U.S. Coronavirus Infections Rise as Cases Outside China Pass 10,000
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The state of Georgia reported its first two coronavirus patients, pushing the number of infected people in the U.S. to 105, as the number of confirmed cases outside of mainland China crossed 10,000.
One of the two Georgians, who are members of the same Atlanta-area household, had recently been to Italy, Gov. Brian Kemp said at a press briefing on Monday night. They have shown only mild symptoms and are being isolated at home with other relatives while contact tracing is conducted, according to a statement.
The Latest on the Coronavirus
- Number of confirmed cases of infection outside mainland China passes 10,000
- South Korea reports 851 new cases, bringing total to 5,186; 31 dead
- China death toll rises by 31 to 2,943; new confirmed infections at 125
- U.S. state of Georgia reports two infection cases; countrywide infection count is 105, excluding repatriations from Japan and Italy
- Johns Hopkins says coronavirus has infected 90,926 people since late 2019 and 53{f08ff3a0ad7db12f5b424ba38f473ff67b97b420df338baa81683bbacd458fca} of those patients recovered
- Johns Hopkins: a total of 3,117 coronavirus patients have died
More than 50 people have been diagnosed with the novel coronavirus within the U.S., excluding those repatriated from China and Japan. Over the past day, new cases were also reported in five other states. Six people have died in the U.S. after contracting Covid-19, the respiratory disease caused by the coronavirus.
In China, the coronavirus killed a further 31 people, bringing the death toll to 2,943. But the country reported just 125 new confirmed infections, the lowest number since nationwide daily updates began Jan. 21. Most of the latest fatalities were in Hubei province, the epicenter of the epidemic.
With the virus now spreading faster outside China than within, local officials in eastern Zhejiang province reported that all of its seven new cases were individuals recently back from northern Italy.
Italy on Tuesday reported about a 20{f08ff3a0ad7db12f5b424ba38f473ff67b97b420df338baa81683bbacd458fca} increase in new cases to a total of 2,036, by far the largest number in Europe, and its death toll rose to 52.
South Korea—the worst-hit country outside China—reported another surge in infections on Tuesday. Most of the 851 new cases were in the southern city of Daegu, where the outbreak centers on a secretive megachurch. Confirmed cases in South Korea now number 5,186, with 31 deaths.
Just two weeks ago there were fewer than 50 confirmed infections there. President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday said the epidemic has reached a critical phase and the country has begun a “war” against Covid-19. He said the government intends to spend 30 trillion won ($25 billion) on virus response, and described the economic situation as grave.
Globally, the coronavirus has infected 90,926 people since it was first identified in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in late 2019, but 53{f08ff3a0ad7db12f5b424ba38f473ff67b97b420df338baa81683bbacd458fca} of them have recovered, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. A total of 3,117 coronavirus patients have died.
On Tuesday, the Reserve Bank of Australia became the first central bank in a developed economy to cut interest rates in response to economic pressures caused by the coronavirus epidemic. It lowered its benchmark rate by a quarter of a percentage point to a record-low 0.5{f08ff3a0ad7db12f5b424ba38f473ff67b97b420df338baa81683bbacd458fca}.
More than a third of Australia’s exports go to China, where a sharp slowdown in economic activity and snarled logistics networks are hurting demand for commodities and raw materials.
Several multinational companies warned of financial hits from the coronavirus. Payment processor
Visa Inc.
blamed a sharp slowdown in travel spending for a cut to its first-quarter revenue forecasts and said “the deteriorating trend has not bottomed out yet.”
Hyatt Hotels Corp.
withdrew its 2020 financial outlook, saying it expects reduced travel to hurt sales.
As infection rates in China have slowed, businesses there are gradually resuming more activities.
Apple Inc.’s
main iPhone assembler,
Foxconn Technology Group,
said it expects the number of workers at its plants in mainland China to return to normal levels by the end of March if the epidemic doesn’t worsen.
Write to Jing Yang at [email protected]
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