The deadly explosion in North China's Tianjin Wednesday night left 112 dead, more than 700 injured as of press time, and caused severe property and economic losses.

What kind of an impact will the explosions have on China's economy? It's still too early to say, but several sectors may be the first to feel the impact. First, the blasts may affect China's foreign trade, given the explosions rocked an industrial port in Tianjin considered one of the biggest logistics bases in China. According to media reports, the heat and impact left many containers in ruins.

Second, companies near the blasts' epicenter in the Tianjin Binhai New Area, a special economic development zone, home to transnational corporations such as Airbus Tianjin Final Assembly Co, may also suffer economic losses.

The Japan Times said in a recent report that Toyota Motor Co and many other auto-related Japanese companies have facilities near the accident site, and officials of Mitsubishi Motors Co have said that some 600 vehicles may have been damaged.

While the accident will cause a supply chain disruption and affect exports, its negative impact will be temporary and the economic losses suffered by exporters and companies near the explosion site should not be overplayed. The accident will have a limited impact on China's economy as well as the status of the Tianjin port with proper follow-up work. For instance, if the Tianjin port is paralyzed, exporters and importers can switch to another port in Dalian or Qingdao. Moreover, reconstruction of the Tianjin port could also bring new business opportunities.  

Other than the economic losses, we should pay more attention to the questions being asked by the public and media over the safety of the chemicals industry and whether there are loopholes in the regulations on storing flammable and explosive materials in the country.

Some media reports said the Chinese people are beginning to question the chemicals industry and its regulators.

A similar scene unfolded in Japan after the Fukushima disaster in 2011. There was strong opposition in Japan to nuclear power and authorities shut down almost all nuclear power stations in the country. As a result, Japan had to look to other energy sources, such as US gas, as a substitute and suffered higher energy costs and a more serious trade imbalance.

But the explosions in Tianjin are quite different from the Fukushima disaster and should not lead to a fear of and opposition to the chemicals industry. The chemicals industry is a vital industry and is a mature one in China. The death of more than 100 people in the explosions is extremely regrettable but the public and media should be rational about the chemicals industry, avoiding unnecessary and immeasurable economic losses caused by unreasonable criticism of the industry. The Chinese public should realize that buildings and residents near most chemical factories and warehouses in the country are safe.

But we also need to learn lessons from the accident. On the one hand, safety management should be strengthened. According to media reports, Chinese law for businesses involving dangerous chemicals states that storing such materials should be at least 1,000 meters from public buildings and transport networks. But the developer's data shows there are three major residential communities within 1 kilometer of the warehouse where the explosions took place.

On the other hand, Tianjin needs to readjust its industrial structure and reduce its dependence on the chemicals industry. An anonymous insider involved in Tianjin's urban planning quoted by National Business Daily as saying that Tianjin in recent years has overdeveloped the chemicals industry, which deviates from its original plan. Overextending the industry and a lack of qualified warehouses could lead to other dangerous incidents.

The author is a reporter with the Global Times. bizopinion@globaltimes.com.cn

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Newspaper headline: Economic losses should not be overplayed