(Bloomberg) — Iran and South Korea reported hundreds more cases of coronavirus while unexplained infections in California, Oregon and Washington indicated the disease is spreading within the community on the U.S. West Coast.
Iran reported another 205 cases, including five lawmakers, while the number of infections in South Korea soared 35%, or by over 800, in 24 hours. China’s factory activity fell to a record low after weeks of closures caused by the virus.
Key Developments
Confirmed cases worldwide pass 85,000; deaths top 2,900Cases jump in South Korea and Iran, including lawmakersNew U.S. cases point to outbreak along the western seaboardChinese manufacturing activity contracts sharply
Click VRUS on the terminal for news and data on the coronavirus and here for maps and charts. For analysis of the impact from Bloomberg Economics, click here.
Chevron Employee in London Negative (7:46 a.m. NY)
A Chevron Corp. employee in London has tested negative for the coronavirus, the company said in a statement. It asked traders and other staff at its Canary Wharf office to work from home this week as a precaution after an employee had flu-like symptoms.
Iraq Oil Conference Postponed (7:36 a.m. NY)
Organizers postponed an oil conference that was scheduled to take place March 2 and 3 in Baghdad, Frontier Exchange Co.’s Baghdad branch manager, Ahmed Al Jadr, said in phone interview. The move is based on a recommendation from Iraq’s health ministry to avoid public gatherings after the country reported eight coronavirus cases. Organizers plan to reschedule the event in early April.
Azerbaijan Closes Iran Border (7:15 a.m. NY)
Azerbaijan closed its border with Iran for two weeks and said two more Azeri nationals have coronavirus after visiting the country’s southern neighbor, bringing the nation’s total cases to three. Azeris currently in Iran and Iranians visiting Azerbaijan will be allowed to return home, it said. The restrictions also apply to flights between the Azeri and Iranian capitals, state-owned Azerbaijan Airlines said in a Facebook statement.
Iran Implements Travel Measures (7 a.m. NY)
Iran Air says it’s restricting flights for Iranians to Germany, Azerbaijan, the Netherlands and U.K. Only Iranian nationals with residency or citizenship of these countries and health certificates will be allowed to fly, the semi-official Iranians Students’ News Agency reported, citing an interview with Masoumeh Asgharzadeh, Iran Air’s director of public affairs. People suspected of coronavirus in Qom, the epicenter of the outbreak there, will be prevented from leaving, according to ILNA.
The semi-official Tasnim news agency reported the death of MP Mohammad Ali Ramezani Dastak by influenza, though denying that he had contracted the coronavirus.
Inter Milan, Juventus Game Postponed (6:52 a.m. NY)
In Italy, the soccer game between Juventus and Inter Milan has been postponed until May 13 in compliance with urgent measures to contain Covid-19, the Turin-based team said on Twitter. Five Serie A games in Italy’s top league have been postponed.
Spain’s El Clasico match between Barcelona and Real Madrid is still set to go ahead tomorrow. The country has 46 infections, including two serious cases, Fernando Simon, the head of the the country’s health emergency center, said in a news conference.
Case Identified Near Rome (6:50 a.m. NY)
Cases have popped up elsewhere in Italy, including on the fringes of the capital. A woman from Fiumicino, the town that borders Rome’s main airport, tested positive after traveling to the Bergamo area in Lombardy, regional health authorities said in a statement. Her husband and one of her two children were also positive in preliminary tests conducted Saturday.
Iran Cases Jump More Than 50% (6 p.m. HK)
The total number of cases in the country rose by more than 50% to 593 with 43 deaths, the highest number of deaths from the disease outside of China. Five members of Iran’s parliament have tested positive out of 100 who were tested, spokesman Asadollah Abbasi said. Iran has 290 MPs. Parliament on Friday suspended all sessions indefinitely in response to the outbreak.
Japan Plans More Measures (5:55 p.m. HK)
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said he was planning a second round of measures to tackle the new coronavirus outbreak, using 270 billion yen ($2.5 billion) in remaining reserves from this year’s budget.
Subsidies will be introduced for those who lose income due to measures like school closures and the package is to be drawn up within about the next 10 days, Abe said at a press conference in Tokyo.
Panic Buying in the U.K. (5 p.m. HK)
U.K. retailers are already reporting panic buying as consumers fear a mass outbreak of coronavirus in the country, the Daily Telegraph reports. Online grocer Ocado said it has seen a spike in “particularly large orders” as customers stockpile food and health products. Boots, the pharmacy, has had to resort to rationing hand sanitizer, the newspaper said. There have been 20 confirmed cases of the virus and no fatalities in the U.K.
China Could Have Vaccine by April (4:45 p.m. HK)
China’s vaccine research experts told premier Li Keqiang that a vaccine for coronavirus could be introduced for emergency use as early as April.
