Coronavirus and restaurant death

Hong Kong's restaurant industry has been crushed.

The six months of protests had already beaten the industry to a pulp, but it looks like the coronavirus has been the knockout punch for many of them.  The tourists are all gone and local Hong Kongers have stopped going out.

 Everywhere you go, you see boarded up shops and previously popular restaurants closed down.

During these tough times, it's been reported that some landlords have been accommodating with rental reductions, but it seems like these haven't been that big and most others haven't offered anything at all.  It's an incredible thing, that you would have landlords during this time who are so naive to the fact that their tenants are in this state of distress.  Surely having lower rental income would be better than having no income at all?  What also surprises me is that there must then be a thought from these landlords that losing their tenant will simply mean replacing that tenant with someone else.

I'm not sure who these businesses will be.  The nightlife and the restaurant business in Hong Kong simply isn't as vibrant as it once was.  It really isn't the case that one closing down will merely open up a space for several others to fight over.  Most people would also be smart enough to wait a while before committing any of their time and resources to starting any businesses during this time.

This doesn't feel like a flash in the pan problem.  This feels like something that's going to continue on for quite a while.  Even after everything goes "back to normal" from the point of view of the virus, there is still the risk of the protests restarting.  With all of this uncertainty, surely any landlord should be holding onto their tenants for dear life?