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Kamis, 12 Maret 2020

With Trump’s Europe Travel Ban, World Economy Takes Another Hit - The New York Times

By temporarily banning most European travelers from the United States, President Trump has struck at the lifeblood of global commerce, further restricting the flow of business people and tourists across borders and putting the world’s economy in greater jeopardy.

The abrupt halt will shake tourism-dependent industries on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, from airlines to hotels to museums and amusement parks. It will disrupt ambitious business plans. It will add to the problems of world leaders already wrestling with the relentless coronavirus outbreak and the threat it poses to jobs and livelihoods.

It adds to the world’s growing isolation as governments around the world tighten and even close their borders to stop the outbreak. It will also hammer the confidence of the world’s spenders, who are watching the news of the pandemic and increasingly choosing to stay home and keep their wallets closed.

Mr. Trump late Wednesday announced that he would suspend travel from Europe to the United States for 30 days, with the exception of Britain. The State Department also warned Americans that they should reconsider all international travel, the most severe caution it can offer short of “do not travel.”

The move worsened a stock market slump in Asia and sent airlines and other industries scurrying for answers. European visitors to the United States, excluding those from Britain, totaled nearly 11 million in 2018, accounting for more than a quarter of all travelers.

Travel and tourism between the United States and Europe, including areas not covered by the ban, is a business totaling roughly $130 billion annually, according to U.S. data. The blow will be felt in both regions, as airlines that cannot bring European travelers to the United States are unlikely to maintain a large number of flights going the other way.

Airlines had already been cutting routes across the Atlantic as travelers increasingly chose to stay home. Still, the industry will take an immediate hit.

Air France KLM’s revenue from North American business, which includes destinations outside the United States, totaled $4 billion last year, or about 13 percent of its sales. Lufthansa’s totaled $3.7 billion for the first nine months of last year, or about 15 percent of its sales.

United Airlines and Delta Air Lines both reaped about $7.4 billion from flights over the Atlantic last year, which includes business beyond the countries affected by Mr. Trump’s order. For United, that totaled 17 percent of revenue. For Delta Air Lines, it represents about 15 percent.

United wasn’t immediately available for comment. Delta said it was in contact with the government and working to comply with the ban. Delta said in a statement that it would “quickly make adjustments to service, as needed, in response to government travel directives.”

The Association of Flight Attendants called the ban “irresponsible” and accused the Trump administration of announcing the ban for political reasons. “Without any consultation with the industry, we don’t even know what this means,” said Sara Nelson, president of the union.

It is far from clear whether Mr. Trump’s order will help stop the outbreak in the United States. The virus is now being spread by Americans who have had no contact with regions that have high rates of infection. Italy was one of the first countries to cut off all travel from China and Hong Kong after the coronavirus first publicly emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan in January. It is now the center of Europe’s outbreak.

Still, the order adds to the barriers being erected around the world. India on Wednesday put a halt to all tourist visas. China since January has restricted the ability of its own people to travel, and it has added growing restrictions for visitors as well. Anti-immigrant groups in Europe have called for even tighter borders.

Such barriers undermine the confidence of the world’s consumers. In the United States, in Europe, in China and around the world, consumers have emerged as a major economic force, as more countries grow more prosperous and as widespread internet access encourages them to buy even more.

They have grown even more important since the United States launched a trade war with China, shaking global manufacturing. Consumers helped pick up the slack.

Now that essential engine is sputtering.

Consumer spending “has effectively held up the economy in what has been a manufacturing recession. Anything that jeopardizes that will be problematic,” said Shaun Roache, chief economist at S&P Global.

“Probably the biggest effect will be on confidence,” Mr. Roache said, referring to Mr. Trump’s ban. “The more you see these kinds of measures, the less you’ll have people willing to venture out of the house. That hits consumer spending.”

For the business world, the effects will go beyond consumer demand. The ban on travel will hurt cooperation on research and development for big companies that have laboratories around the world. It will throw a wrench into bankers’ ability to do audits for mergers and acquisitions.

“Just imagine as a businessman, you cannot visit the largest market in the world and the second-largest market in the world. How much worse can it get?” said Jörg Wuttke, president of the European Chamber of Commerce in China.

Teleconferencing and working from home are only short-term fixes, he said: “The world cannot operate online.”

Ben Casselman contributed reporting.

