Coronavirus-driven supply chain disruptions are having cash flow implications for the US protein sector due to increased operating costs and less efficient plants, Fitch Ratings says.

At the recent G20 Finance Ministers meeting in Riyadh, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire — a staunch advocate of deepening economic integration — posed a question which just a few years ago would have seemed inconceivable:

‘Do we want to still depend at the level of 90 per cent or 95 per cent on the supply chain of China for the automobile industry, for the drug industry, for the aeronautical industry or do we draw the consequences of that situation to build new factories, new productions, and to be more independent and sovereign?

That’s not protectionism — that’s just the necessity of being sovereign and independent from an industrial point of view’

As Australia was swept by panic buying and medical shortages this year, the scenes were eerily familiar for one of the country's most senior military planners.

In a secret meeting only a year earlier, the Defence Department's director of preparedness Cheryl Durrant and a group of Australian industry leaders had predicted a strikingly similar scenario.

"We predicted the unpredictable," says Ms Durrant, who left the department in January.

As distracted corporate executives close offices, plants and warehouses to reduce COVID-19 spread, other worrisome risks are emerging at these now-idle facilities. In addition to fires, vandalism and theft, spring flood season is beginning in the U.S., and hurricane season starts in a mere two months, leaving understaffed facilities potentially vulnerable. Additionally, earthquakes and tornadoes have continued to occur during the pandemic, as the U.S. has seen recently.

Celebrities and politicians with large social media followings are proving to be key distributors of disinformation relating to coronavirus, according to a study that suggests the factcheckers and mainstream news outlets are struggling to compete with the reach of influencers.

"Taking care of your mind as well as your body is really important while staying at home because of coronavirus (COVID-19). You may feel bored, frustrated or lonely. You may also be low, worried or anxious, or concerned about your finances, your health or those close to you."

This document is a guide on business continuity planning for enterprises, especially for the small and medium sized enterprises in Singapore, to help them deal with the COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) outbreak in China.

Interesting simulations showing how social distancing measures will affect the spread of the virus and "flatten the curve".

In the last decade, a number of organizations have been rocked by unforeseen supply-chain vulnerabilities and disruptions, leading to recalls costing hundreds of millions of dollars in industries ranging from pharmaceuticals and consumer goods to electronics and automotive. And multiple government organizations and private businesses have struggled with cybersecurity breaches, losing critical intellectual property due to failures in the supplier ecosystem.

The inescapable fact is we’ve become too accustomed to the idea of risk without considering the downsides, because we believe everything will work out just fine. The irony of a Hollywood industry that falls back on low-risk sequels while promoting storylines where protagonists shoot for the moon and never miss should perhaps be questioned a little more closely.