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Coronavirus live updates: Trump suspends all travel from Europe to US for 30 days, excluding UK Coronavirus live updates: Trump suspends all travel from Europe to US for 30 days, excluding UK
(32 minutes later)
Global recession fears intensify; Tom Hanks tests positive in Australia; NBA basketball season suspended indefinitely. Follow the latest.Global recession fears intensify; Tom Hanks tests positive in Australia; NBA basketball season suspended indefinitely. Follow the latest.
China is focusing on restarting factories and businesses hit by strict containment policies which prevented millions of people from travelling and returning to work after extended China Lunar New Year holidays.
Factory activity plunged to its worst level on record in February, and while more businesses have reopened in recent weeks as containment measures are eased, analysts do not expect activity to return to normal levels until April.
Airlines were hit particularly hard during the last several weeks, with Chinese airlines reporting a total loss of 20.96 billion yuan in February. The total number of airline passengers last month fell 84.5% year-on-year in comparison to the same time last year, China’s aviation regulator said Thursday. The Hubei government on Wednesday said Wuhan will allow some key industries to resume work.
Australian supermarket chain Woolworths has announced further restrictions on certain goods amid wide-spread panic buying in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.
On Thursday the company announced it would begin rationing tissues, hand sanitiser, paper towels and rice. It also announced a further restriction on the sale of toilet paper. The company had previously introduced a four-pack per person limit on toilet paper after shelves were left bare by shoppers fearing being caught without a domestic essential.
The new limits are:
Tissues - two pack limit per shop
Paper towel, serviettes and wipes - one pack limit per shop
Toilet paper - one pack limit per shop
Hand sanitiser - two unit limit per shop
Bulk rice (2kg+) - one pack limit per shop
China had eight new coronavirus infections in Hubei province as of the end of Wednesday, the first time the epicentre of the pandemic recorded a daily tally in single-digits, as more businesses reopened with local authorities cautiously easing strict containment measures.
As the spread of the virus continues to slow, Hubei province announced on Thursday a further loosening of travel restrictions and will also allow some industries to resume production in two of its cities and two counties.
Hubei’s economy, driven by manufacturing and trade, including a sizable auto sector in the provincial capital Wuhan, had been virtually shuttered. Wuhan reported all of the new cases on Wednesday, the National Health Commission said on Thursday. Outside of Hubei, mainland China had seven new cases, including six cases imported from abroad. Overall, the 15 new confirmed cases in mainland China on Wednesday was a drop from 24 cases a day earlier. That brings the total number of confirmed cases recorded in mainland China to 80,793. As of Tuesday, 62,793 people have recovered and been discharged from hospital, or nearly 80% of the overall infections. As of the end of Wednesday, the death toll in mainland China had reached 3,169, up by 11 from the previous day. Hubei accounted for 10 of the new deaths, including seven in Wuhan.
A dramatic attempt by Donald Trump to limit the spread of coronavirus by banning travel to the US from most of Europe for 30 days has failed to stem heavy losses on financial markets and prompted one top economist to warn that a global recession was now “highly probable”.
In a sombre primetime address from the Oval Office on Wednesday evening, the US president boasted that the travel ban and series of other measures designed to cushion the economic blow of the outbreak amounted to “the most aggressive and comprehensive effort to confront a foreign virus in history”.
But Asian stock markets and Wall Street futures trading plunged deep into the red even as Trump laid out his plans, with investors betting that the $250bn package would not be enough to reverse the creeping shutdown of the world’s largest economy.
Here’s the latest on Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson who, in case you are just joining us, have confirmed that they have tested positive for coronavirus while in Australia to film the Baz Luhrmann production Elvis.
Australia’s Channel Nine presenters David Campbell and Belinda Russell are being tested for coronavirus because they interviewed Rita Wilson at the network’s Sydney studios on Monday.
Campbell, Russell and a number of unnamed Nine staff who came into contact with the visiting singer and producer have gone into self-isolation and are being tested.
Campbell told 2GB Wilson did not shake hands when she came to Nine on Monday.
“She came into the Today Extra studios on Monday and she was delightful and really nice and she didn’t have any symptoms of anything,” Campbell said.
“She was cautious. She actually made a joke coming into the studios, saying we shouldn’t shake hands, we should bump elbows. So we bumped elbows.”