Researchers said some coronavirus vaccines could be used under certain conditions, according to a statement posted on government website Saturday, citing a trip Li made to the coronavirus national medical equipment emergency platform on Friday. The statement didn’t give details on the vaccine or the conditions.
More Cases in South Korea, Taiwan (4 p.m. HK)
In South Korea’s second update of the day, it said total infections there jumped to 3,150 from 2,931 earlier on Saturday. That’s more than 810 cases in just a day.
The number of cases in Taiwan jumped by five to 39, as the newly infected included three nurses and a hospital janitor. Denmark and Thailand also reported additional cases.
Austrian Chancellor U.S. Visit Postponed (3 p.m. HK)
Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz‘s planned White House visit next week was postponed by the U.S. because of the coronavirus situation, the Austrian chancellery said. Kurz was due to meet Trump on Tuesday.
The number of cases in Austria jumped to seven.
No Protests Please, Thai Authorities Say (2 p.m. HK)
Thailand’s military-backed government said pro-democracy protests risk spreading the coronavirus and asked people to avoid rallies. People gathering in crowds could make it harder to control the spread of the disease, Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said in a briefing Saturday.
Thousands of students have rallied across the country in the past week after the enforced breakup of Future Forward, a popular pro-democracy party. Anutin asked the organizers of protests to postpone or cancel them, and instead find other ways to express their views.
Australia Bans Iran Arrivals (1:49 p.m. HK)
Australia imposed a travel ban on foreign nationals arriving from Iran and advised its own citizens not to travel there. Australians coming back from Iran must isolate themselves because the country poses “a very high risk,” said Brendan Murphy, Australia’s chief medical offer. A woman earlier tested positive for the virus after returning from Iran this week. She’s in isolation at Gold Coast University Hospital.
Washington State Reports New Cases (12:08 p.m. HK)
Health officials in the west coast state identified two new cases, including a school-aged adolescent who has no known connection to an outbreak-hit country or anyone who has visited such an area. The other patient had traveled to South Korea.
Mexico Gets Cases From Same Source (11:36 a.m. HK)
Health officials confirmed three coronavirus cases in Mexico, all with mild symptoms and probably from the same source. The first patient was a 35-year-old resident of Mexico City who took a trip to Italy in February, officials said.
Oregon Case Likely Spread by Community (10:44 a.m. HK)
The first reported coronavirus patient in Oregon was probably infected within the community, according to the state’s health authority. The patient, who is from Washington County, had no known recent travel history to a country with a large virus outbreak, nor close contact with a confirmed case.
The person works at a school in the adjoining Clackamas County and may have exposed students and staff to the virus, the Oregon Health Authority said.
South Korean Infections Jump 25% (9:16 a.m. HK)
Confirmed coronavirus cases in South Korea leapt by 594 in less than 24 hours, bringing the total to 2,931, according to data from the Korea Centers for Disease Control & Prevention. The jump followed the previous update from the CDC on Friday afternoon.
China Factory Activity at Record Low (9 a.m. HK)
China’s manufacturing purchasing managers’ index plunged to 35.7 in February from 50 the previous month, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics.
The figure was well below the median estimate among economists of 45 and is perhaps the biggest insight yet into how much the coronavirus is hurting China’s economy. The non-manufacturing gauge also dropped to a record 29.6 from 54.1 in January. Values below 50 denote worsening conditions.
China Reports Just Four Cases Outside Hubei (8:33 a.m. HK)
China reported 427 new coronavirus cases for Feb. 28, of which 423 were in Hubei, according to China’s National Health Commission. That takes total confirmed cases in the country to 79,251.
There were 47 deaths from the infection in China on Feb. 28, of which 45 were in Hubei. Some 39,000 people in China have now been discharged from hospital.
U.S. Postpones Meeting with Asian Leaders (8:21 a.m. HK)
The Trump administration postponed a meeting with Asian leaders that was set to be held next month in Las Vegas, citing efforts to contain the coronavirus. The U.S. made the decision in consultation with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, a White House official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
ASEAN includes 10 countries in Southeast Asia. China, the epicenter of the outbreak, is not among the members.
California Has Case of Unknown Origin (7:32 a.m. HK)
A second person in California was diagnosed with the coronavirus despite a lack of known ties to other infected patients or areas. It’s a further sign that the disease is likely spreading in some parts of the U.S.
The patient “had no known exposure to the virus through travel or close contact with a known infected individual,” the Santa Clara County Public Health Department said in a statement Friday
–With assistance from Kanga Kong, Adam Haigh, Isabel Reynolds, Yasna Haghdoost, Vernon Silver, Charles Penty, Zulfugar Agayev and Khalid Al-Ansary.
To contact Bloomberg News staff for this story: Michelle Fay Cortez in Minneapolis at [email protected];David R. Baker in San Francisco at [email protected];Sophie Alexander in San Francisco at [email protected];John Harney in Washington at [email protected]
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Shamim Adam at [email protected], Sara Marley, James Amott
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