The virus thought to have originated in a Wuhan food market continues to spread as China steps up containment efforts.
China is extending the Lunar New Year holiday for three days and enforcing strict containment measures in an attempt to curb the spread of a new coronavirus that has killed 81 people and infected at more than 2,700.
READ ALSO: China Virus: Death toll rises to 81 as China extends holiday over coronavirus outbreak
More than 56 million people in almost 20 cities, including the Hubei capital of Wuhan, where the virus originated, have been affected by travel restrictions, introduced amid fears the transmission rate will balloon as hundreds of millions of Chinese travel during the Lunar New Year celebrations.
Health authorities around the world are taking action to prevent a pandemic as more countries report cases. Confirmed cases have so far been announced in several Asian countries, Europe and North America.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has acknowledged the respiratory illness, which has been traced to the city of Wuhan, is an emergency in China but the organisation said on Thursday it was too early to declare the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.
Here are the latest updates:
Monday, January 27
UK offers to help citizens to leave Hubei province
The United Kingdom has offered to help its citizens leave Hubei province, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) said.
“We are working to make available an option for British nationals to leave Hubei province,” a statement on the FCO’s China advice page read.
Spain to repatriate its citizens from Wuhan
The Spanish government is working with China and the European Union to repatriate Spanish nationals from Wuhan, Spain’s Foreign Minister Arancha Gonzalez Laya said.
“We’re working … with our consulate in Beijing, and officials in China and the European Union to repatriate around 20 Spaniards in Wuhan, Hubei, the epicentre of the coronavirus. We will continue to update on any advances,” she wrote on Twitter.
Russia tour operators stop selling China tours
Russian tour operators have stopped selling tours to China due to the coronavirus outbreak and are only bringing Russian tourists back, Dmitry Gorin, vice president of the Association of Russian Tour Operators told Reuters news agency.
“The tours are not being sold because there is a safety threat,” he said, adding that the move followed recommendations from Russia’s tourism watchdog.
Malaysia imposes temporary ban on visitors from Hubei
Malaysia has imposed a temporary ban on Chinese visitors from Wuhan and the wider Hubei province in a bid to stem the spread of the coronavirus.
The government decided to impose the measure with immediate effect following the rising death toll in China, according to a statement from the Malaysian prime minister’s office, which added that the ban would be lifted once the situation returned to normal.
Malaysia has reported four confirmed cases of the deadly virus.
Read more about which countries have confirmed cases here.
Saudi Arabia watching oil market closely amid outbreak
Saudi Arabia‘s energy minister said the country is closely monitoring developments in global oil markets resulting from “gloomy expectations” regarding the possible impact of the coronavirus on the Chinese and global economy, as well as on the oil market’s fundamentals.
OPEC and its allies can respond to any impact on the stability of the oil market if needed, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said.
Read more about the impact of the outbreak on oil prices here.
South Korea confirms fourth case
South Korea has confirmed its fourth case of the virus in a 55-year-old South Korean man who returned from Wuhan on January 20 and tested positive for the virus.
The Korea Centers for Disease Control (KCDC) said the man was placed in quarantine on Sunday and that health authorities are in the process of tracking his movements since returning and the people he may have contacted.
Read more about which countries have confirmed cases here.
Mongolia closes China border, shuts schools
Mongolia has closed its border crossing with China to cars and pedestrians and shut schools in an effort to halt the spread of the deadly virus.
“Pedestrians and cars are prohibited to cross the Chinese border,” said Vice Prime Minister Enkhtuvishin Ulziisaikhan said on Sunday, adding that schools and universities would stay closed until March 2, along with other public places.
“Public events are also prohibited. Public events mean conferences, any public gathering such as sports, entertainment or travel and competitions,” he said.
Macau to deny entry to Hubei visitors unless they prove virus-free
Macau has said it will deny entry to visitors from China’s Hubei province or those who visited the province 14 days prior to arrival unless they can provide documentation showing they are not infected.
