Italy started its first working day after a government decree sought to curb movement within the country’s financial hub. Germany plans to boost investment to help its economy and the Trump administration is drafting measures to blunt the economic fallout from the outbreak.
Infections have now spread to about half of the world’s countries. Oil tumbled as much as 31% after Saudi Arabia started a price war. Most European equity indexes are poised to enter bear markets, Treasury yields tumbled, with the entire curve trading below 1% for the first time in history, and S&P 500 equity futures dropped 5% to hit circuit breakers.
Key Developments:
- Cases surpass 109,000 worldwide; deaths exceed 3,800
- China fatalities rise to 3,119
- Oil prices crash, equities plunge and currencies and bonds see wild moves
- South Korea’s outbreak may be slowing: officials
- Germany boosts investments to bolster economy
Today's timeline (latest first):
Lufthansa seeks government support amid coronavirus hit
Deutsche Lufthansa AG fell with other airline stocks after saying it was looking into government support amid the “immense” fallout from the coronavirus, which could burden travel demand for months.
To avoid layoffs after slashing capacity by as much as 50%, the airline is examining the implementation of so-called short-time work, the company said in an emailed statement to Bloomberg on Sunday.
Italian bonds, stocks take a beating on lockdown
Italian government bond yields jumped and stocks tumbled after the government announced plans to lock down the country’s industrial and financial engine room to contain the coronavirus. On Sunday, fatalities from the outbreak in Italy surged more than 50% to 366.
The finance ministry said on Monday that it’s necessary to take a temporary hit from the shutdown in the productive north -- home of Italy’s biggest banks and companies including carmaker Ferrari -- to prevent a wider economic crisis.
China expert sees global outbreak lasting until June
Chinese epidemiologist and leading government medical adviser Zhong Nanshan expects the global coronavirus outbreak to continue until at least June, China Central Television reports, citing his comments at a recent seminar.
Japan’s Abe says at critical moment for spread of virus
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said in parliament Monday it’s his current view the country was at a crucial moment now on whether the new coronavirus will spread rapidly or not. Abe also said experts are looking into whether to continue to ask organizers to put off holding major events to prevent spread of virus.
Iran minister tests positive
Iran’s deputy interior minister has tested positive for coronavirus, semi-official ISNA reported. Ismail Najjar is also head of the country’s National Disaster Management Organization.
Confirmed German cases surge above 1,000
The number of confirmed cases in Germany has risen to 1,112, from 902 on Sunday, according to the Robert Koch Institute. About half the cases, or 484, are in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia, while Saxony-Anhalt in the east remains the only one of Germany’s 16 regions without one.
Le Maire calls for EU stimulus plan
Europe should prepare a “strong, massive and coordinated” fiscal stimulus to boost the economy in response to the coronavirus, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said in an interview with France Inter. “The impact on French growth in 2020 will be severe,” Le Maire said, amounting to “several tenths of a percentage point” of GDP. He said GDP growth could fall below 1% this year. Le Maire will give precise figures on April 15.
JAL says crew member infected with coronavirus
Japan Airlines Co said a female crew member in her 50s is infected with coronavirus. The crew member was serving on a flight from Chicago to Narita on Feb 25. The plane had 104 passengers and 16 crew on board.
Reopening workplaces, imported cases test China’s fight
China’s efforts to contain the deadly coronavirus will be tested as people return to their workplaces and some infected people enter from nations that are seeing a rapid escalation in cases. “Those remain major points of vigilance,” World Heath Organization’s China Representative Gauden Galea said in an interview with Bloomberg TV. “In China, at least one peak has passed but there’s no guarantee this will remain so, and there’s no room for complacency.”
France central bank slashes outlook
The French economy will barely grow this quarter as the coronavirus outbreak slams the brakes on activity in both services and industry, according to a Bank of France survey. It’s a grim start to the week for European Central Bank policy makers, who meet in Frankfurt and may be forced to cut interest rates again.
Deaths from Chinese hotel collapse rise to 11
The death toll from the collapse of a hotel used to quarantine people affected by the coronavirus in China rose to 11, the People’s Daily reported. Another 21 people are still trapped after 50 were rescued. The hotel in the southeastern Chinese province of Fujian collapsed on March 7.
Thailand says airlines may face virus medical bills
Thailand’s aviation regulator said airlines should ask passengers coming from high-risk territories for health certificates to establish they are free of the new coronavirus.