Late on Wednesday evening, US President Donald Trump announced in an address from the Oval Office that he was introducing a travel ban from Europe – not including the UK or non-Schengen Travel Area states – to the US.
The United States did not coordinate on the sweeping restriction aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus with European officials before Trump announced it, a European diplomat told Reuters.
The ban on foreign citizens entering the country if they have been in Europe in recent weeks will heap more pressure on airlines already reeling from the coronavirus pandemic, analysts said, hitting European carriers the hardest. The 30-day curbs from Friday, which exclude Britain, Ireland and other countries outside the European Schengen passport-free travel area, are similar to those that went into effect targeting China on 1 February. Combined with a fresh U.S. State Department advisory asking citizens to reconsider the need to travel globally, the move could create chaos at dozens of airports across Europe as passengers attempt a last-minute rush to fly to the United States before the ban takes effect. As well as slashing arrivals, the move is set to decimate spending by European tourists in the United States. There were 5.8 million arrivals from the biggest markets of Germany, France, Italy and Spain in 2018, according to U.S. data, which said they spent nearly $22 billion combined.
The dollar slid on Thursday, after President Donald Trump disappointed markets with a coronavirus plan light on details, Reuters reports. The greenback dropped 1% to 103.32 yen, fell as much as 0.6% to $1.1333 against the euro and lost 0.6% to the safe-haven Swiss franc, while stocks plunged. Trump announced on Wednesday a ban on travellers from 26 European countries entering the United States for a month.The dollar slid on Thursday, after President Donald Trump disappointed markets with a coronavirus plan light on details, Reuters reports. The greenback dropped 1% to 103.32 yen, fell as much as 0.6% to $1.1333 against the euro and lost 0.6% to the safe-haven Swiss franc, while stocks plunged. Trump announced on Wednesday a ban on travellers from 26 European countries entering the United States for a month.
He unveiled economic steps to counter the virus but his address from the Oval Office was light on medical measures beyond assurances that “the virus has no chance against us”. “The market was looking for more,” said Moh Siong Sim, currency strategist at the Bank of Singapore. “A travel ban is part of the solution, but the more important parts are still missing. They are really the public health measures: Paid sick leave, free testing, free treatment,” he said. Futures markets reacted swiftly. They are now pricing in the US Federal Reserve moving the lower end of its benchmark funding band to zero when it meets next week, if not before. “The deflationary shock that we had assumed would trigger a US entry into the zero-yield world is turning out to be a combo of trade war, oil price war and Covid-19 virus,” J.P. Morgan’s long-term strategists Jan Loeys and Shiny Kundu said in a note. “(There are) close to even odds now of an official US recession this year.”He unveiled economic steps to counter the virus but his address from the Oval Office was light on medical measures beyond assurances that “the virus has no chance against us”. “The market was looking for more,” said Moh Siong Sim, currency strategist at the Bank of Singapore. “A travel ban is part of the solution, but the more important parts are still missing. They are really the public health measures: Paid sick leave, free testing, free treatment,” he said. Futures markets reacted swiftly. They are now pricing in the US Federal Reserve moving the lower end of its benchmark funding band to zero when it meets next week, if not before. “The deflationary shock that we had assumed would trigger a US entry into the zero-yield world is turning out to be a combo of trade war, oil price war and Covid-19 virus,” J.P. Morgan’s long-term strategists Jan Loeys and Shiny Kundu said in a note. “(There are) close to even odds now of an official US recession this year.”
In Australia, the ASX has closed down 7.36%, in a blow to the country’s share market representing more than AU$100bn ($US65bn) in losses.In Australia, the ASX has closed down 7.36%, in a blow to the country’s share market representing more than AU$100bn ($US65bn) in losses.
The United States did not coordinate on a sweeping restriction on European travel aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus with European officials before U.S. President Donald Trump announced it late on Wednesday, a European diplomat told Reuters.The United States did not coordinate on a sweeping restriction on European travel aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus with European officials before U.S. President Donald Trump announced it late on Wednesday, a European diplomat told Reuters.
