(Yicai Global) March 13 -- China can control the impact the overseas spread of Covid-19 is having on local manufacturing, according to the country's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

The epidemic is spreading further than imagined and the impact on industrial globalization is obvious, Deputy Minister Xin Guobin said at a press briefing today. China is deeply integrated into global supply chains and the virus outbreaks in Europe and the US will definitely affect China, he added.

There were 37,371 confirmed Covid-19 cases outside China as of 5 p.m. Beijing time yesterday, up 4,596 in just 24 hours, according to the World Health Organization, which has dubbed the virus a pandemic. Deaths jumped by 258 to 1,130 over the same period.

Covid-19's ultimate impact on Chinese manufacturing will depend on how long the epidemic lasts, Xin said, adding that short-term control over its spread can limit the effect on China and the world's economy. All the fundamentals are in place and Chinese manufacturing is large scale, so the local impact can be controlled, he believes.

Editor: James Boynton