Macau’s government has also said it is banning anyone who had been to Hubei province within 14 days of arrival in the island from the premises of the city’s casinos.
Five cases have been reported in the gambling hub, which is hugely popular with mainland tourists.
Macau, a gambling hub, is a popular destination for mainland tourists [File: Jason Lee/Reuters]
China allots nearly $9bn to contain spread
China’s finance ministry and National Health Commission have extended the 60.33 billion yuan ($8.74bn) to help contain the spreading virus, according to a statement on the ministry’s website.
Oil prices and Asian shares fall as virus fears stalk financial markets
Oil prices and Asian shares skidded lower as concerns grew over the potential impact of the virus outbreak, with safe-haven assets such as the Japanese yen and US Treasury notes in greater demand.
The price of Brent crude oil fell below $60 per barrel for the first time since October, as Asian stocks fell in line with their Wall Street counterparts.
Read the full story here.
China’s Hainan province announces first coronavirus death
China’s southern province of Hainan has confirmed that an 80-year-old woman died after being infected with the coronavirus, its first fatality in the outbreak, according to state broadcaster CCTV.
Australia confirms fifth coronavirus case
Australia has confirmed its fifth case of coronavirus, with health officials saying the patient was a 21-year-old woman who was on the last flight out of Wuhan to Sydney before the travel ban was imposed.
The woman travelled on a direct flight to Sydney from Wuhan and developed symptoms within 24 hours and went to an emergency department, New South Wales Chief Health Officer Kerry Chant told reporters.
“The patient was immediately put into isolation,” Chant said.
Officials were tracing “a couple of very low-level contacts” related to the woman, Chant said.
Read more about which countries have confirmed cases of the virus here.
China has deployed the military to the sealed-off city of Wuhan as it attempts to stop the deadly virus from spreading [Cheng Min/Xinhua via AP Photo]
WHO chief travelling to Beijing
WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus is travelling to Beijing to meet government officials and those dealing with the coronavirus outbreak.
He said he wants to “understand the latest developments and strengthen our partnership with China in providing further protection against the outbreak.”
Japan to arrange charter flight to evacuate citizens from Wuhan
Japan is expected to arrange a charter flight as early as Tuesday for any of its citizens who wish to return from Wuhan, Kyodo news agency reported, citing a senior ruling party official.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told a news conference earlier on Monday the government was working with Chinese authorities to make arrangements for all Japanese nationals wishing to return from Wuhan, including on charter flights.
Chinese premier visits city at epicentre of virus
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has visited Wuhan where he was expected to meet patients as well as frontline medical teams.
Pictured on social media wearing a mask and blue plastic scrubs, Li was in the city to “investigate and guide” ongoing efforts to control the virus, China’s State Council said on its official social media account.
The premier heads a working group that was set up to tackle the outbreak.
Holiday extended to February 2
China will extend the Lunar New Year holidays to February 2, to strengthen the prevention and control of the new coronavirus, state broadcaster CCTV reported.
The holidays had been due to end on January 30.
Schools that are currently on a term break will also extend their holidays, but the specific dates will be announced by the Ministry of Education, CCTV said.
Popular hotpot restaurant closes stores across China
The popular Haidilao chain of hotpot restaurants will close all its outlets across China from January 26 – 31 to contain the spread of the virus.
Haidilao is closing its restaurants across China as the country tries to curb the spread of a new coronavirus that originated in Wuhan [File: Jason Lee/Reuters]
Haidilao has restaurants in 118 cities in mainland China.
Death toll rises to 80 with more than 2,700 infected
China has said that the death toll from a deadly outbreak of coronavirus jumped to 80 as the hard-hit province of Hubei announced 24 new fatalities, while total confirmed cases nationwide rose sharply to 2,744.
Wuhan coronavirus: A new pandemic?
SOURCE: ALJAZEERA
