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By Chong Koh Ping 

The novel coronavirus epidemic reached a new stage globally, with confirmed cases outside China tripling over the past week and governments warning of more infections among people who recently traveled to countries where infection rates are rising.

Financial market turmoil intensified. Stock markets around the world plunged again on Monday, though also behind the selloff was a crash in oil prices caused by a price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia. Investors worried that this could trigger broader financial problems just as the global economy takes a severe hit from the virus outbreak. Oil prices fell more than 20%, and the 10-year Treasury note yield dipped below 0.4%, a historic low.

The total number of confirmed coronavirus cases was more than 110,000 Monday, with infections in 108 countries and regions, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. There were 29,306 cases outside mainland China, versus around 10,000 a week ago. The U.S. tally rose to 554 cases, with 21 deaths.

The world-wide death toll stood at 3,825 -- the bulk of which were in China, especially in the central city of Wuhan, which first reported the pneumonia-like virus in December. Italy has the second-highest number of deaths at 366, and the total number of confirmed infections in the Mediterranean country climbed to 7,375 over the weekend, almost catching up with South Korea's 7,478 cases.

Italy on Monday began ratcheting up its lockdown of almost 17 million people living across its north, including the cities of Milan and Venice, as the country tries to arrest the spread of the coronavirus.

Police began stopping people at train stations and airports in the north, asking them to produce a written form explaining why their trip was necessary.

The increased enforcement of the lockdown comes as Italy's virus outbreak, with 7,375 total infections, approaches the level of South Korea's, behind only China. In Italy, 366 people with the virus had died by Sunday, far more than in South Korea, where there were 53. Doctors in northern Italy have warned that they are running short of intensive-care beds for severe cases.

In the U.S., Carnival Corp.'s Grand Princess cruise ship is expected to dock in Oakland, Calif., on Monday, after staying off shore for days amid concerns over the new coronavirus. One former passenger died, becoming California's first Covid-19 death, and 21 current passengers, including 19 crew members, on the boat tested positive for the virus. Once the ship docks, all those on board will be quarantined.

Other Princess Cruises have also been affected by the virus's spread. The Regal Princess docked at Port Everglades in Broward County, Fla., late Sunday after U.S. authorities ordered the ship to be held off the state's coast. And the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a no-sail order to the Royal Princess in Los Angeles, the company said.

Officials warned Americans over the weekend to avoid cruise ships, and Vice President Mike Pence, who met with industry leaders over the weekend in Florida, said ships will implement stronger screenings, among other measures.

The number of positive cases grew in the hardest-hit U.S. states in recent days, with about 136 positive cases in Washington state, 105 in New York and 114 in California. At least eight states have declared states of emergency as the virus has spread to new locations, including Washington, D.C. There are at least 566 U.S. cases thus far, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins Monday morning. At least 22 Americans have died, with the majority of deaths following an outbreak at a Kirkland, Wash., nursing home.

The virus's quick spread across the U.S. over the past week has prompted universities and school districts to cancel in-person classes, businesses to ask their employees to work from home, organizations to cancel high-profile events and local officials to implore residents avoid large crowds.

The death toll from the virus in Iran rose to 237 on Monday, up from 194 the day before, according to the country's health ministry. The ministry also confirmed 595 cases of infections, bringing the total number of patients to 7,161 patients.

In a sign of the toll the disease is taking, dozens of Iranian officials have contracted the coronavirus and several have died. Among the newly infected is the head of Iran's National Disaster Management Organization Esmail Najjar.

The former deputy commander for political affairs in Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Farhad Tazri, was confirmed dead on Monday, according to the semiofficial Tasnim News Agency. A prominent former reformist politician, Mohammadreza Rahchamani also died, said the semiofficial ISNA news agency.

Iran has released roughly 70,000 prisoners due to the risk of contracting the coronavirus in prison, the judiciary's news outlet Mizan Online said.

In China, health authorities reported 40 new cases on the mainland in the past day, bringing its total number of confirmed infections to 80,735, up about 1% from a week ago. More than two-thirds of those taken ill have recovered.

While China also has by far the highest death toll from the respiratory disease, at 3,119 fatalities, its officials have said lockdowns of cities, strict quarantine measures, and widespread workplace and school closures have helped limit infections across the country.

A few weeks ago, China was reporting thousands of new cases daily. In late January the government locked down much of Hubei province, where Wuhan is, to stem the spread of the virus, and hasn't lifted those restrictions.

In recent days, major cities including Shanghai and Beijing have seen people returning to malls, shops reopening and other business activities gradually resuming. On Monday, Shanghai government officials said some major tourist spots and sports facilities had reopened after being closed for more than a month.

Walt Disney Co.'s Shanghai Disney Resort said it would partially resume operations as a first step in reopening in phases, while the main Shanghai Disneyland theme park would remain closed until further notice.

Governments are preparing for a new wave of coronavirus cases among people who have traveled to countries other than China. Health authorities in Hong Kong, which has 114 confirmed cases, said several people who tested positive for the virus in recent days had been on a tour to India in February. India has reported 39 coronavirus infections.

On Monday, South Korean Vice Health Minister Kim Ganglip said the spread of the coronavirus appears to be slowing in the country but that new infections could come from people returning from abroad.

The country added 165 cases, the lowest daily new numbers since Feb. 25, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

China said it has a total of 67 imported cases, including people who recently traveled to Italy and Iran.

In Japan, a new rule kicked in Monday that effectively bans tourists from China, Hong Kong, Macau and South Korea until the end of March, as the country seeks to prevent more new imported infections. Japan reported 488 cases on Monday, up 33 from a day earlier.

France's central bank said the impact from the coronavirus epidemic on French businesses will slash 0.2 percentage points from the country's economic growth in the first quarter. Gross domestic product will rise 0.1% in the first quarter of 2020 compared with the prior quarter, according to the Bank of France's monthly survey of business activity.

The declining growth projections are another signal of the economic slowdown from the virus, infections of which have started to spike in France to more than 1,100 as of Sunday, second in Europe behind Italy. Health officials have closed schools in two regions of France and many workers are being urged to stay home.

Stocks markets in Europe plunged Monday as part of the global rout. France's CAC-40 was down more than 7% in early trading, while the U.K.'s FTSE 100, also influenced by a collapse in oil prices, was down more than 8.5%.

Write to Chong Koh Ping at chong.kohping@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 09, 2020 10:10 ET (14:10 GMT)

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