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2020-03-12 08:13:09Z
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Italy closes most shops and restaurants as coronavirus death toll jumps 30% in 24 hours - CNBC

A general view of a semi-deserted ancient open-air market La Vucciria on March 11, 2020 in Palermo, Italy. The Italian Government has taken the unprecedented measure of a nationwide lockdown, in an effort to fight the world's second-most deadly coronavirus outbreak outside of China.

Tullio Puglia

Italy has tightened its nationwide lockdown further in response to the rising death toll from coronavirus, ordering all non-essential shops and services to close.

Announcing the measures Wednesday evening, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said supermarkets and pharmacies will be the only retailers to remain open in Italy.

The latest restrictions come as the virus death toll surged over 30% on Wednesday to more than 800 — the biggest daily jump since the start of the outbreak. Italy is already under a national lockdown restricting citizens' movement and activities until April 3.

Conte said it was time to "go one step further" as he announced the closure of most commercial and retail activities with bars, restaurants and beauty salons among those ordered to shut. Public services remain in place and industrial production is allowed to continue, on condition that companies adopt safety measures to protect workers and prevent contagion.

The prime minister said the world was watching to see how Italy, now the country worst hit by the virus outside China, responds: "At this moment the whole world is certainly looking at us for the numbers of the contagion, they see a country that is in difficulty, but they also appreciate us because we are showing great strictness and great resistance," Conte said in a Facebook address.

"I have a deep conviction. I would like to share it with you. Tomorrow not only will they look at us again and admire us, but they will take us as a positive example of a country that, thanks to its sense of community, has managed to win its battle against this pandemic."

As of Wednesday evening, Italy recorded 12,462 confirmed cases of the virus, and 827 deaths, according to the latest figures from Johns Hopkins University and Italy's Civil Protection agency. The death toll from the virus a day earlier had been 631 people.

Pandemic plans

Conte had already announced earlier on Wednesday that the government will set aside even more money to tackle the outbreak, raising spending to 25 billion euros ($28.3 billion) — up from 7.5 billion euros announced last week.

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic on Wednesday. There are at least 118,381 confirmed cases of the virus worldwide, according to the latest figures from the WHO. At least 4,292 people have died globally, the WHO said.

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2020-03-12 09:44:18Z
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Italy closes most shops and restaurants as coronavirus death toll jumps 30% in 24 hours - CNBC

Tullio Puglia

Italy has tightened its nationwide lockdown further in response to the rising death toll from coronavirus, ordering all non-essential shops and services to close.

Announcing the measures Wednesday evening, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said supermarkets and pharmacies will be the only retailers to remain open in Italy.

Pandemic plans

President Donald Trump said Wednesday that the U.S. will suspend all travel from Europe to the U.S. for 30 days, starting Friday night.

The measures will affect 26 European countries but the U.K. and Ireland are exempted from the restrictions, as are American citizens who have undergone virus screening.

"These restrictions will be adjusted subject to conditions on the ground," Trump said, calling the coronavirus a "foreign" virus and blaming Europe for not taking adequate action to control its spread.

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Trump restricts travel from Europe as coronavirus disrupts life in U.S. - Reuters

WASHINGTON/GENEVA (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said the United States will suspend all passenger travel from continental Europe on Friday to limit the spread of the coronavirus after the outbreak was formally declared a pandemic, sending global markets into a tailspin.

Trump announced the travel ban on live television along with emergency funds to boost the U.S. economy, saying: “This is not a financial crisis. This is just a temporary moment of time that we will overcome together as a nation and as a world.”

Global markets plunged immediately after the announcement, with the U.S. S&P500 futures ESc1 down more than 3%, and Japan’s Nikkei and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 down more than 4%. The dollar lost 1% against the yen.

Trump’s announcement came after Italy, the worst-affected country in Europe, enacted the most severe controls on a Western nation since World War Two, shutting bars, hairdressers and restaurants along with other restrictions already in place.

Other countries closed schools and canceled sports events and other big gatherings. The National Basketball Association suspended the season after a Utah Jazz player tested positive.

U.S. actor Tom Hanks said he and his wife, actress Rita Wilson, had tested positive after they felt tired with slight fevers in Australia, where he is working on a film.

“To play things right, as is needed in the world right now, we were tested for the coronavirus and were found to be positive,” Hanks, 63, said in a tweet.

He said that he and Wilson, also 63, would be “tested, observed and isolated for as long as public health and safety requires.”

The virus sent the Dow into a bear market for the first time since the 2008 financial crisis as the massive financial stimulus promised by governments around the globe failed to reassure investors.

