Construction workers have been briefed about the coronavirus and building sites across the country are putting structures in place should Covid-19 hit and force them to quarantine workers and shut down sites.
Added to that the export shutdown in the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak,Wuhan – the Chinese hub for supplying metal, mechanical, electrical, electronics and solar end products – as well as Italy’s shutdown – is also impacting on the bottom line of construction and development sites in South Africa.
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Experts say the lockdown in the East is affecting supply of, among others, lifts, escalator parts, bathroom and kitchen finishings, tiles, generators, transformers and glass.
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Developers on contract deadlines, unable to source materials from regular suppliers, have been left scrambling to find other options – at added cost.
It’s a lose-lose, inflationary situation.
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This material impact on the bottom line is the last thing the industry, already hard hit by a stuttering economy and bound together by red tape, needs.
Experts also aver the virus might affect the tourism industry; Cape Town’s short-term rental market could be negatively impacted by a major slow-down in visitors.
