While after Italy and Spain, France is experiencing, as of Tuesday mid-day, a more strict confinement phase, the Covid-19 coronavirus epidemic continues to spread across the planet. And the number of cases of infection is now approaching the threshold of 180,000 people, while more than 7,000 deaths are to be deplored.
According to the latest figures available, there were 179,238 reported cases of infection on Tuesday, including 80,881 in mainland China. At the same time, 7,121 deaths were recorded, including 3,226 on Chinese territory.
The main information to remember
> France enters stricter confinement from Tuesday, March 17 at noon
> The government says it is ready to nationalize to “protect businesses” threatened by the crisis.
> There are now more cases of infection and death recorded elsewhere in the world than in mainland China
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Follow the events of Tuesday, March 17:
> The state of emergency declared in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo
A state of emergency has been declared in the state of Rio de Janeiro and in the city of Sao Paulo, the two main foci in Brazil of coronavirus contamination, with in particular restrictions on restaurants and public transport.
Even if Brazil does not regret any death yet, many restrictive measures valid for an initial duration of 15 days were published Tuesday in the official journal, among which the closing of emblematic tourist places like the Sugar Loaf or the Christ Redeemer of Corcovado in Rio de Janeiro.
> British urged to avoid travel abroad
The British Foreign Minister advised his fellow citizens to avoid non-essential travel abroad for the next 30 days as part of preventive measures against the coronavirus.
“With immediate effect, I have made the decision to discourage British nationals from non-essential travel around the world, for an initial period of 30 days and, of course, this will be subject to continuous review,” said Dominic Raab in Parliament.
> Euro football should be postponed to 2021
The European Football Union (UEFA) on Tuesday proposed to postpone the football Euro scheduled for June-July to the summer of 2021, due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to a source close to UEFA.
This proposal presented Tuesday morning at a meeting with clubs and professional leagues has yet to be formally adopted by the Executive Committee of the European body meeting in the afternoon.
> Prisons: hanging parlors
Access to the visiting rooms of French prisons for families is suspended “within the next 15 days” in order to fight against the spread of the coronavirus, announced Keeper of the Seals Nicole Belloubet in a message to agents of the Ministry of Justice.
This measure, while the French population is since Tuesday noon in general confinement to try to curb the epidemic, will take effect from Wednesday, said a note from the director of prison administration, Stéphane Bredin. “The visiting rooms scheduled today (Tuesday) will be maintained for families who come to the establishment,” said the Chancellery.
> Article 16 giving exceptional powers to the Head of State is “not envisaged”
The activation of article 16 of the Constitution, which confers exceptional powers on the head of state, is “absolutely not envisaged” in the face of the coronavirus crisis, said government spokeswoman Sibeth Ndiaye , after the Council of Ministers.
A massive political weapon, article 16 of the Constitution was only implemented once in France, during the generals’ putsch in 1961. It authorized the Head of State to take “any measure required by the circumstances »When« the institutions of the Republic, the independence of the Nation, the integrity of its territory or the execution of its international commitments are threatened in a serious and immediate way and that the regular functioning of the constitutional public powers is interrupted “
> Spain: nearly 2,000 new cases of coronavirus and 182 more deaths in 24 hours
Nearly 2,000 new cases of coronavirus have been reported in Spain and 182 people have died from the epidemic in 24 hours, according to the latest report from the authorities.
Spain, the fourth most affected country in the world, now counts 11,178 cases and 491 deaths. 1,098 people have recovered from the disease, said Fernando Simon, head of the national health alert center.
> Beginning of the general containment of the population in France
The general confinement of the French population in an attempt to stop the coronavirus epidemic began on Tuesday at 12 noon, a measure completely new in the history of the country.
For at least two weeks, some 67 million inhabitants are called to stay at their homes with rare exceptions – supplies, health reasons – under penalty of fine, as part of the “war” declared against this world epidemic by the president Emmanuel Macron.
France has implemented “the strictest containment measures in Europe”, argued Interior Minister Christophe Castaner, stressing that “collective activities are prohibited”.
