Was looking at respiratory masks, Corona virus & would eBay do if it had to rely on USA sellers?

[prettywoman-2012]

So, just out of curiosity, and because of the confirmed Corona virus cases now being at 8 (to be expected to rise), I thought I would run a search for respiratory masks. Many search results came up, some for respiratory paper masks, and others that look like or are called a gas mask. So far so good, but when I looked at where the seller is located, in almost all cases, the item was listed as shipping from - China. 

This brings up some thoughts. Obviously, I will not order one from China, although the CDC says the virus will not survive on objects, exposed to air, for more than 48 hrs. But still. The distance is too big and if anything is wrong with the item, you cannot pay the highly expensive returns.  Several of the sellers I looked at are "currently away." Hmm, I hope they are not ill or are otherwise affected by the virus. I just read in the news that China restricted the free movement of people - those who are not suspected of harboring the vius - to only venture outside when they are either working in grocery stores or healthcare, or service-type jobs, e.g. gas station.  Most other people are told to stay home and only every second day can 1 person from each home, go shopping. 

While these thoughts were from the buyer's perspective, there are other things that pop into mind: what if, for some reason, all the goods coming from infected areas - currently, 23 countries are on the list, with varying numbers of infected patients, and 259 dead / 12,800 infected in China alone - would be banned from entering the U.S.A.? Aside from the effects of such situation on the Chinese people or Chinese eBay sellers, would such a temporary ban on their producst affect the ebay.usa marketplace, in that it would be, even for a short period of time, dominated by U.S.A. sellers' listings? 

A ban on all items shipped from China will probably never matrialize;  but just out of curiosity, what would eBay do if, albeit for just a few days, it would have to rely on USA sellers solely (on this USA site)? Would we all be selling more? 

PW

[chapeau-noir]

eBay would never ban China imports, and even if they did, Wenig enabled warehousing of China products here in the US - so I suspect the China sellers would merrily just carry on.

[prettywoman-2012]

I wanted to add, this is apparently a  HUGE humanitarian crisis and regardless of the victims' nationality, my heart goes out to everyone who lost, or will lose a loved one to this horrible respiratory infection. But wanted to restrict my above post to the selling-related issues. 

PW

[prettywoman-2012]

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@chapeau-noir wrote:

eBay would never ban China imports, and even if they did, Wenig enabled warehousing of China products here in the US - so I suspect the China sellers would merrily just carry on.

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Yes, for the items already within the U.S.A. - I can see how those are going to be shipped as if nothing happened. But most of the sellers I looked at in the search are listed as "Shipping from China." Would their listing state this, if their stock would already be present in our country? 

PW

[my-cottage-books-and-antiques]

prettywoman,
I don't know what it would do to ebay, but the bigger questions is : what would it do to ecommerce generally? For a little off ebay perspective:

https://www.marketplacepulse.com/articles/chinese-sellers-outnumber-us-sellers-on-amazoncom

[tealt]

I have been following news about the pandemic and feel for the people of Wuhan and surrounding cities now under lock down.  How would it feel to live under those circumstances?

I also wondered about the effect of the pandemic on eBay's multitude of Chinese sellers.  Obviously, commerce of any sort has almost stopped in the Wuhan area.  But what about the rest of the country?  What about shipping?  Many commercial air carriers are cancelling or severely restricting flights to and from China as a whole.  What about air freight carriers and ocean-going shipping?

I wonder if management at eBay has given any thought to the issue of the company's reliance on Chinese sellers? 

[chapeau-noir]

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@tealt wrote:

I have been following news about the pandemic and feel for the people of Wuhan and surrounding cities now under lock down.  How would it feel to live under those circumstances?

I also wondered about the effect of the pandemic on eBay's multitude of Chinese sellers.  Obviously, commerce of any sort has almost stopped in the Wuhan area.  But what about the rest of the country?  What about shipping?  Many commercial air carriers are cancelling or severely restricting flights to and from China as a whole.  What about air freight carriers and ocean-going shipping?

I wonder if management at eBay has given any thought to the issue of the company's reliance on Chinese sellers? 

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This is where any restriction in goods is going to be felt - on actual exports/imports, and this would be a worldwide issue.  I was answering the original question which was eBay banning China sales. A lot of stuff is shipped here not by country mail services but by freight.

