Italy imposed unprecedented nationwide restrictions on its 60 million people on Tuesday to control the deadly coronavirus, as China signalled major progress in its battle against the global epidemic.
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The outbreak, combined with a crash in oil prices, caused carnage on financial markets on Monday, sparking the biggest losses in more than a decade — although Asian markets recovered slightly on Tuesday and European stocks opened strongly.
The World Health Organization warned there was a “very real” threat of a pandemic but its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the planet was “not at the mercy” of the illness, which has so far killed more than 4,000 people.
China was keen to underscore its progress in tackling the virus — President Xi Jinping paid his first visit to the epicentre of the crisis, the city of Wuhan in Hubei province.
Officials later announced that containment measures in Hubei, whose 56 million people have been under lockdown since January, would be eased.
The provincial government said residents would be given coloured health codes on a mobile app — those with a green code in medium and low-risk areas would be allowed to travel in the province.
However, there is no indication people can leave Hubei, and the measures did not appear to loosen restrictions in Wuhan.
Figures from China showed further signs that the worst is over with officials reporting 17 deaths and 19 new infections on Tuesday, the lowest daily number of new cases since reporting began in late January.
China’s apparent progress stands in stark contrast to the rapid rise around the world, particularly in Italy, where more than 9,000 cases and 463 deaths have been reported — the most severe outbreak elsewhere in the world.
In a desperate bid to stem the spread, Italy’s Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced the entire country would be placed on lockdown from Tuesday.
“I am going to sign a decree that can be summarised as follows: I stay at home,” Conte said.
“Travel must be avoided across the entire peninsula unless it is justified by professional reasons, by cases of need or for health reasons.”
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The measures extended a restricted zone that Italy had imposed on Sunday across the north, including the major cities of Milan and Venice, where streets were semi-deserted.
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