used for the beverage. The aseptic packaging materials should be compatible with the product intended to be packed. It is important to have the physical integrity of the package for assuming containment of the product and maintenance of sterility. The packaging material should be able to withstand sterilization and be compatible with the methods of sterilization. The packaging material should protect the product from oxygen and retain the aroma of the product.