[southern*sweet*tea]

Just this flu season (29 Sept 2019- present)  there have been 10000 deaths in the US alone from the flu. Some of them could have been Ebay sellers.  Does Ebay care? Of course not.

As to the Wuhan Coronavirus, I doubt anyone at Ebay really cares. I'm sure there are warehouses in the US packed full to the rafters of merchandise that will last for some time.  Only if it runs out will they start to panic. The folks at Ebay can't think that far ahead.

As to worrying about this virus here in the US, I am paying close attention, but  I'm not worried about it at this point in time.  I've had masks, gloves, etc. stored for some time since I believe in being prepared as best as I can for different types of situations.

My heart goes out to those affected, especially those in China. It really is a humanitarian disaster.

[prettywoman-2012]

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@chapeau-noir wrote:

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@tealt wrote:

I have been following news about the pandemic and feel for the people of Wuhan and surrounding cities now under lock down.  How would it feel to live under those circumstances?

I also wondered about the effect of the pandemic on eBay's multitude of Chinese sellers.  Obviously, commerce of any sort has almost stopped in the Wuhan area.  But what about the rest of the country?  What about shipping?  Many commercial air carriers are cancelling or severely restricting flights to and from China as a whole.  What about air freight carriers and ocean-going shipping?

I wonder if management at eBay has given any thought to the issue of the company's reliance on Chinese sellers? 

---

This is where any restriction in goods is going to be felt - on actual exports/imports, and this would be a worldwide issue.  I was answering the original question which was eBay banning China sales. A lot of stuff is shipped here not by country mail services but by freight.

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Sorry, mon ami (or amie), but that is not what the original question was about. Can you please read it again? I did not say a word about EBAY banning Chinese sellers - that would be not in their jurusdiction to do. Only the U.S.A. Gov. can make such decisions as banning somebody or something from entering our country. Since the ban for non-U.S.A. citizens to travel to the U.S.A. will go into effect tomorrow, Sunday, my original post was about an imaginary situation where, similar to banning tourism from China, for a short time they would also ban imports. But, as you can see, I myself said that this is a very unlikely scenario. 

Cheers and bon nuit

PW

[prettywoman-2012]

@my-cottage-books-and-antiques Thank you for the link to that article. Some interesting STATS. I am quite surprised to see the high ratio of Chinese sellers on the River. I always knew there are many who sell there, just did not know how many. 

Can you please elaborate, what would it do to OUR economy if some of those sellers could not participate in selling in the U.S.A., for what is hopefully, a short time period (depending on how the pandemic evolves)? I do understand what it could do to CHINESE economy, and to the RIver itself, if all of a sudden the selling from China would slow down or stop; just not how exactly would it affect the U.S. economy. Where is Mr. Mnuchin when we need him? He could probably explain the best. But a penny for your thoughts!

PW

P.s, Following the news, I have noticed that some people commented on several U.S. companies pulling out from China, currently, which is a temporary safety measure. There was mention of automakers, Apple, Google, etc. and many French, British, etc. manufactureres. But a well-known Hong Kong economist said that most companies would not consider losing the biggest market they have (China) for good, so he said China will rebound. 

[prettywoman-2012]

@tealt wrote:
I have been following news about the pandemic and feel for the people of Wuhan and surrounding cities now under lock down.  How would it feel to live under those circumstances?

I agree, it must be terrible to not being able to leave one's home, and only allowed to do so on every second day, for one person / household. But if we do not do anything to protect people from the spreading of this virus, it could also happen in other countries.  Australia quaranteens returning citizens on an island, and I was wondering, are those people going to be isolated from ONE ANOTHER, while eating and going about daily activities, like taking a shower, grabbing their laundry, etc. - how can they prevent the currently non-infected people from getting it from those who are carrying the virus? Hmm.

@tealt wrote:
I also wondered about the effect of the pandemic on eBay's multitude of Chinese sellers.  Obviously, commerce of any sort has almost stopped in the Wuhan area.  But what about the rest of the country?  

It looks like the quaranteening or "stay put" order is not restricted to Wuhan anymore, but some other parts of China, too. And cases have now been reported in ALL mainland China territories, including TIbet. 

