This photo taken on February 17, 2020 shows a member of the medical staff (L) checking the body temperature of a patient who has displayed mild symptoms of the COVID-19 coronavirus, at an exhibition centre converted into a hospital in Wuhan in China’s central Hubei province.
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Total confirmed cases: More than 73,400
Total deaths: At least 1,874
7:56 am: Haagen-Dazs closes about half of Greater China stores on coronavirus fears
General Mills said nearly half of its Haagen-Dazs ice-cream shops in Greater China had been temporarily closed, amid the rapid spread of the coronavirus in the world’s second biggest economy. The epidemic, which has claimed nearly 1,900 lives, has forced companies with significant exposure in China to temporarily shut stores. Some have also warned of a hit to their earnings. General Mills said it could not quantify the impact of the outbreak on its fiscal 2020 results at the time, although it reaffirmed its forecast for the fiscal year ended May 31. The Greater China region accounts for about 4% of the company’s net sales, with Haagen-Dazs shops and other foodservice outlets making up about 40% of that. The Minneapolis, Minnesota-based company said Haagen-Dazs stores that remained open were operating under severely restricted hours. The company operated 525 Haagen-Dazs ice-cream parlors and franchised 365 more outside of the United States and Canada, as of May 26, according to a regulatory filing. — Reuters
7:25 am: Gottlieb warns Japan is on the ‘cusp’ of an outbreak
Former FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said the public should start focusing on COVID-19 cases outside of China when considering the global risk. He said Japan appears to be “on the cusp of an outbreak” with 59 confirmed cases and one death so far, he said on CNBC’S “Squawk Box.” “If you start to see this become an epidemic in other nations … that’s going to be extremely worrisome that we’re not going to control this globally,” Gottlieb said. – Bursztynsky
6:15 am: German investor confidence falls sharply amid coronavirus fears
German investor confidence has sharply deteriorated amid intensifying fears that China’s coronavirus outbreak will significantly hamper world trade, according to a new survey. The ZEW Research Institute said Tuesday that its monthly survey showed economic sentiment fell to 8.7 in February, down from 26.7 in January. Analysts had anticipated a reading of 21.5 this month. “The feared negative effects of the Coronavirus epidemic in China on world trade have been causing a considerable decline of the ZEW Indicator of Economic Sentiment for Germany,” ZEW President Achim Wambach said in a statement. “Expectations regarding the development of the export-intensive sectors of the economy have dropped particularly sharply.” — Meredith.
5:20 am: China’s state-owned companies face operational challenges at home and abroad
“The assets supervision commission will not change the production and operational targets, and reform goals set at the beginning of the year,” Ren Hongbin, deputy director of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, said Tuesday, according to a CNBC translation of his Mandarin-language remarks. However, those ambitions will be more difficult to achieve now that the coronavirus has disrupted economic activity nationwide. Ren noted that the virus has brought “unthinkable” challenges for the state-owned enterprises’ operations, and emphasized the immediate goal is to assist in virus control efforts, including production of medical supplies. The virus has also created difficulties for state-owned enterprises’ overseas projects that the commission needs to handle, alongside the resumption of work in mainland China, Peng Huagang, secretary-general and spokesperson said. — Cheng
4:40 am: Japan says 88 new cases confirmed on Diamond Princess cruise ship
Japan has reported another 88 people aboard the Diamond Princess cruise liner have tested positive for the coronavirus, taking the total number of on-board infections to 542. Japan’s public broadcaster NHK, citing the health ministry, said Tuesday that 65 of the 88 people found to have contracted COVID-19 had no symptoms. A total of 2,404 passengers and crew members have been tested for the virus, the health ministry reportedly said, with 542 infections. The cruise liner is currently quarantined in Japan’s port of Yokohama. — Meredith.
4 am: French health minister warns there is a ‘credible risk’ of coronavirus pandemic
French Health Minister Olivier Veran has reportedly cautioned there is a “credible risk” that China’s fast-spreading coronavirus could escalate into a global pandemic. Speaking to France Info radio Tuesday morning, Veran said the prospect of the coronavirus spreading worldwide was “both a working assumption and a credible risk.” The World Health Organization recognizes a pandemic as the worldwide spread of a new disease. Last month, the United Nations health agency declared the coronavirus a global emergency. The WHO has urged against a global over-reaction to the virus. — Meredith.
Read CNBC’s coverage from CNBC’s Asia-Pacific and Europe teams overnight here: Wuhan hospital director dies from virus, Moody’s lowers China forecast
Reuters and CNBC’s Jessica Bursztynsky, Sam Meridith and Evelyn Cheng contributed to this report.
