After saying little about the virus when news of it emerged in late December, Chinese authorities have stepped up their response in the last two weeks.
Wuhan and many cities in the region are under quarantine. The national rail and aviation authorities announced the respective transit operators would refund tickets, primarily those for the travel-heavy Lunar New Year that officially began on Jan. 24. Rail trips on Thursday alone wasChinese citizens were also supposed to resume work on Friday, Jan. 31, but the central government extended the holiday by three days, and several provinces have postponed the resumption of business to at least Feb.
And in contrast to comparisons with the short-lived economic impact of SARS in 2003, Larry Hu, chief China economist at Macquarie, said there are three differences in China today. Consumption plays a far bigger role in the economy than it did then, the property market is already under pressure and global demand for Chinese goods is not as strong, Hu said in a report.in the world versus the second-largest today, and in a period of increasing growth.