The United States, which has reported 1,281 cases and 37 deaths, has yet to enact any large-scale containment measures, but major sporting and music events have either been canceled or postponed.

The St. Patrick’s Day parade in New York City has been canceled, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Wednesday. The parade, usually held on March 17th, attracts millions of spectators along Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue to celebrate the patron saint of Ireland. The tradition dates back to 1762.

The U.S. travel restrictions on Europe would apply from midnight on Friday, Trump said, adding that similar restrictions on travelers from China and South Korea had helped limit the spread of the virus. The curbs would not apply to travelers from the United Kingdom nor to cargo from Europe.

“We are at a critical time in the fight against the virus. We made a lifesaving move with early action on China. Now we must take the same action with Europe. We will not delay,” said Trump, who had previously downplayed the risks from coronavirus.

There are 126,000 coronavirus cases globally, including more than 4,600 confirmed fatalities, according to a Reuters tally. There were almost 7,000 cases reported in the past day, far surpassing the average daily amount reported in China during the virus’ initial peak.

Wall Street stocks plunged almost 5% before Trump’s announcement on Wednesday, and already skittish investors awaiting details on U.S. measures were unnerved by news that the White House ordered federal health officials to treat dozens of virus-related meetings as classified.

Meanwhile in Europe, Denmark shut all schools and universities after a 10-fold rise in cases since Monday, and strain is mounting on Italy’s healthcare system despite all efforts to contain the outbreak.

The new restrictions in Italy came after confirmed cases rose to 12,462 on Wednesday, from a previous 10,149, with the death toll jumping by 196 in 24 hours to 827.

The country’s 60 million people are under lockdown. “We will only be able to see the effects of this great effort in a couple of weeks,” Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said.

People walk through the international terminal at LAX airport in front of a Korean Air plane in Los Angeles, California, U.S., amid reports of the coronavirus, March 11, 2020. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said up to 70% of the population was likely to be infected as the virus spreads around the world in the absence of a cure.

Cuba confirmed its first case and, in the Middle East, Qatar reported 238 more coronavirus infections among expatriates under quarantine in a residential compound.

PANDEMIC

While China has seen its outbreak slow dramatically, the number of cases outside China has risen 13-fold in the past two weeks, and the number of countries affected tripled, with Iran and Italy the worst-hit countries in the Middle East and Europe.

“Italy and Iran are in the frontline and are suffering but other countries will be in that situation very soon,” said WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

The World Health Organization (WHO) described the coronavirus outbreak as a pandemic for the first time on Wednesday but use of the word pandemic does not change the agency’s response, said Dr. Mike Ryan, the head of the Geneva-based agency’s emergencies program.

He also said there was “a strong element of controllability” and “a real chance to blunt the curve... and reduce the number of cases”.

In Tokyo, the pandemic classification fueled concern over how the coronavirus will affect the Summer Olympic Games, scheduled to start July 24.

For now, cancellation remained unthinkable, Kyodo News quoted Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike as saying.

Slideshow (6 Images)

EMERGENCY SPENDING

Trump said he would provide financial relief for workers who are ill, quarantined or caring for others due to the illness, among other financial measures to prop up businesses and individuals affected.

He said more than $200 billion of additional liquidity to the economy would come from the Treasury Department deferring tax payments without interest or penalties for certain individuals and businesses negatively impacted by coronavirus.

Britain launched a 30 billion-pound ($38.54 billion) economic stimulus plan as new finance minister Rishi Sunak said the economy faced a “significant impact” from the spread of the virus, even if it was likely to be temporary.

Australia’s government said it would pump A$17.6 billion ($11.4 billion) into the economy, about 1.2% of GDP, to prevent the coronavirus outbreak from pushing the country into its first recession in nearly 30 years.

Additional reporting by Kate Kelland, Paul Sandle and David Milliken in London; David Lawder, Alexandra Alper and Steve Holland in Washington; Dan Whitcomb and Rory Carroll in Los Angeles, Chris Gallagher in Tokyo; Thomas Escritt and Paul Carrel in Berlin; Giuseppe Fonte and Giulia Segreti in Rome; Ryan Woo in Beijing; Renju Jose in Sydney; Writing by Lisa Shumaker and Stephen Coates; Editing by Cynthia Osterman and XX

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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2020-03-12 08:09:12Z
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Trump address sparks chaos as coronavirus crisis deepens - CNN

Trump spoke to the nation at a fearful moment, when the rhythms of everyday American life are starting to shut down -- with schools closing, the NBA suspended, hospitals on high alert and movie icon Tom Hanks saying he and his wife have the disease.