Travellers who can’t provide documentation should be prevented from boarding flights to the Asian nation, according to a Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand notice. Carriers are liable for treatment costs if they fly in people who become sick with Covid-19, the notice said. The new framework applies to six territories: China, Hong Kong, Macau, South Korea, Iran and Italy.
Rejected cruise ship to dock in Singapore
The cruise ship Costa Fortuna, which last departed from Singapore March 3 and was rejected from Phuket in Thailand and Penang in Malaysia, will make its scheduled return call in Singapore on March 10. Thailand turned away the Costa Cruise vessel on Friday because it had passengers from Italy. Malaysia turned the same boat away on Saturday.
Trump aides drafting economic measures
The Trump administration is drafting measures to blunt the economic fallout from coronavirus and help slow its spread in the US, including a temporary expansion of paid sick leave and possible help for companies facing disruption from the outbreak, according to three people familiar with the matter.
Pressure is growing on Trump to take more decisive action in response to the virus outbreak, as the number of cases in the US and worldwide continues to grow.
Germany boosts investments to bolster economy
The government of German Chancellor Angela Merkel has taken its first steps to help companies and workers affected by the fallout from the coronavirus outbreak and will invest an additional 12.4 billion euros ($14.1 billion) between 2021 and 2024.
After more than seven hours of talks on Sunday night, Merkel’s coalition loosened rules for short-term work compensation, making it easier for big companies heavily affected by the virus like Deutsche Lufthansa AG to apply for aid to offset wages when they are forced to temporarily halt work.
Pressure for Germany to act intensified in the days before leaders of Merkel’s Christian Democratic-led bloc and the Social Democrats met in the chancellery in Berlin. The death of the first German from the coronavirus, a 60-year-old man who vacationed in Egypt, added to the pressure. While short of the full-blown stimulus package that many economists and investors urged, Germany’s government sought to walk a fine line between reassuring business and avoiding public panic.
China 2020 car sales seen falling 8%
China’s car sales are set to fall 8% this year, the head of a Chinese auto-industry group said, slashing his forecast for a second time as the coronavirus keeps buyers away. The prediction is preliminary and the China Passenger Car Association will confirm its new forecast later Monday, Cui Dongshu, the group’s secretary general, said in an interview. The PCA last month predicted a 5% decline after initially forecasting 1% growth at the end of last year.
Shanghai Disney resumes some operations
Shanghai Disney Resort will partly resume operations on Monday, with a limited number of shopping, dining and recreational facilities available in Disneytown, Wishing Star Park and Shanghai Disneyland Hotel, according to an official statement. Shanghai Disneyland remains closed as the company continues to monitor health and safety conditions.
BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament cancelled
The BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament in Indian Wells, California, has been cancelled because of coronavirus concerns, the tournament said in a statement.
The men’s and women’s tennis tours earlier had said they would proceed with restrictions at Indian Wells and other upcoming events. Ultimately, however, the decision was taken to cancel Indian Wells entirely.
Indian Wells, while not a major event in the sport, is a landmark tournament that was to have featured top stars including Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.
South Korea outbreak may be slowing: officials
The coronavirus outbreak in South Korea is showing signs of slowing as the rate of new daily infections falls and health authorities almost finished testing members of a religious sect at the centre of the epidemic, the country’s health minister said.
Health Minister Park Neung-hoo said late Sunday the virus spread -- once the biggest globally outside of China -- appeared to be “a little bit stagnant”.
South Korea was averaging more than 500 new virus infections a day last week, but the daily tally has fallen below that for the last three days, said Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun. The trend continued on Monday, as the country reported 248 new cases for a total of 7,382 thus far, and now ranks behind Italy in the size of its outbreak.
South Korea has borne its virus outbreak relatively well despite the scale of the spread. The country has been testing people for the virus at the fastest pace in the world, which appears to have allowed early detection of cases and kept its mortality rate lower than average. Infections have also been largely contained to the city of Daegu and surrounding areas, although the government has not imposed restrictions over people’s movements like in China and Italy.
Columbia, Scarsdale schools suspend classes
Columbia University and Scarsdale, New York, one of the most affluent towns in America, suspended classes amid coronavirus concerns.
Columbia said it will suspend classes on Monday and Tuesday, and hold them remotely for the rest of the week, after a person affiliated with the school was exposed to the disease.
