Coronavirus latest: curfew to be imposed in Manila, Indonesian minister infected

A nightly curfew from 8pm to 5am will be imposed in the Philippine capital Manila from Sunday in a bid to contain the spread of the coronavirus, authorities announced on Saturday. The nine-hour curfew will last until April 14, with workers, people delivering essentials and medical teams being exempted, according to the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority. MMDA general manager Jojo Garcia said violators of the curfew would only be issued with a warning and not be arrested. The mayors of Metro Manila collectively called on all shopping malls to close during the period, with grocery stores, supermarkets, pharmacies, banks and restaurants offering home delivery being exempted. The curfew follows Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s announcement on Thursday that land, sea and air traffic into and out of the capital would be halted for a month from Sunday. As of Saturday, the country has recorded 98 confirmed coronavirus cases, with the death toll at eight. Indonesian Transport Minister Budi Karya Sumadi has been hospitalised in Jakarta after he contracted coronavirus, a government official said on Saturday, the most high-profile case so far to be confirmed in the Southeast Asian country. Earlier on Saturday, Jakarta’s governor said the city will close all schools for at least two weeks to curb the spread of coronavirus, as the first cases were also reported in other parts of the archipelago. The archipelago reported on Saturday 27 more coronavirus cases, bringing the total confirmed infections to 96 and deaths to five. Sumadi’s family had given approval for the announcement after the minister had been on “the front line and a very important part of containing the impact of Covid-19”, Pratikno, who is state secretary in charge of administrative support for the office of president, told a news conference. The condition of Sumadi, 63, who had attended a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, was showing an improvement, said Albertus Budi Sulistya, deputy head of the Gatot Soebroto Hospital. Earlier, the number of new coronavirus cases imported into mainland China from overseas surpassed the number of locally transmitted new infections for the first time on Friday, data released by the National Health Commission showed on Saturday. China had 11 new confirmed cases on Friday, up from eight cases a day earlier, but only four of those – all in the virus epicentre of Hubei province – were locally transmitted. The other seven – including four in Shanghai, one in Beijing and two in Gansu – were all detected in travellers coming into China from overseas, specifically Italy, the United States and Saudi Arabia, according to local authorities. The numbers underscore how China, where the outbreak began in December, appears to now face a greater threat of new infections from outside its borders as it continues to slow the spread of the virus domestically. A total of 95 cases have now come into mainland China from overseas, the commission said. South Korea’s virus response is the opposite of China’s – and it works Hubei has now seen new infections fall for nine straight days. All four of the new cases on Friday, down from five a day earlier, were in provincial capital Wuhan. The death toll from the outbreak in mainland China had reached 3,189 as of the end of Friday, up by 13 from the previous day. All of the latest deaths were in Hubei and 10 of them were in Wuhan. To date, the flu-like virus Covid-19 has to date infected 80,824 people and caused 3,189 deaths in mainland China. Meanwhile, South Korea reported more recoveries from the Covid-19 coronavirus than new infections on Saturday for the second day in a row, as a downward trend in daily cases raised hopes that Asia’s biggest epidemic outside China may be slowing. The Korea Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) recorded 107 new coronavirus cases on Saturday compared with 110 a day earlier, taking the national tally to 8,086. In contrast, 204 patients were discharged from hospitals where they had been isolated for treatment. For the second day in a row, the daily number of recovered people exceeded that of new confirmed cases since South Korea’s first patient was confirmed on January 20. With the latest figures, South Korea has continued to see a steady drop in the number of new cases, raising hopes that the outbreak may be slowing in Asia’s fourth-largest economy. Of the latest 107 cases, 62 were from the hard-hit southeastern city of Daegu where a fringe Christian church at the centre of the epidemic is located, while 15 and 13 were in Gyeonggi and Seoul, respectively. However, Prime Minister Chung Se-kyun said South Korea’s war against the coronavirus is broadening despite the decline in new cases, and urged vigilance after the emergence of infection clusters in areas including Seoul. In Japan, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said that the country is currently not in a position to declare a state of emergency amid the spread of the coronavirus. “There is no explosive spread of infections in Japan,” Abe told a press conference, a day after the country enacted a time-limited law revision that enables the premier, if he deems it necessary, to declare a state of emergency to cope with the pandemic. New cases pop up in Malaysia, Singapore Malaysia reported 41 new coronavirus cases on Saturday, all linked to a religious event on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur that was attended by about 10,000 people from several countries. The new cases bring the total number of infected people in the Southeast Asian country to 238, the health ministry said in a statement. A total of 81 cases in Malaysia have now been confirmed as linked to the same event held at a mosque between February 27 and March 1. To contain the spread of the virus, all gatherings including international meetings, sports, social and religious events would be cancelled or postponed until after April, Prime Minister Muyiddin Yassin said. In neighbouring Brunei, 38 of the total 40 cases in the country had been linked to the religious gathering as of Saturday. Also on Saturday, Singapore announced 12 more cases of Covid-19, including nine imported cases. This brings the total number of infections in the city state to 212. Travel disruptions Turkey said flights from nine European countries – Germany, France, Spain, Belgium, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Austria and the Netherlands – would be cancelled until April 17. It had already suspended China, Italy, Iran, Iraq and South Korea flights. Turkey reported its fifth case of coronavirus on Saturday. Saudi Arabia said on Saturday that it would halt all international flights to the kingdom for two weeks, to contain the spread of the new coronavirus. Vietnam will deny entry and stop issuing tourist visas to citizens from Europe’s Schengen visa-free area and Britain starting from Sunday, for a 30 day period. Colombia’s president ordered his nation’s border with Venezuela closed as a coronavirus containment measure. Iván Duque said all crossings along the 1,370-mile (2,200km) border would close from Saturday. Apple closes stores worldwide Tech giant Apple closed its stores outside China for two weeks