Italy records deadliest day; US deploys National Guard

Italy has recorded its deadliest day of the coronavirus crisis despite locking down the entire country, as New York deployed the National Guard to contain a disease that has sown worldwide panic.

The hardest-hit country in Europe said its death toll from the new coronavirus rose on Tuesday by a third to 631, with the surging epidemic taking its
toll on global sporting, cultural and political events.

While authorities in China, where the outbreak began, have declared it “basically curbed,” cases are multiplying around the world, sparking panic buying in shops and wild swings on financial markets.

China remains the hardest-hit overall with 80,778 cases and 3,158 deaths, out of a global total of 117,339 cases and 4,251 deaths across 107 countries
and territories, according to an Agence France-Presse (AFP) tally.

Some key industries in Wuhan, the Chinese city at the epicenter of the coronavirus epidemic, were told they could resume work on Wednesday, a day after President Xi Jinping visited the city for the first time since the outbreak began.

The city of 11 million has been in lockdown since late January, but Xi’s visit signaled the tide was turning in the government’s favor as it fights to contain the virus.

Drawing confidence from his visit and falling new infections, the Hubei provincial government posted a notice on its website saying public transport workers in Wuhan and workers engaged in making medical supplies and producing daily necessities would be allowed to return to work.

Other industries that impact national or global supply chains can also return to work with permission from relevant authorities, it said.

National Guard deployed

Outside China, the virus is infecting all walks of life, including politics, with US Democratic presidential hopefuls Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden both canceling campaign rallies and British Health Minister Nadine Dorries saying she had tested positive.

And amid criticism of the US authorities’ response, New York deployed the National Guard for the first time during the crisis to help contain the spread of the disease from an infection-hit suburb.

There have been 173 confirmed cases in New York state, including 108 in Westchester County, home to New Rochelle where the majority of infections have been detected.

“It is a dramatic action, but it is the largest cluster in the country. This is literally a matter of life and death,” said the state’s Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

“People are scared, it’s an unusual situation to be in,” Miles Goldberg, who runs a New Rochelle bar, told AFP.

“It makes people nervous to be around others, it makes people nervous to get inside into businesses and such,” he said.

‘Impact many people’

In an unprecedented move, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has told the 60 million residents of his country they should travel only for the most urgent work or health reasons.

And while squares in Milan and Rome were emptied of their usual bustle and traffic, some residents appeared uncertain if they were even allowed to leave their homes for everyday tasks like shopping.The virus has battered tourism around the world, as people scrap travel plans, and a restaurant owner in Florence in northern Italy said the impact on business had been catastrophic.

“We hope that we will see the end of it, because from around 140 covers a day, this afternoon, we’ve gone down to 20-25,” Agostino Ferrara told AFP.

Pope Francis also seemed to muddy the waters, holding a Mass in which he urged priests to go out and visit the sick—something Conte has specifically discouraged.

Spain and Portugal suspended air traffic from Italy for two weeks while Austria ordered a halt to flights and trains from its neighbor. Slovenia said it would impose controls at its border with the country.

As British Airways canceled Italian flights on Tuesday, Air France and low-cost carriers Ryanair, Easyjet and Wizz Air said they would scrap flights from Italian airports until early April.

Air Canada took even more drastic measures, suspending flight to Italy until at least May 1.

Sporting events continued to fall victim to the virus as authorities urge people to avoid large gatherings.

Arsenal’s game at Manchester City was postponed after players from the London club were put into quarantine, making it the first Premier League fixture to be called off because of the virus.

The virus has sparked doubts about the Olympics due to open in Tokyo on July 24 and the traditional flame lighting ceremony in Greece is set to be held without spectators.

In the United States, organizers rescheduled the two-week Coachella music festival for October.

‘Winding up a rubber band’

The virus and the response to the crisis have prompted pandemonium on global markets with volatility not seen since the world financial crisis in 2008.

After suffering its worst session in more than 11 years at the beginning of the week, the Dow Jones Index in New York bounced back significantly, rising 5 percent on Tuesday.

Politicians around the world have scrambled to put together emergency packages to ease the significant financial hardships the virus is expected to cause for households and businesses.

US President Donald Trump, who is relying on a strong economy to boost his reelection hopes, promised to announce “major” economic measures on Tuesday.

The biggest item on his wish list is a cut in payroll taxes. But even allies in Congress and reportedly some aides in the White House are skeptical, questioning the cost.

Italy prepared on Tuesday to let families skip mortgage and some tax payments while Japan unveiled a second emergency package to tackle economic woes stemming from the outbreak, including $15 billion in loan programs to support small businesses.

But analysts warned of further volatility ahead.

“It’s like winding up a rubber band. The more you wind it, when you let go, the more it pops,” said LBBW’s Karl Haeling. “A lot of the uncertainty goes to the root of the virus itself.”