@tealt wrote: I wonder if management at eBay has given any thought to the issue of the company's reliance on Chinese sellers? 

Oh, I am certain they have - as have many other companies whose business is affected. It is just that currently, nobody knows it how long this will last and what is the best way of preventing the spread in their respective countries, so what policies they have to follow or base their next strategic step on. 

@tealt wrote: What about shipping?  Many commercial air carriers are cancelling or severely restricting flights to and from China as a whole.  What about air freight carriers and ocean-going shipping?

I am not sure. Great questions! It looks like the virus cannot - currently - survive on cold surface for more than 2 days, so unless those ships or planes carry a vial of live virus that somehow gets in contact with the customs officers and other personnel, that should be safe? Too early to tell. But like you, I surely hope we do not find out too late that the preventative measures were miscalculated. 

PW

[tealt]

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@prettywoman-2012 wrote:

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@chapeau-noir wrote:

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@tealt wrote:

I have been following news about the pandemic and feel for the people of Wuhan and surrounding cities now under lock down.  How would it feel to live under those circumstances?

I also wondered about the effect of the pandemic on eBay's multitude of Chinese sellers.  Obviously, commerce of any sort has almost stopped in the Wuhan area.  But what about the rest of the country?  What about shipping?  Many commercial air carriers are cancelling or severely restricting flights to and from China as a whole.  What about air freight carriers and ocean-going shipping?

I wonder if management at eBay has given any thought to the issue of the company's reliance on Chinese sellers? 

---

This is where any restriction in goods is going to be felt - on actual exports/imports, and this would be a worldwide issue.  I was answering the original question which was eBay banning China sales. A lot of stuff is shipped here not by country mail services but by freight.

---

Sorry, mon ami (or amie), but that is not what the original question was about. Can you please read it again? I did not say a word about EBAY banning Chinese sellers - that would be not in their jurusdiction to do. Only the U.S.A. Gov. can make such decisions as banning somebody or something from entering our country. Since the ban for non-U.S.A. citizens to travel to the U.S.A. will go into effect tomorrow, Sunday, my original post was about an imaginary situation where, similar to banning tourism from China, for a short time they would also ban imports. But, as you can see, I myself said that this is a very unlikely scenario. 

Cheers and bon nuit

PW

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EBay could certainly ban Chinese sellers from selling on eBay.  It is eBay's site, eBay makes the rules.  Although, I'm guessing that eBay would never do this.

There are/have been US e-commerce sites that do not/have not allowed international sellers.

As far a goods entering the country, you are correct.  That is the federal government's decision.

[my-cottage-books-and-antiques]

I'm not an economist. My understanding is we are largely a consumer economy, and so I think any extended period without Chinese merchandise flowing into the US would have a significant impact on the overall economy. Just looking at Amazon, the significance of Chinese third party sellers, coupled with the products Amazon itself sells that are manufactured in, or have components manufactured in, China....Businesses would obviously try to find merchandise from other areas of the world, but , even if successful, it would probably mean higher prices for consumers. I'd guess jobs would be lost as retailers and others cut back, which would have the anticipated ripple effect...our service economy also relies heavily on consumer spending, and if stores close or reduce employment, fewer people will be eating out, fewer going to movies, concerts and so forth. It could be good for people selling used items, but even that would depend on consumer demand, which might be reduced even for less expensive used items.

I think it all depends on the duration of any import cut. A week would be one thing, a year would be another. And it likely wouldn't be just the US. China sells around the world, and our other trading partners would be effected as well.

I'd like to think that governments and businesses have contingency plans for this sort of thing, but I don't have unbounded confidence in our government or business leaders. Time will tell.

[chapeau-noir]

We might recall the SARS scare in the early oughts where this happened before, but manufacturing is a lot more complex now, so the impact on the supply chain may be that much longer.  What is more liable to happen is an extension of the manufacturing slow-downs that already occur, for example, in the Lunar New Year, where factories shutter for a period of time.  The US may want to continue to import, but industrial production in China may slow.  As for eBay relying on USA sellers - Amazon with its huge base of Chinese sellers may be impacted more. Time will tell, I guess.

[blue_ridge_studio]

The Global Supply & Demand Shock Of The Coronavirus | Zero Hedge
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/global-supply-demand-shock-coronavirus