Coronavirus live updates: South Korea reports surge of 334 more cases, bringing total to 1,595

FAN Editor

This is a live blog. Please check back for updates.

All times below are in Beijing time.

9:05 am: South Korea reports 334 more cases

South Korea confirmed a surge of 334 more cases on Thursday morning, bringing the country’s total to 1,595.

There were a total of 12 deaths as of Thursday, but no new fatalities.

More than half of coronavirus cases in the country have been traced back to the Shincheonji Church of Jesus in Daegu, the country’s fourth-largest city.

8:58 am: US colleges cancel study abroad programs

In the face of a global health emergency, thousands of U.S. college students studying abroad are scrambling.

As the coronavirus spreads through northern Italy, some schools, including Syracuse University and New York University, announced they were closing their campuses in Florence immediately. All Seton Hall University spring study abroad trips are also cancelled, according to a tweet by the university. 

Italy is second only to the U.K. as the most popular destination to study abroad, according to data from the Institute of International Education, which has tracked the flow of international students since 1919. However, in recent years, China has also become a popular destination for American students, it said.

8:18 am: Japan dives more than 1% as US markets continue to slide

Japan markets slid for the third day this week, as Wall Street also continued tumbling as virus fears continue to grow. The Nikkei 225 fell 1.31% in early trade, while the Topix declined 1.27%.

Dow futures traded fell 170 points and indicated a loss of nearly 200 points at Thursday’s open.

7:46 am: IMF, World Bank considering scaling back meetings or holding them remotely

The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank could hold their April Spring Meetings remotely or even scale them back amid the growing coronavirus outbreak, Reuters reported, citing sources.

The Spring Meetings are scheduled for April 17 to 19, and 10,000 government officials and other delegates globally are set to gather in Washington D.C.

All times below are in Eastern time.

7:20 pm: Trump says schools should prepare pandemic plans ‘just in case’

President Donald Trump said schools should start preparing their pandemic plans as a precaution in case the COVID-19 outbreak that’s rapidly spreading through Asia, Europe and the Middle East takes hold in the U.S. “Every aspect of our society should be prepared. I don’t think it’s going to come to that,” Trump said. “I think schools should be preparing, get ready just in case. The words are just in case. We don’t think we’re going to be there. We don’t think we’re going to be anywhere close.” Watch the press conference here. —Kopecki

6:50 pm: Trump says coronavirus risk to the American people ‘remains very low’

President Donald Trump addressed the nation on the coronavirus outbreak, saying the risk to the American public “remains very low.” Trump said Vice President Mike Pence will be heading up the U.S. response to any outbreak in the country. Trump announced the news conference in a tweet Wednesday morning, shortly after returning from a state visit to India where he downplayed the threat of the virus to the U.S. “We’re really down to probably 10″ cases, Trump told reporters there.

The CDC has confirmed 60 cases in the U.S., 45 of which are patients who were repatriated from Wuhan, China or the Diamond Princess cruise ship that was quarantined off the coast of Japan and are excluded from its official count. Watch the press conference here. —Breuninger

5:47 pm: Germany says it can’t trace cases and is heading for an epidemic

Germany is at the beginning of a coronavirus epidemic after new cases sprung up that can no longer be traced to the virus’s original source in China, Health Minister Jens Spahn said. A total of five new cases of coronavirus in the west and south of Germany — taking the country’s total to around 20 — meant the disease appeared to be moving to a new phase, Spahn told a news conference, urging health authorities and employers to review their pandemic planning.

4:40 pm: Booking Holdings warns coronavirus will hit Q1 revenue

Online travel giant Booking Holdings said the outbreak of coronavirus will damp travel demand and drive down sales in the first quarter. The company, which operates Booking.com, airfare-search site Kayak.com and others said its revenue could fall by as much as 9% on the year in the first quarter. It expects travel bookings to drop by 10% to 15%. “The coronavirus has had a significant and negative impact across our business during the 1st quarter. It is not possible to predict where, and to what degree, outbreaks of the coronavirus will disrupt travel patterns,” the company said in an earnings filing. The company said its forecast included wider ranges than usual because of the “high level of uncertainty in forecasting the coronavirus and its associated impact on the company and the travel industry generally.” —Josephs

12:15 pm: CDC confirms 59 US cases

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed 59 cases in the U.S., a majority of which came from passengers repatriated from the Diamond Princess cruise ship that was quarantined off the coast of Japan. The CDC updated its case count on its website late Tuesday. The data shows that 42 of the cases are attributed to the cruise ship, three patients were infected in Wuhan and later evacuated to the U.S. and the rest were largely infected while traveling overseas. Just two cases were contracted through person-to-person contact in the U.S., the CDC said. —Kopecki

Read CNBC’s coverage from the U.S. overnight: U.S. confirms new case, Germany says its at the beginning of an epidemic

— CNBC’s Dawn Kopecki, Berkeley Lovelace Jr. and William Feuer contributed to this report.

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