By Giovanni Legorano in Rome and María Martínez in Barcelona
A surge in new coronavirus cases in Spain is threatening the
recovery of the country's vital tourism sector and underscoring the
fragility of the hard-fought gains in bringing the virus under
control in a country that was among the hardest hit in the West
earlier this year.
The increase in infections -- and the U.K.'s abrupt decision to
impose a two-week quarantine on travelers arriving from Spain --
points to the economic cost if the virus begins to spread widely
again as Europeans begin to shop, dine out and travel over the
summer and fall following lengthy lockdowns in the spring.
Shares in European airlines fell sharply Monday after the
British quarantine decision, with markets rattled by worries that
the European tourist season -- which had only recently started to
recover -- may suffer another hit. EasyJet PLC dropped 8%, Deutsche
Lufthansa AG lost 5% and Ryanair Holdings PLC shed 3.9%.
TUI U.K., part of tour operator TUI, said it would cancel all
holidays to mainland Spain until Aug. 9 because of the new
quarantine requirements imposed on travelers returning from Spain,
which the U.K. said was needed to stem a rise of infections there.
It made its move after Spain's national health ministry reported
2,255 new cases on Friday, following its report of 2,615 new cases
on Thursday. On Monday, Spain said new cases swelled to 6,361
between midday Friday and the same time Monday.
"I understand that it is disruptive for those who are going
through this who are in Spain or who have been considering going to
Spain but we must be able to take swift, decisive action to protect
the U.K.," British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said in comments
broadcast on Sky News on Sunday.
The Spanish government defended the country as a safe holiday
destination where the epidemic is under control, and has been
attempting to negotiate a quarantine waiver for British tourists
returning from holidays in Balearic and Canary Islands, two popular
destinations. The U.K.'s Department of Transport didn't respond to
a request for comment.
"Spain is a safe country. Like other European countries it has
new outbreaks. This isn't unusual," said Foreign Affairs Minister
Arancha González on Sunday. "The most important thing is that Spain
is making big efforts to control these outbreaks, a big effort to
identify coronavirus cases."
Spanish health authorities are blaming the behavior of Spanish
youths as one of the main reasons for the recent surge in new
infections.
"Certain generations haven't remained vigilant," said Fernando
Simón, director of the center for health alerts and emergencies at
the Ministry of Health, referring to the increase in cases among
young people attending social gatherings or taking part in the
country's nightlife.
Mr. Simón added that other cases were imported by temporary
workers or by international tourists.
The Spanish Health Ministry said that the situation in the
country hasn't differed from other countries.
"The virus isn't circulating only in Spain, but everywhere. In
almost all countries around us there are outbreaks of major or
minor relevance. What matters is keeping new cases under control,"
the ministry said in a reply to a request for comment.
Belgian authorities, for example, will tighten their coronavirus
restrictions beginning Wednesday, limiting households to seeing
only five other people for the next four weeks after 2,000 new
cases emerged last week -- a 71% increase from the week before.
Currently, individuals in households are each allowed to meet 15
people a week, and those people could change from one week to
another.
"The epidemiological figures are worrying and we are all
worried," said Prime Minister Sophie Wilmès after a meeting of the
National Security Council, saying she doesn't rule out keeping
schools closed after the summer break if the contagion doesn't
subside. Belgium had one of the highest Covid-19 mortality rates in
the world earlier in spring, despite a strict lockdown.
Spain had high hopes that the high tourist summer season would
help recover some of its economic losses this year. The economy
shrank by 17% in the second quarter of the year, according to
European Union estimates, the worst contraction among the larger
European countries. The tourism sector, which accounted for 14% of
Spain's gross domestic product last year and provides a similar
proportion of the country's jobs, was preparing for a rebound from
the loosening of travel restrictions in the EU. That is now in
jeopardy.
"The U.K. decision is an absolute disaster for Spain's economic
recovery, " said Ángel Talavera, an economist at Oxford Economics.
"Even if it was going to be a reduced season, there were hopes some
of it could be salvaged and help a recovery in the third
quarter."
Hotel Yaramar on the coast of Spain's southern Andalusia region
was among the businesses hoping to benefit. The four-star hotel
opened last week after being shut for much of the year and of its
500 rooms, 19% were booked for the rest of July and 37% for
August.
"The summer was going better than expected," said Alberto Pino,
the hotel's restaurant manager.
The U.K.'s quarantine decision will likely stem the flow of
guests. "We are a hotel centered on British tourists," Mr. Pino
said, adding that 85% of their clientele comes from the U.K.
With summer hopes fading, the hotel is already refocusing on the
winter season, when the share of British tourists typically rises
to 90% as they escape the rain and cold of the U.K.
"The summer season is almost lost, but we hope we will have a
stronger winter," Mr. Pino said.
Valentina Pop in Brussels contributed to this article.
Write to Giovanni Legorano at giovanni.legorano@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 27, 2020 16:48 ET (20:48 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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