The school had already planned to be closed the following week for spring break, which would cover the typical 14-day quarantine period for the virus.
Scarsdale, meanwhile, is shutting its schools after a faculty member tested positive for coronavirus.
Duterte declares emergency in Philippines
President Rodrigo Duterte has declared a state of public health emergency as the Philippines reported additional coronavirus cases.
The declaration empowers government to cap prices of basic goods and scrap public bidding for medical supplies, Duterte’s spokesman Salvador Panelo said in an interview with DZBB radio on Monday. Health Secretary Francisco Duque earlier said the order will also pave the way for easier access to funds to control the spread of the virus.
At least four cities in the Philippine capital region and a couple of nearby areas have suspended classes after the health department reported four new cases on Sunday, bringing the total to 10.
China reports 40 new cases, 22 deaths
China reported 40 additional coronavirus cases for the end of March 8, with 36 of them from Hubei province, according to statement from China’s National Health Commission. The other four are imported cases.
China now has 80,735 total confirmed coronavirus cases. The death toll on the mainland rose by 22 to 3,119, as Hubei reported 21 fatalities. Discharged patients rose by 1,535 to 58,600.
Ted Cruz begins 14-day quarantine
Two Republican lawmakers will self-quarantine in their houses after contact at a recent political conference with a person who later tested positive for coronavirus.
Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz said he will quarantine himself for 14 days after learning he briefly interacted with someone at the Conservative Political Action Conference who has tested positive for Covid-19.
Cruz said he had a brief conversation and a handshake at the meeting held in Maryland in late February.
“I’m not experiencing any symptoms, and I feel fine and healthy,” Cruz said in a statement. “Given that the interaction was 10 days ago, that the average incubation period is 5-6 days, that the interaction was for less than a minute, and that I have no current symptoms, the medical authorities have advised me that the odds of transmission from the other individual to me were extremely low.”
Republican Representative Paul Gosar, a dentist by trade from Arizona who had extended contact with the person at CPAC, said in a statement that he will close his Washington office for a week. Gosar and three senior staff members will self-quarantine this week, with Gosar staying at home in Arizona.
NYC urges disrupting routines
New Yorkers should avoid the subway at rush hour by cycling or walking to work, or stay home and telecommute, as Mayor Bill De Blasio outlined plans to fight the coronavirus. International travel has been cancelled for city workers and school students.
“We are asking New Yorkers to adjust their routines to stem the spread of the virus where they can,” de Blasio said in a statement. “If you feel sick, stay home.”
New York City has 13 confirmed cases, the most recent a patient in the Bronx. The state has 105 cases, mostly in the city and the suburbs.
At a briefing, de Blasio prepared the city for a surge of cases as more people are tested: “I think we could well be at hundred cases or hundreds of cases over next two or three weeks,” he said.
Democrat Sanders calls for free vaccine
Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders says any eventual vaccine for the new coronavirus should be available free of charge once developed and approved.
Democrats have increasingly called for affordability guarantees for medicines developed in part through taxpayer-funded research.
Gilead Sciences Inc is testing the antiviral remdesivir in two phase III clinical trials -- the large studies needed to win Food and Drug Administration approval -- in China’s Hubei province, as well as in a US trial led by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Gilead expects results in April.
Saudi Arabia blocks some travel
Saudi Arabia temporarily banned travel to nine countries, state-run SPA reported, citing a statement issued by the Interior Ministry. The decision applies to citizens as well as residents; entry of citizens from the nine countries is also banned.
The countries include the U.A.E, Kuwait, Bahrain, Lebanon, Syria, South Korea, Egypt, Italy and Iraq.
Some elderly warned against cruises
The US State Department warned Americans with underlying health conditions against travel on cruise ships, citing the higher risk of contracting the coronavirus and complications when infections occur.
The warning, on the department’s travel advice website, said some ships with ill passengers have been denied by local officials the right to dock at ports, which prevents passengers from disembarking.
“Older adults and travellers with underlying health issues should avoid situations that put them at increased risk for more severe disease,” the agency said. “This entails avoiding crowded places, avoiding non-essential travel such as long plane trips, and especially avoiding embarking on cruise ships.”
The Grand Princess liner, off the California coast with more than 20 ill passengers and crew, is scheduled to dock on Monday after being denied entry in San Francisco. In Asia, Malaysia banned cruise ships. Carnival Corp had hundreds of infected passengers aboard its Diamond Princess ship, which docked off Yokohama last month.