"The virus will not have a chance against us. No nation is more prepared or more resilient than the United States," the President said, before painting a rosy picture of an economy that is already taking a beating from the virus fallout. The President unveiled several measures to help on that score, to help workers who have to self-isolate and hard-hit by shutdowns, though his call for a payroll tax cut is not popular in Congress.

Trump's big announcement for keeping the virus at bay -- what he said was a 30-day ban on travel to the US by Europeans and restrictions on cargo -- was immediately engulfed in confusion.

The President later rushed to clarify on Twitter that he was stopping travel and not trans-Atlantic trade in goods, and officials said his plan did not apply to Americans or US permanent residents -- though such travelers would face mandatory quarantines.

Trump also caused a muddle when he said he had convinced health insurance providers to waive all copayments for coronavirus treatments.

A White House official later said the President had meant to say that the copayments would be waived for coronavirus tests -- but would still apply to treatments for the disease.

Sowing confusion

READ: Trump's Oval Office speech on the coronavirus outbreak

The confusion was symptomatic of an administration that has often struggled to frame detailed policies and present them coherently. Trump's top assignment on Wednesday was to show that he was in charge and that he appreciated, finally, the grave nature of the weeks that lie ahead. But the confusion over the travel ban turned his speech into something of a debacle and may up exacerbating uncertainty over his leadership.

And his travel ban announcement was made apparently without consultation with the travel industry or US allies and seems set to cause massive disruption that will deepen already cascading economic damage unleashed by the crisis.

The move could cause mass cancellation of trans-Atlantic flights, which could throw the aviation industry into an moment of existential challenge. It is likely to do nothing to quell investor panic after Wall Street on Wednesday dipped into a bear market. For example, Dow Futures plunged more than 1,000 points after Trump's speech.

"This is not a financial crisis. This is just a temporary moment of time that we will overcome together as a nation and as a world," Trump said in his address.

On a more fundamental level, the travel ban plan raised basic questions about the President's understanding of a crisis he has minimized, blamed on Democrats and predicted will just go away soon.

Department of Homeland Security guidance suggested the restrictions exempted US nationals and permanent residents, who would face quarantine when they came home. And the President did not explain why his ban did not include citizens of the UK -- where the virus has also taken root.

But the biggest problem facing the US is not more cases of coronavirus coming from Europe -- it is that the disease has taken root on US soil itself by community spread.

Pressing issues now revolve around how Americans should respond to the situation and to what extent they should change their daily patterns. Trump did advise halting nonessential visits to care homes for the elderly -- the highest risk group from the virus.

But he didn't explain how he would alleviate what health officials fear will be a crowding of hospitals, the continuing lack of proper testing or the coming strain on resources such as breathing machines needed to keep the sickest patients alive.

He argued that the threat was still "very low" for all but the old and infirm, on a day when one of his top public health officials, Dr. Anthony Fauci, predicted the current scenario -- with more than 1,200 people sick in the US and 38 dead, is "going to get worse."

Trump speech likely to split the nation

To Trump's supporters, his address likely came across as a decisive and bold move to face up to a national challenge.

But to critics it followed a familiar playbook -- as he blamed others for the crisis, basked in self-congratulation and xenophobia, and misled the country about his actions so far.

"This is the most aggressive and comprehensive effort to confront a foreign virus in modern history," Trump said, misrepresenting his own and his administration's catalog of missteps.

The President did not mention, for example, the shortage of testing kits, which means officials cannot even get a strong read on how far the disease has spread across the nation.

Presidents use Oval Office addresses in moments of extremis, to bind Americans together to confront a challenge that threatens their collective security.

But Trump's toneless, almost resentful address as he faces a challenge from outside that could threaten his reelection hopes is unlikely to fulfill the soaring mission of the presidency.

His central remedy -- blaming China, where the crisis was spawned, and Europe for becoming afflicted with it -- was consistent with his political mantra of demonizing foreigners.

The idea that a virus that affects all humans and is a naturally occurring force was some kind of foreign-brewed threat sent to attack Americans is in itself staggering in its conception.

The President did announce a raft of measures to support businesses and individuals with tax relief and low interest rates as the virus tightens its grip on the US.

But Trump's plan to self-isolate the US from Europe appears to be a case of closing the stable door after the horse has bolted -- the virus is already here and infecting more Americans by the day.

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2020-03-12 08:02:43Z
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