“The family meal, dinners with friends, the football match with a few friends, the reunion for a game of cards. […] It is not only discouraged, it is prohibited, “developed Christophe Castaner after a Council of Ministers devoted to the implementation of containment measures.
> The National Assembly will resume on Thursday in restricted format
The National Assembly will resume its work on Thursday in “restricted format” to examine the emergency texts facing the coronavirus epidemic, said the presidency of the institution in a press release.
A session of topical questions to the government is also scheduled for Thursday at 9 am, during which “only the speakers and the group presidents will be present in the hemicycle”. “The examination in committee and in session of the amending finance bill will take place on Thursday, and that of the ordinary bill on the emergency measures linked to the Coronavirus-COVID19 crisis on Friday”, added the holder of the perch Richard Ferrand (LREM), after an audio conference of the Presidents of the Assembly.
> Polish government quarantined
The Polish government was quarantined after a positive test the day before for the environment minister’s new coronavirus, the Prime Minister’s chief of staff announced on Tuesday.
“All the members of the government who participated in the last cabinet meeting (March 10) underwent tests last night […]. The results should be known during the day. In the meantime, all of these people are watching their forties, ”he said on public radio.
> Pakistan records first death
Pakistan has announced that it has recorded its first death linked to the coronavirus epidemic which has already infected 195 people in the country since the virus appeared in China in December.
> Union calls on French retired doctors to mobilize
The SN-MCR (National Union of Doctors Affected by Retirement) called on retired doctors to mobilize against the coronavirus, by joining the health reserve or helping doctors who are overwhelmed.
The union is aimed in particular at doctors who have been retired for less than five years and who are under 70 years of age. “There are 5,000 liberal doctors retired each year,” said its president, Yves Decalf.
> France ready to use nationalizations “if necessary”
The French Minister for the Economy declared himself ready to use “all means” including nationalization to “protect” French companies threatened by the coronavirus crisis.
“This can go through capitalization or an equity investment. I can even use the term nationalization if necessary, ”he said.
> Too early to use the European Stability Mechanism
It is too early to consider using the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) to provide aid to the eurozone countries economically weakened by the coronavirus epidemic, said German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz.
The very existence of the MES, created during the sovereign debt crisis in the euro zone at the beginning of the decade 2010, contributes to the stability of the region because it can be mobilized at any time and has enormous firepower, he added.
> Germany to repatriate nationals stranded abroad
The German government has signed an agreement with airlines and has announced that up to 50 million euros will be made available to repatriate stranded nationals around the world.
In recent days, many countries have closed their borders and cut air routes due to the rapid spread of the new coronavirus. As Germany is now one of the main countries at risk, German travelers are particularly affected by the restrictions.
> New Zealand announces recovery plan
“Recession is almost certain,” said Finance Minister Grant Robertson. To cope with the coronavirus pandemic New Zealand announced a stimulus plan of 12.1 billion New Zealand dollars (6.5 billion euros).
This plan includes, among other things, wage subsidies, tax cuts and aid to health services.
> New audience record for Emmanuel Macron’s speech
A total of 35.3 million viewers watched the president’s speech on Monday evening on all the channels that broadcast it (TF1, France 2, France 3, M6, C8, TMC, L’Equipe, BFMTV, LCI, CNews and franceinfo). This is a new record for a presidential statement, according to figures from Médiamétrie released Tuesday morning.
> European stock markets catch their breath
The CAC 40 and the rest of the European stock markets opened up sharply by more than 3% on average. The multiple budget support measures taken to counter the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic appear to have a slight positive effect on European markets.
> Firms at a standstill
After Airbus’ decision to suspend production in Spain and France for at least four days, plant closings are increasing. German automaker Volkswagen has announced that it will close most of its European factories for two to three weeks.
A decision also followed by Renault. The French automaker has announced that production will stop in Spain as long as the state of emergency remains in force in that country in the face of the coronavirus epidemic.
