By Chong Koh Ping
The novel coronavirus epidemic reached a new stage globally,
with confirmed cases outside China tripling over the past week and
governments warning of more infections among people who recently
traveled to countries where infection rates are rising.
Financial market turmoil intensified. Stock markets around the
world plunged again on Monday, though also behind the selloff was a
crash in oil prices caused by a price war between Saudi Arabia and
Russia. Investors worried that this could trigger broader financial
problems just as the global economy takes a severe hit from the
virus outbreak. Oil prices fell more than 20%, and the 10-year
Treasury note yield dipped below 0.4%, a historic low.
The total number of confirmed coronavirus cases was more than
110,000 Monday, with infections in 108 countries and regions,
according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. There were
29,306 cases outside mainland China, versus around 10,000 a week
ago. The U.S. tally rose to 554 cases, with 21 deaths.
The world-wide death toll stood at 3,825 -- the bulk of which
were in China, especially in the central city of Wuhan, which first
reported the pneumonia-like virus in December. Italy has the
second-highest number of deaths at 366, and the total number of
confirmed infections in the Mediterranean country climbed to 7,375
over the weekend, almost catching up with South Korea's 7,478
cases.
Italy on Monday began ratcheting up its lockdown of almost 17
million people living across its north, including the cities of
Milan and Venice, as the country tries to arrest the spread of the
coronavirus.
Police began stopping people at train stations and airports in
the north, asking them to produce a written form explaining why
their trip was necessary.
The increased enforcement of the lockdown comes as Italy's virus
outbreak, with 7,375 total infections, approaches the level of
South Korea's, behind only China. In Italy, 366 people with the
virus had died by Sunday, far more than in South Korea, where there
were 53. Doctors in northern Italy have warned that they are
running short of intensive-care beds for severe cases.
In the U.S., Carnival Corp.'s Grand Princess cruise ship is
expected to dock in Oakland, Calif., on Monday, after staying off
shore for days amid concerns over the new coronavirus. One former
passenger died, becoming California's first Covid-19 death, and 21
current passengers, including 19 crew members, on the boat tested
positive for the virus. Once the ship docks, all those on board
will be quarantined.
Other Princess Cruises have also been affected by the virus's
spread. The Regal Princess docked at Port Everglades in Broward
County, Fla., late Sunday after U.S. authorities ordered the ship
to be held off the state's coast. And the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention issued a no-sail order to the Royal Princess
in Los Angeles, the company said.
Officials warned Americans over the weekend to avoid cruise
ships, and Vice President Mike Pence, who met with industry leaders
over the weekend in Florida, said ships will implement stronger
screenings, among other measures.
The number of positive cases grew in the hardest-hit U.S. states
in recent days, with about 136 positive cases in Washington state,
105 in New York and 114 in California. At least eight states have
declared states of emergency as the virus has spread to new
locations, including Washington, D.C. There are at least 566 U.S.
cases thus far, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins Monday
morning. At least 22 Americans have died, with the majority of
deaths following an outbreak at a Kirkland, Wash., nursing
home.
The virus's quick spread across the U.S. over the past week has
prompted universities and school districts to cancel in-person
classes, businesses to ask their employees to work from home,
organizations to cancel high-profile events and local officials to
implore residents avoid large crowds.
The death toll from the virus in Iran rose to 237 on Monday, up
from 194 the day before, according to the country's health
ministry. The ministry also confirmed 595 cases of infections,
bringing the total number of patients to 7,161 patients.
In a sign of the toll the disease is taking, dozens of Iranian
officials have contracted the coronavirus and several have died.
Among the newly infected is the head of Iran's National Disaster
Management Organization Esmail Najjar.
The former deputy commander for political affairs in Islamic
Revolutionary Guard Corps, Farhad Tazri, was confirmed dead on
Monday, according to the semiofficial Tasnim News Agency. A
prominent former reformist politician, Mohammadreza Rahchamani also
died, said the semiofficial ISNA news agency.
Iran has released roughly 70,000 prisoners due to the risk of
contracting the coronavirus in prison, the judiciary's news outlet
Mizan Online said.
In China, health authorities reported 40 new cases on the
mainland in the past day, bringing its total number of confirmed
infections to 80,735, up about 1% from a week ago. More than
two-thirds of those taken ill have recovered.
While China also has by far the highest death toll from the
respiratory disease, at 3,119 fatalities, its officials have said
lockdowns of cities, strict quarantine measures, and widespread
workplace and school closures have helped limit infections across
the country.
A few weeks ago, China was reporting thousands of new cases
daily. In late January the government locked down much of Hubei
province, where Wuhan is, to stem the spread of the virus, and
hasn't lifted those restrictions.
In recent days, major cities including Shanghai and Beijing have
seen people returning to malls, shops reopening and other business
activities gradually resuming. On Monday, Shanghai government
officials said some major tourist spots and sports facilities had
reopened after being closed for more than a month.
Walt Disney Co.'s Shanghai Disney Resort said it would partially
resume operations as a first step in reopening in phases, while the
main Shanghai Disneyland theme park would remain closed until
further notice.
Governments are preparing for a new wave of coronavirus cases
among people who have traveled to countries other than China.
Health authorities in Hong Kong, which has 114 confirmed cases,
said several people who tested positive for the virus in recent
days had been on a tour to India in February. India has reported 39
coronavirus infections.
On Monday, South Korean Vice Health Minister Kim Ganglip said
the spread of the coronavirus appears to be slowing in the country
but that new infections could come from people returning from
abroad.
The country added 165 cases, the lowest daily new numbers since
Feb. 25, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention.
China said it has a total of 67 imported cases, including people
who recently traveled to Italy and Iran.
In Japan, a new rule kicked in Monday that effectively bans
tourists from China, Hong Kong, Macau and South Korea until the end
of March, as the country seeks to prevent more new imported
infections. Japan reported 488 cases on Monday, up 33 from a day
earlier.
France's central bank said the impact from the coronavirus
epidemic on French businesses will slash 0.2 percentage points from
the country's economic growth in the first quarter. Gross domestic
product will rise 0.1% in the first quarter of 2020 compared with
the prior quarter, according to the Bank of France's monthly survey
of business activity.
The declining growth projections are another signal of the
economic slowdown from the virus, infections of which have started
to spike in France to more than 1,100 as of Sunday, second in
Europe behind Italy. Health officials have closed schools in two
regions of France and many workers are being urged to stay
home.
Stocks markets in Europe plunged Monday as part of the global
rout. France's CAC-40 was down more than 7% in early trading, while
the U.K.'s FTSE 100, also influenced by a collapse in oil prices,
was down more than 8.5%.
Write to Chong Koh Ping at chong.kohping@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 09, 2020 10:10 ET (14:10 GMT)
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