Trump, in a televised address, said his government had been in frequent contact with U.S. allies on the 30-day restriction, but European Union officials were not notified about the decision ahead of time, said the diplomat, who was not authorized to speak publicly. “There was no heads-up, no coordination as the president claimed,” the diplomat said. No comment was immediately available on the decision from the EU delegation in Washington. Trump’s order curbing travel from Europe to the United States, except from Britain, beginning on Friday, could complicate already strained trade ties between Brussels and Washington. EU Trade Commissioner Phil Hogan canceled a scheduled visit to Washington for next week earlier on Wednesday. After sowing confusion by suggesting that *trade and cargo* from Europe would also be banned, Trump later clarified that *trade will in no way be affected* by the restriction. In fact, the travel curbs will sharply curtail trade in services.Trump, in a televised address, said his government had been in frequent contact with U.S. allies on the 30-day restriction, but European Union officials were not notified about the decision ahead of time, said the diplomat, who was not authorized to speak publicly. “There was no heads-up, no coordination as the president claimed,” the diplomat said. No comment was immediately available on the decision from the EU delegation in Washington. Trump’s order curbing travel from Europe to the United States, except from Britain, beginning on Friday, could complicate already strained trade ties between Brussels and Washington. EU Trade Commissioner Phil Hogan canceled a scheduled visit to Washington for next week earlier on Wednesday. After sowing confusion by suggesting that *trade and cargo* from Europe would also be banned, Trump later clarified that *trade will in no way be affected* by the restriction. In fact, the travel curbs will sharply curtail trade in services.
Thailand reported 11 new coronavirus cases on Thursday, bringing the total number of cases in the Southeast Asian country to 70, health officials said.Thailand reported 11 new coronavirus cases on Thursday, bringing the total number of cases in the Southeast Asian country to 70, health officials said.
All of the new patients had socialised and shared drinks, health officials said, adding that a tourist from Hong Kong had been the source of the infection. “The Hong Kong tourist came alone and already went back. The 11 infected are all Thai,” said Sopon Iamsirithawon, director-general of the Communicable Diseases Department. It was the biggest jump in cases for weeks in Thailand, which was one of the first countries outside China to report infections of the new COVID-19 virus that has since swept much of the world.All of the new patients had socialised and shared drinks, health officials said, adding that a tourist from Hong Kong had been the source of the infection. “The Hong Kong tourist came alone and already went back. The 11 infected are all Thai,” said Sopon Iamsirithawon, director-general of the Communicable Diseases Department. It was the biggest jump in cases for weeks in Thailand, which was one of the first countries outside China to report infections of the new COVID-19 virus that has since swept much of the world.
Rural Australian pharmacists are struggling to source essential medications due to overwhelming demand on wholesalers amid the coronavirus crisis, the Guardian’s Felicity Nelson reports.Rural Australian pharmacists are struggling to source essential medications due to overwhelming demand on wholesalers amid the coronavirus crisis, the Guardian’s Felicity Nelson reports.
The spread of Covid-19 has not yet caused a national shortage of medications and experts say there is no need whatsoever to panic buy.The spread of Covid-19 has not yet caused a national shortage of medications and experts say there is no need whatsoever to panic buy.
But the flood of orders from pharmacies has led to temporary shortages in some rural areas.At least three major drug wholesalers have written to pharmacists warning of unprecedented demands for stock and apologising for supply chain challenges, according to documents seen by The Medical Republic and shared with Guardian Australia.But the flood of orders from pharmacies has led to temporary shortages in some rural areas.At least three major drug wholesalers have written to pharmacists warning of unprecedented demands for stock and apologising for supply chain challenges, according to documents seen by The Medical Republic and shared with Guardian Australia.
On Today’s episode of Science Weekly Extra: what happens once someone is infected with the new coronavirus?On Today’s episode of Science Weekly Extra: what happens once someone is infected with the new coronavirus?
Following our first Covid-19 episode last week, we received an incredible response, with so many interesting new areas to explore. One of those was what exactly happens once someone is infected with this new virus. As Nicola Davis find outs, whilst scientists are still racing to figure the exact details out, insights can be gleaned from other viral infections like influenza.Following our first Covid-19 episode last week, we received an incredible response, with so many interesting new areas to explore. One of those was what exactly happens once someone is infected with this new virus. As Nicola Davis find outs, whilst scientists are still racing to figure the exact details out, insights can be gleaned from other viral infections like influenza.
Australia has extended its existing travel ban for China, Iran, South Korea and Italy, and is reviewing whether to extend a travel ban to Europe.Australia has extended its existing travel ban for China, Iran, South Korea and Italy, and is reviewing whether to extend a travel ban to Europe.
