Now, in the early months of the Covid-19 pandemic, global supply chains are drawing parallels to the financial companies of 12 years ago -- crippled by an unexpected shock, exposed by flaws in their sophisticated instruments, second-guessed for pushing the public close to panic, diagnosed for a once-in-a-generation overhaul.

For anyone hoping global tech might be the one industry to dodge the economic fallout of the coronavirus, falling shipments from the world’s biggest chip exporter offers little comfort.