US advised on daily disruptions
US officials went on Sunday talk shows to brace Americans for more changes to their daily routines as a result of Covid-19, from reduced travel to cancellations of large events.
Elderly people with health issues should immediately reconsider travel and large gatherings, said Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
“You should start to distance yourself from the risk, crowds, getting on a plane, on a long plane trip, and, above all, don’t get on a cruise ship,” Fauci advised people with underlying health risks on “Fox News Sunday.”
Italy’s rules spark enforcement doubts
Italy introduced far-reaching measures to contain the coronavirus outbreak, yet hours after the dramatic early Sunday morning announcement, it was far from clear how strictly they would be enforced.
Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte presented the new rules, including a near-complete travel ban for about a quarter of Italians, following hours of uncontrolled leaks and signs of public panic. On Sunday morning, life seemed to continue as normal even in the regions most affected by the epidemic, with people crowding cafes and boarding trains to go north and south. Airports, including those in the affected areas, also remained open.
The lack of clarity about the real scope of the measures only deepens confusion around Italy’s response to Europe’s largest coronavirus outbreak. Doctors have warned that hospitals are close to collapse as they flood with patients needing intensive care.
Coronavirus deaths jump in Italy
Italy reported 7,375 coronavirus cases and 366 deaths, a significant jump from the 233 fatalities recorded on Saturday. The country now outpaces South Korea in cases and fatalities.
France bans some large gatherings
France has banned gatherings with more than 1,000 people, down from 5,000 previously, Health Minister Olivier Veran said in Paris. There will be some exceptions in cases that are in the interest of the nation, he said.
Total coronavirus cases rose to 1,126, with 19 fatalities.
Seattle nursing home deaths mount
The number of reported virus cases in King County, home to Seattle and its suburbs, jumped to 83, public health officials said in a statement. Among 12 new cases reported, two additional people have died -- one a woman in her 80s and the other a man in his 90s.
King County has been an epicentre of the outbreak in the US, with 17 deaths. All but one of those has been linked to an elder care facility in Kirkland, Washington. The total state death toll is 18.
Washington state officials reported 21 new cases, raising the total to 123 from 102.
Cruise ship to dock in Oakland Monday
The Grand Princess cruise ship, with more than 20 passengers and crew confirmed with Covid-19, will dock in Oakland, California, on Monday, as authorities mobilise to get the acutely ill medical care at nearby hospitals.
Others are to be sent to quarantine or flown out of the state. The Port of Oakland, across the bay from San Francisco, was selected because it is the easiest to seal off, the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services said in a press release.
Apple workers can work at home
Apple employees at most offices have been offered the ability to work from home by Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook, who called the virus outbreak an “unprecedented event” and a “challenging moment”.
Cook told workers that if their jobs allow it, they can work remotely March 9-13, according to a memo obtained by Bloomberg News. That extends the company’s move on Friday to encourage employees in California and Seattle to work remotely.
This policy covers areas with the greatest density of infections, Cook said: the Santa Clara Valley and Elk Grove areas in California, Seattle, South Korea, Japan, Italy, Germany, France, Switzerland and the UK.
Saudi Arabia closes schools: SPA
The Saudi Higher Education Ministry temporarily shut all schools and colleges until further notice to avoid the spread of the coronavirus, the state-run SPA reported. The education ministry said it would begin remote visual schooling during the suspension, according to the report. Earlier Sunday, the kingdom suspended entry and exit from Al Qatif governorate in the oil-rich Eastern Province after 11 cases were reported. The province is home to a large number of Shiites, the sect of Islam followed by majority of Iranians.
Most cases of the coronavirus in the Middle East are linked to Iran.
Portuguese president to work from home
Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa will work from his private residence for the next two weeks, according to a statement Sunday on the presidency’s website. The decision was taken after a student, from a school that had a class visit the presidential palace, was admitted to a hospital.
The class from Felgueiras, in northern Portugal, had attended an event Tuesday with 71-year-old Rebelo de Sousa in Lisbon. Neither the hospitalised student nor his class was on the visit.
While the president has no symptoms, he decided to cancel all his public activities and considers he set an example of “prevention”. Although he’s not involved in daily government business and has a mostly ceremonial role, Portugal’s president has the power to dissolve parliament and is directly elected.