AAP has meanwhile reported that the Australian Capital Territory has confirmed its first case of Covid-19.AAP has meanwhile reported that the Australian Capital Territory has confirmed its first case of Covid-19.
The man aged in his 30s was tested for Covid-19 at the Weston Creek Walk-in Centre clinic on Wednesday, with the positive result confirmed on Thursday.The man aged in his 30s was tested for Covid-19 at the Weston Creek Walk-in Centre clinic on Wednesday, with the positive result confirmed on Thursday.
He’s being treated at Canberra Hospital and precautions are being taken to ensure the safety of staff and the broader community.He’s being treated at Canberra Hospital and precautions are being taken to ensure the safety of staff and the broader community.
On Thursday the national security committee of cabinet met and decided to extend the existing ban on travel from China, Iran, South Korea and Italy by one week.On Thursday the national security committee of cabinet met and decided to extend the existing ban on travel from China, Iran, South Korea and Italy by one week.
Under the rules of the travel ban:Under the rules of the travel ban:
Foreign nationals are not allowed to enter Australia for 14 days from the time they left the affected country;Foreign nationals are not allowed to enter Australia for 14 days from the time they left the affected country;
Australian citizens and permanent residents are able to enter Australia but are required to self-isolate at home for 14 days from the day they left the affected country.Australian citizens and permanent residents are able to enter Australia but are required to self-isolate at home for 14 days from the day they left the affected country.
In Sydney, Australia, somebody has used skywriting to remind the city’s people to “Wash hands”.In Sydney, Australia, somebody has used skywriting to remind the city’s people to “Wash hands”.
With less than half an hour of trade left to go on the Australian market, it looks likely to finish the day down between 5% and 6%.But it’s hard to be sure because the market is extremely volatile today.It was about 2% down in early trade before sliding a percentage point as Australian prime minister Scott Morrison and treasurer Josh Frydenberg announced details of a $17.6bn stimulus package.President Donald Trump’s announcement that most travel from Europe to the US would be banned sent the market into panic selling mode, with the benchmark ASX200 index diving to be as much as 7% down for the day.It has recovered slightly since then. At about 3.45pm it was down 5.4%.
A quiet confusion hung overhead at San Francisco Airport’s international terminal on Wednesday night, as travellers canceled flights and sought to make sense of Donald Trump’s sudden coronavirus-related travel ban.
Many of the travellers who planned on flying to Europe that evening had no guarantee that they would be able to return back to the United States once their trips had concluded, forcing some to make last-minute calls on dream vacations.
Tulio Mello, 51, was preparing to board his flight to Istanbul when his friend called and told him not to get on the plane. “They had started announcing group one,” he said.
Turkey is not one of the countries included in the travel ban, but a mixture of misinformation, panic and precaution dominated the decisions made at San Francisco’s airport. A number of passengers on Mello’s Turkish Airlines flight left with him, waiting by the airline’s counter for their luggage, some on hold with customer service.
“There are just so many differentials that can happen,” he said. “I think there is one case (of coronavirus) in Turkey, but imagine in five days they find 400 people and then they say you have to stay 14 days in quarantine. It just wouldn’t be great to go for five days and then end up stuck for 30 days.”
For those who want to read Donald Trump’s speech in full, you can find it here. He did not pull any punches on who he blamed for the outbreak of the virus in the US:
As we know, the travel ban from Europe only includes countries in the Schengen Area that have officially abolished all passport and all other types of border controls. The countries in the Schengen Area are: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.
The restrictions do not apply to American residents or to travel from the UK. Most immediate family members of US citizens are exempt.
They will begin at 11.59pm on Friday.
It’s unclear at the moment how the US would account for travellers who travel from Europe to the US, via London, given the UK is exempt.
You can read our explainer of what we do know, below.
French Polynesia has announced the first case of Covid-19 in Tahiti, the first confirmed case of the coronavirus across the Pacific Islands.
President Edouard Fritch, said that French Polynesian politician Maina Sage had been confirmed with the virus after returning from Paris on 7 March. Sage is resting at home in self-isolation in Papeete.
French Polynesia, which comprises more than 100 islands, the largest of which is Tahiti, is a French overseas collectivity. Sage is French Polynesia’s representative in the French National Assembly.
