MANILA (REUTERS) – The Philippines said on Wednesday (Feb 5) its ports remain open to all ships, even those from China, in order not to disrupt the cargo supply chain, but the crew of vessels arriving from the coronavirus-hit nation will be barred from disembarking.

All foreigners travelling from China and its two special administrative regions – Hong Kong and Macau – are currently barred from entering the Philippines amid the virus outbreak that has killed nearly 500 people in China.

A Chinese man who arrived from central China’s Wuhan city, where the virus emerged late last year, has also died in the Philippines.

Concerns about possible delays in shipments of Philippine nickel ore to China as a result of port restrictions added to the upward pressure on nickel prices.

“As far as the ships are concerned, as far as the cargoes are concerned, we are business as usual,” said Jay Daniel Santiago, general manager at Philippine Ports Authority, allaying worries about delays in port operations.

He said ports particularly in the Philippine capital Manila are “fully mechanised” to facilitate cargo loading and unloading with minimal human intervention.

Nickel ore miners in the Philippines, a major source of the raw material for stainless steel production in China, usually resume shipments to their Chinese customers beginning March or April, after a seasonal stoppage starting the last quarter of the previous year.

“We have not yet started shipping out nickel ore, but we anticipate this virus outbreak in China would have no impact on the demand side,” said Dante Bravo, president of Global Ferronickel Holdings, the Philippines’ second-largest nickel ore producer and exporter.

“We believe this issue will be resolved soon, given all the contingency measures put in place by all the parties concerned,” he added.

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