ASX has yet to impute the true economic effects of n-cov (or COVID-19) , instead choosing to focus on the madness occurring across the Atlantic.
n-cov is a big deal to Australia! Sobering thought....fasten your seat belts its going to get bumpy..
Coronavirus and its significance to Australia
Talking of the economic impact of coronavirus on Australia, it could hit property markets, tourism, education and exports in Australia. A report from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) last year noted that a severe economic downturn in China could cost $140 billion to Australia’s economy along with 550,000 job losses.
PWC’s analysis was based on a slowdown in the Chinese economy from 6.5 percent to under 3 percent. Following the coronavirus outbreak, ratings agency S&P expects the Chinese economy to grow at 5 percent, down from its previous prediction of 5.7 percent. The rating agency expects the majority of impact in the first quarter.
China is Australia’s biggest trading partner, accounting for about a third of all exports. Though Australia has benefited from this relationship, it also leaves the continent vulnerable to any downturn in the Chinese economy.
Talking of coronavirus’ economic impact on Australia’s tourism and education sector, Chinese tourists and students account for 15 to 16 percent of total visitors to Australia. Moreover, they spend more lavishly than any other visitors to Australia.
The Chinese tourist is important to the Australia economic and sector not only because of the numbers of tourist but also just how much they spend while here - this is on a total basis and also average per person. They eclipse the US, UK, NZ & Japan combined #******
Australia’s education sector, which would also take a hit, contributed $34 billion to the domestic economy in 2018. Australian universities get a significant amount of money from foreign students, especially Chinese students. Moreover, more than one in four students across Australia are foreign students. At five major universities in the country, over 30 percent are from China.