During her time in Paris, Sage served on a National Assembly commission with France’s culture minister Franck Riester, who has also been confined in France after contracting Covid-19.
Announcing the first confirmed case of the coronavirus in Tahiti, President Fritch reassured people about government plans for monitoring, testing and isolation. He stated, however: “I invite the population to avoid travel outside the country.”
In Australia, more from Queensland premier Annastacia Palaszczuk on Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson’s positive coronavirus diagnosis:
While Hanks had regularly posed for photos with fans at Coolangatta Beach on the Gold Coast and a cafe near Mount Warning on the New South Wales far north coast, the premier said she did not believe a selfie would constitute close contact.
“Tom has been having a wonderful time on the Gold Coast and we are so lucky to have Tom in Queensland,” she said.
“But what it is, is people who have come in very close contact with him in recent days [our] experts will now work very closely with him with Baz [Luhrmann] and all the cast the crew and then they will isolate those people who have been in that close proximity.
“From what the chief health officer has told me it’s over 15 minutes of being in very close contact, so a selfie wouldn’t count as that.”
She said Hanks and Wilson would receive “the best treatment in our hospital”.
“I’m very confident with the physicians that we have that will be treating Tom and his wife and like I said we wish them all the very best for a speedy recovery,” she said.
“I know the thoughts of Queenslanders and all Australians are with Tom and Rita during this time.”
Hanks and Wilson’s son, Chet Hanks, posted on Instagram that he just spoke to his parents, who are both “fine, they’re not even that sick. They’re not that worried about it, they’re not tripping. but they’re going through the necessary health precautions obviously.”
“Yeah, it’s true my parents got coronavirus. Crazy,” he says.
Reactions to Donald Trump’s speech earlier include this, from David Litt, who wrote speeches for Obama: “As a former presidential speechwriter, my careful rhetorical analysis is that he’s gonna get us all killed.”
Donald Trump’s first Oval Office address – that almost sacred altar for US presidents on prime time television – came in January 2019 amid a partial government shutdown and asserted that only a border wall can keep out dangerous illegal immigrants.
His second such address on Wednesday night was again couched in terms around the need to resist a foreign invasion that is someone else’s fault. The problem is that the coronavirus is already inside America and spreading.
And the message was delivered by a 73-year-old man with a sniffing habit who did not seem to be a glowing picture of health nor entirely at ease reading from a TelePrompter. His bold assertion last week – “I like this stuff. I really get it … Maybe I have a natural ability” – seemed even more incredible than before.
The latest on Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, who are in Australia and have confirmed they have tested positive for coronavirus:
The premier of Queensland, Annastacia Palaszczuk, said on Thursday that health officials would conduct contact tracing to determine who had been in close contact with Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson.
“People who have come in close contact with Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson will now need to self isolate and quarantine,” she said.
Shortly before health minister Greg Hunt’s announcement that the question of travel from Europe had been referred to the Health Protection Principal Committee, Australia’s foreign minister Marise Payne – who is in Washington DC to meet with US officials – said there were no immediate plans to expand Australia’s current travel restrictions to other countries such as the US or regions like Europe, but that these restrictions were continually being re-assessed.
“I think the important thing about our response is that we have acted early in our decisions around travel restrictions that we’ve needed to impose – always focused on protecting the health and safety of Australians. We are constantly reviewing our travel restrictions.”Payne said government-issued travel bans were becoming almost “self-fulfilling” with people unwilling to travel as the global Covid-19 pandemic took hold.“To an extent these are about to become self-fulfilling in some ways, given the restriction and the constraints on airlines around the world. That is having an impact, most certainly, on people’s ability to travel.“If you’re travelling at the moment you will see that we have very subdued airports, that we have a much lower level of activity. So I think it is, in fact, in some ways, addressing itself.”
In Australia, Victorian health minister Jenny Mikakos says there have been 5,200 negative tests in Victoria.
There are 27 confirmed cases in the state.
There are 12 screening clinics across the state, says Mikakos. “We are already seeing increased demand of people presenting for testing,” she says. The state’s call centre has received over 21,000 calls.
Australian Health Minister Greg Hunt is speaking now.
“In Australia we have 128 cases,” he says.
The Prime Minister and the national security committee have met and decided to refer the question of travel from Europe to the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee (composed of chief medical officers), following Trump’s announcement.