Coronavirus scare – US declares travel ban, markets hit

United States President Donald Trump announced a ban on all travel from Europe to the US for 30 days. This is other than travel bans to China, South Korea and Iran. The decision will be extremely disruptive for the US and the world. The ban won’t apply to Americans trying to return home – though they will be subject to increased health screening. This will also not apply to citizens of the United Kingdom.

Indians headed for the US will have to either book on direct flights or those that do not travel through Europe. There are now more than 1,000 cases in the US and least 38 people have died of the virus. Hollywood star Tom Hanks and his wife have also tested positive for coronavirus.

This is the most aggressive and comprehensive effort to confront a foreign virus in modern history. The European Union failed to take the same precautions and restrict travel from China and other hotspots. As a result, a large number of new clusters in the United States were seeded by travellers from Europe. – Donald Trump, United States President

In India, stock markets suffered sharp losses with the Nifty 50 benchmark index slipping below the 10,000 mark for the first time in two years. The S&P BSE Sensex plunged as much as 1,929.87 points to hit 33,767.53 in morning deals, and the broader NSE Nifty benchmark shed 583.35 points to 9,875.05. Asian markets have been severely hit as well especially after the World Health Organization officially declared the spread as a pandemic.

The coronavirus outbreak has especially hit the travel and tourism sectors.

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