The toll of the new coronavirus reached 1,886 deaths on Tuesday in mainland China with 98 new deaths including 93 in Hubei province which is the epicenter of the epidemic. Outside Hubei, only 79 new infected people were counted against 890 on February 4.
The number of contaminations amounts to at least 72,300 cases in mainland China and around 900 have been reported in around 30 other countries or territories.
Outside mainland China, there are only five deaths: one in Hong Kong, one in the Philippines, one in Japan, one in Taiwan and one in France.
454 contaminated on the "Diamond Princess"
Outside China, the main source of contamination remains the liner Diamond Princess, placed in quarantine in early February in Yokohama Bay near Tokyo, after a positive test on a cruise ship landed in Hong Kong. More than 3,700 passengers were ordered to stay in their cabin for two weeks, but that did not stop the spread of the virus: at least 454 people were infected, including 99 cases revealed. More than 300 Americans have been repatriated by air to two military bases, in California and Texas, where they began a new quarantine of 14 days on Monday, the supposed maximum duration of the incubation.
Even if we must remain cautious, the efforts of the Chinese authorities to limit the movement of people in the country seem to confirm a sharp decrease in the number of new patients in recent days and therefore that the spread of the virus is under control.
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However, the director general of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, however warned on Monday against over-optimism. According to him, the downward trend in new cases “must be interpreted with great caution. "
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Since Monday, the Chinese authorities have asked the recovered people to donate their blood in order to extract the plasma to treat the sick. Indeed, if the new coronavirus does not have a vaccine, the plasma of former patients infected with Covid-19 disease contains antibodies that could reduce the viral load in severely affected people.
A real impact on businesses
Beyond this epidemic begins to have a real impact on economies or on several companies. Japan, which was already in the last quarter of 2019 in a bad economic downturn, could enter into recession in the coming weeks.
Many companies that are dependent on parts from China like Nissan are forced to reduce or stop their production. At the same time, household consumption is also reduced. The same goes for large global companies.
Apple has announced that its sales forecast for the second quarter will likely not be met due to the epidemic in China, a crucial country for the American company. Meanwhile, Australian mining giant BHP has predicted a sharp drop in global demand for oil, copper and steel in case the epidemic is not brought under control by March.
In China, the Beijing auto show scheduled for April has been postponed sine die, as has a Chanel parade scheduled for May in the Chinese capital. These are whole areas of the activity that are affected. However if this mainly concerns the Asia zone for the moment, it is likely that the wave will spread in other zones and in particular in Europe.