The global death toll from the coronavirus outbreak exceeded 3,000 on Monday as South Korea reported almost 500 new cases of the disease and a second person died in the US.
Covid-19 has now infected more than 88,000 people and spread to more than 60 countries after first emerging in China late last year. Indonesia, which has so far claimed to be virus-free, registered its first two cases on Monday, reports The Guardian.
More than two months on, most new cases and deaths are still confined to China, whose health commission reported 202 new infections on Monday - the lowest daily rise since late January - and 42 new deaths. Hubei province, where the outbreak has been concentrated, recorded 196 of the 202 new cases and all of the new deaths.
The death toll in China rose to 2,912, but it is also creeping up in other countries. Iran has the second highest number of deaths, with 54, Australia reported its first Covid-19 death over the weekend. Infections nearly doubled over the weekend in Italy - Europe’s hardest-hit country with nearly 1,700 cases.
Cases in the US rose to at least 76 with two deaths, both in Washington state. The second victim was a man in his 70s who died on Saturday in a nursing home where several other people are infected, local health authorities said.
New York state confirmed its first positive coronavirus test, governor Andrew Cuomo said on Sunday night, tweeting that a woman in her 30s contracted the respiratory illness during a recent trip to Iran and was in quarantine in her home. He did not say where the woman lived, but the New York Times, citing unnamed state officials, said her home was in New York City.
The US vice president, Mike Pence, attempted to quell criticism of the Trump administration’s handling of the outbreak, promising to make up the shortfall in testing kits. “We could have more sad news, but the American people should know the risk to the average American remains low,” Pence told CNN.
South Korea, which has the highest number of infections outside China, saw nearly 500 new cases on Monday, bringing its total to 4,212. Four more people died, bringing the country’s total to 22, the the national disease control centre said.
The number of South Korean cases is expected to rise as more than 260,000 people associated with a religious sect undergo testing. More than half of the infections in South Korea have been linked to the Shincheonji Church of Jesus in the south-eastern city of Daegu.
The Seoul city government on Monday called for the sect’s leaders, including founder Lee Man-hee, to be investigated for murder, accusing them of refusing to cooperate with efforts to contain the spread of the disease.
With fears of a pandemic on the rise, the World Health Organization urged all countries to stock up on critical care ventilators to treat patients with severe symptoms.
The rapid spread of the coronavirus has raised fears over its impact on the world economy, causing global markets to log their worst losses since the 2008 financial crisis.
Covid-19 has rattled markets across Asia, prompting the governor of the Bank of Japan, Haruhiko Kuroda, to announce on Monday that the central bank would take steps to stabilise markets. Kuroda’s comments came days after a similar move by the US Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell.
Markets welcomed signs that the world’s biggest central banks were moving towards coordinated policy action, with Asian shares steadying after early losses on Monday. The rout had deepened earlier in the day with new figures showing Chinese manufacturing activity collapsed in February, raising fears of a global recession from the coronavirus.
Concern over a possible Covid-19 pandemic wiped more than $5 trillion from global share values last week, as stocks recorded their steepest slump in more than a decade.
The virus outbreak has heightened fears of recession in Japan - the world’s third-biggest economy - due to disruption to supply chains, a sharp drop in the number of overseas tourists and sports and event cancellations.
Japan’s prime minister, Shinzo Abe, said the government would announce a second batch of measures around March 10 to prevent the spread of the virus and mitigate its damage to the economy.
Japan has more than 940 virus cases, including 705 from the Diamond Princess cruise liner, which was quarantined near Tokyo this month, according to public broadcaster NHK. Eleven people have died in Japan, including six former Diamond Princess passengers.
Abe has promised to alleviate the pressure on parents amid criticism of his decision last week to call for nationwide school closures.
The government plans to create a fund to help companies pay subsidies to workers who need to take days off to look after their children while schools are closed until the new academic year starts in early April, the Nikkei business daily reported.