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 The cruise ship Diamond Princess, by far the largest cluster of
coronavirus cases outside China, has become the biggest test so far
of other countries' ability to contain an outbreak that has killed
1,770 people in China and five elsewhere.
Across mainland China, officials said the total number of
coronavirus cases rose by 2,048 to 70,548. That was slightly more
new cases than were reported on Sunday, but hundreds fewer than
reported on Saturday.
Chinese authorities say the stabilization in the number of new cases
is a sign that measures they have taken to halt the spread of the
disease are having an effect.
However, epidemiologists say it is probably still too early to say
how well the outbreak is being contained within China and its
central Hubei province, where the virus first appeared.
China has responded to the COVID-19 virus by effectively locking
down Hubei's provincial capital Wuhan, a megacity of 11 million
people.
The Communist Party is also struggling to prevent the economy from
crashing, as the movement of people and goods around the country and
to and from China faces major disruption.
On Monday China's central bank cut the interest rate on its
medium-term lending, a move that is expected to pave the way for a
reduction in the benchmark loan prime rate on Thursday. Beijing has
also announced plans for cuts in taxes and fees.
Even so, economists expect China's economic growth to slow. Ratings
agency Moody's on Monday lowered its 2020 GDP growth forecast to
5.2%, making it likely China would miss a goal to double GDP over
the decade to 2020.
CRUISE SHIPS
Outside China, around half of all known cases of the virus have been
found aboard the Diamond Princess, where around 400 people have
tested positive since the cruise liner was ordered to stay under
quarantine off Japan on Feb. 3.
The United States was the first country to evacuate its passengers
from the ship, flying them out overnight on two chartered aircraft
to military bases in Texas and California, where they would be held
in quarantine for two weeks.
The state department said that after passengers were sent to the
airport, officials discovered 14 had tested positive. They were
isolated on the flight and permitted to fly home, it said.
Other countries were expected to follow swiftly, having announced
plans to repatriate citizens from the ship. Around half of the 3,700
passengers and crew are Japanese.
Authorities around the world were also trying to track down
passengers from another cruise liner, the Westerdam, which was
turned away from ports across Southeast Asia for two weeks before
docking in Cambodia on Thursday.
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One American passenger who disembarked in Cambodia tested positive
for the virus in Malaysia on Saturday.
Carnival Corp., which operates both cruise liners, said it was
cooperating with authorities in trying to trace passengers from the
Westerdam. None of the other 1,454 passengers and 802 crew had
reported any symptoms, it said.
"Guests who have already returned home will be contacted by their
local health department and be provided further information," a
statement from the company's Holland America Line unit said.
Hundreds of passengers are still in Cambodia, either on the ship or
in hotels.
"We will all be tested for the coronavirus today and tomorrow by the
Cambodian Ministry of Health," said passenger Holley Rauen, a public
health nurse and midwife from Fort Myers, Florida. "We have no idea
when we get to get home."
CHINA BACK TO WORK?
After an extended Lunar New Year holiday, China urgently needs to
get back to work. There is a proposal to delay the opening of the
annual session of parliament, due on Feb. 24.
Some cities remain in lockdown, streets are deserted, employees are
nervous, and travel bans and quarantine orders are in place around
the country. Many factories have yet to re-open, disrupting supply
chains in China and beyond.
In Japan, where data showed on Monday that the economy had already
shrunk last quarter at the fastest pace in almost six years, the
impact of the virus is expected to show up in the current quarter,
stoking fears of recession.
Trade-dependent Singapore downgraded its 2020 economic growth
forecast and has said recession is possible. It is set to unveil
measures to cushion the blow on Tuesday.
Organizers of the Tokyo Marathon have decided to limit the March 1
race to top-level athletes, banning 38,000 general participants, a
person with knowledge of the issue told Reuters.
Japan's Imperial Household Agency said it would cancel Emperor
Naruhito's public birthday address on Feb. 23, his first since his
coronation last year. The event regularly attracts tens of thousands
of people to the inner grounds of the Imperial Palace in the heart
of Tokyo.
(Reporting by David Stanway in Shanghai; Claire Baldwin in
Sihanoukville; John Geddie and Aradhana Aravindan in Singapore;
Additional reporting by Farah Master in Hong Kong, Sophie Yu in
Beijing and Hilary Russ in New York; Writing by Peter Graff; Editing
by Mike Collett-White)
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