and will only sell online as part of efforts to fight the pandemic. “In our workplaces and communities, we must do all we can to prevent the spread of Covid-19,” CEO Tim Cook tweeted on Saturday. “Apple will be temporarily closing all stores outside Greater China until March 27 and committing $15M to help with worldwide recovery.” In a lengthier online statement, Cook said that Apple’s stores in China have all now reopened and what the company has learned there has helped it develop “best practices that are assisting enormously in our global response.” One of the lessons Apple learned in China is that “the most effective way to minimise risk of the virus’s transmission is to reduce density and maximise social distance,” he said. That’s why the company is taking new steps to protect workers and customers as the infection rate rises in other places. Apple’s online stores remain open. Workers will continue to be paid and office staff will work remotely if possible, Cook said. The iPhone maker has more than 500 retail stores worldwide, with about half in the US. New Zealand requires self-isolation On Saturday, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said that everyone entering the country from midnight on Sunday must self isolate for 14 days in an effort to contain the spread of the new coronavirus. People from small South Pacific island countries, which currently have no reported cases, will be exempted, Ardern said in a news conference. New Zealand has a large South Pacific islander population. All cruise ships will also be told not to come to New Zealand until June 30, she said. Ardern said these were “far-reaching and unprecedented” measures to tackle a global pandemic. New Zealand has six confirmed cases and has not recorded any deaths. Earlier, the country cancelled a national memorial to commemorate the 51 people who were killed when a gunman attacked two mosques last year, due to concern over the new coronavirus. Thousands of people were expected to attend the Sunday service in Christchurch to mark the anniversary of the March 15 shooting. Trump declares emergency, US House passes aid package On Friday, US President Donald Trump declared the coronavirus pandemic a national emergency to free up more money and resources. But he denied any responsibility for delays in making testing available for the new virus. Trump unleashed as much as US$50 billion for state and local governments to respond to the outbreak and also announced a range of executive actions, including a new public-private partnership to expand coronavirus testing capabilities with drive-through locations. Early on Saturday, the US House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a coronavirus aid package that would provide free testing and paid sick leave, in a bid to limit the economic damage from the pandemic. Meanwhile, Trump, who has been known to flout public health advice – eagerly shaking hands during the more than hour-long afternoon event – acknowledged he “most likely” will be tested now after having been in contact with several officials who have tested positive for the virus. “Fairly soon,” he said. Trump said he was gratified that Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro tested negative for the virus, after the pair sat next to each other for an extended period of time last weekend at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club. A senior aide to Bolsonaro tested positive. Economic assistance The European Commission said it will set up a 37 billion euro (US$41 billion) investment fund and allow “maximum flexibility” on state aid and fiscal rules to help member states weather the economic hit by the coronavirus outbreak. European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said the EU budget will guarantee 8 billion euros in liquidity for small and medium-sized companies affected by the crisis. France’s government is promising to compensate virus-related salary losses for “99 per cent” of workers, as travel bans, school closures and other measures take a heavy toll on the economy. It’s part of tens of billions of euros the government says it will stump up to support the economy. Meanwhile, Germany is pledging at least 460 billion euros (US$513 billion) in guarantees to cope with the economic impact of the coronavirus outbreak and Sweden’s central bank said it will lend up to 500 billion kronor (US$52 billion) to companies via the banks to keep them from “being knocked out as a result of the spread of the coronavirus”. Europe now the centre of the coronavirus pandemic The World Health Organisation named Europe the new epicentre of the coronavirus on Friday, with countries sealing borders, shutting schools and cancelling events in a frenzied attempt to slow the ballooning pandemic. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the continent now had “more reported cases and deaths than the rest of the world combined, apart from China”, describing it as a “tragic milestone” and warning that it was impossible to say when the virus would peak globally. Italy, Spain as well as Iran – which have emerged as virus hotspots – all clocked a dramatic rise in cases and fatalities. Italy, the hardest-hit country in Europe, recorded its highest one-day toll with 250 deaths over the past 24 hours, while Spain declared a state of alert after its infections raced past 5,000. Italy hits single-day record with 250 new coronavirus deaths Leaders of the G7, the world’s richest economies, will hold an extraordinary summit via videoconference on Monday to discuss the pandemic. The virus has torn up the sporting and cultural calendar, with top-flight events from Broadway to English Premier League football scrapped. It is also weighing heavily on daily life. Shops, squares and cafes normally packed with people are deserted in Italy, which has imposed nationwide lockdown measures never-before-seen in peacetime. The illness is sparing no-one. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced he was in self-imposed quarantine after his wife tested positive, the day after Hollywood star Tom Hanks said he and his wife were infected. Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro said on Friday he had tested negative after a top aide was confirmed infected. Australia’s home minister Peter Dutton announced he had tested positive, while Philippine leader Rodrigo Duterte tested negative. Markets recover after historic plunge US stocks surged on Friday, recouping much of a historic plunge, after Trump announced new measures to fight the coronavirus. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 1,985 points, or 9.4 per cent, its best gain since October 2008. European stocks gave up most of the gains made during the day on Friday, closing only slightly higher after suffering a huge drop the day before. The Stoxx Europe 600 index, which measures major shares across the continent, ended the day 1.4 per cent higher. On Thursday it dropped 11.5 per cent, its worst percentage drop on record. Britain’s FTSE 100 closed 1.7 per cent higher, Germany’s DAX 0.8 per cent and France’s CAC 40 up 1.8 per cent. Italy’s FTSE MIB gained 7.1 per cent, not even half of what it lost the previous day. Investor sentiment was helped somewhat by financial aid measures by the EU and states including Germany and France. Reporting by agencies