> Resuscitation capacities are “saturated” in the Haut-Rhin
Faced with “a number of infected people who keeps growing every day”, resuscitation capacities “are saturated in the Haut-Rhin” and “very largely occupied in the Bas-Rhin”, declared on France Inter Josiane Chevalier, prefect of the Grand-Est and Bas-Rhin regions.
> A “lasting” and “violent” war
On RTL the Minister of the Economy Bruno Le Maire judged that the fight against the coronavirus would also be “an economic and financial war”. “It will be durable, it will be violent […] and this war, it must mobilize all our forces ”, he added.
> Only 5 kilometers of traffic jams in Île-de-France
After the general containment measures announced by Emmanuel Macron, the Sytadin road information site identified 5 kilometers of traffic jams in Île-de-France on Tuesday around 8:30 am, against 300 kilometers usually.
From 12 noon, France enters general confinement for at least 15 days with a drastic restriction on authorized movements in order to limit contact and the spread of the Covid-19 epidemic as much as possible.
> Vietnam stops issuing visas
This measure, intended to curb the spread of the new coronavirus, targets all foreigners. It will be implemented over a period of 15 to 30 days. The country has already closed its borders on Sunday to nationals of member states of the Schengen area, who do not need visas, and has ordered the quarantine of those arriving from areas affected by the virus.
A few weeks after announcing the recovery of the 16 people who contracted the virus, the Vietnamese authorities reported 61 cases, but did not report any deaths.
> Airbus suspends production in France and Spain
Production will be suspended for four days while setting up “strict conditions” of safety to ensure the health of employees in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic. The group also specifies that it “maximizes homework as much as possible”.
> Bruno Lemaire promises 45 billion euros for companies
Questioned on Tuesday on RTL, the Minister of Economy and Finance estimated that the containment decision announced the day before by the President of the Republic was taken “at the right time”. While, according to the minister “the economic war will be lasting”, he specified that the government would “immediately put 45 billion in aid available to businesses and 300 billion in guarantees”.
He also confirmed that the growth forecast included in the amending finance bill presented this Wednesday in the Council of Ministers will be -1%.
> In China almost all new cases are “imported”
In the past 24 hours, Beijing has seen only 21 new water infections in the past 24 hours. And they affected, with one exception, people returning from abroad. At the same time, 13 people died.
There are now more cases of infection and death recorded elsewhere in the world than in mainland China, the starting point in December of the pandemic and the most affected country.
> Asian markets recover
While Wall Street finished down 13%, its worst drop since 1987, the Asian stock markets are resisting. Tokyo, which had opened in decline by 3%, however recovered during the session to return to the green, while the Chinese markets have opened on a positive note. In Hong Kong, in the first exchanges, the Hang Seng composite index gained 0.27%. In mainland China, Shanghai gained 1.34% and Shenzen 1.7%.
In contrast, the Seoul Stock Exchange remains in the red. After opening falling by almost 4%, the Kospi index recovered but lost even more than 1%, despite a slowdown in the number of cases for the third consecutive day.
> The Philippines, the first country to close its financial markets
Also in Asia, the Philippines, a country with 140 cases of infection and 12 deaths, has decided to close their financial markets until further notice. And thus becomes the first country to take such action.
The closure comes as President Rodrigo Duterte has stepped up restrictions on the island of Luçon, which has 57 million inhabitants and is the most populous in the country.
> Hong Kong imposes quarantine for anyone arriving on its soil
The chief executive of Hong Kong, Carrie Lam, announced on Tuesday that all those arriving in the semi-autonomous city will, from Thursday at midnight, be placed in solitary confinement for a period of 14 days to avoid the spread coronavirus.
The Hong Kong government, where four of the 157 people infected with the epidemic died, also advised its nationals to avoid all non-essential travel.
> In the United States, primary is postponed in Ohio
Ohio authorities have closed polling stations a few hours before the opening of presidential primaries on Tuesday. The governor made this decision against the advice of a judge because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Ohio Republican Governor Mike DeWine said on Twitter Monday night that voting during the Covid-19 crisis “would force poll workers and voters to put themselves in an unacceptable health hazard to catch the virus. ” He added that the authorities would seek a way to allow voters to vote in another way.
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