Will coronavirus lockdown be extended? CMs' take after meeting with PM Modi

PM Modi held a video conference to discuss the situation arising out of the coronavirus outbreak and measures to deal with it.

Will the coronavirus lockdown be extended in the national capital? The Delhi government will follow the Centre's guidelines, officials said on Monday.

This comes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a video conference with chief ministers to discuss the situation arising out of the coronavirus outbreak and measures to deal with it.

"We are preparing our submission which will be sent to the Centre soon," a senior government official said.

The official said nine chief ministers spoke during the meeting with the prime minister in which they discussed a range of issues, including the possibility of extending of the lockdown, amid the rising number of coronavirus cases.

In West Bengal, restrictions enforced to fight Covid-19 will continue till May 21 with curbs on normal life varying in intensity based on the extent of spread of the viral infection in a particular area, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said.

"We want the restrictions to continue till May 21. We have to be careful till that time," Banerjee told media persons at the state secretariat Nabanna.

The Chief Minister, however, clarified that she was not announcing any extension on lockdown, as that decision will be taken by the central government.

"I am talking of restrictions, which is different from the lockdown," she added.

Banerjee said while the restrictions would be strictly implemented in every red zone (areas with large number of corona positive cases), the impact will be less severe in orange zones (areas with a limited number of cases in the past and with no surge in positive cases recently, where restricted activities would be allowed).

Coronavirus spread: Over 600 cases in India, Delhi doctor tests positive

The all India tally, however, did not take into account one death each reported on Wednesday by state officials in Tamil Nadu and Madhya Pradesh.

The total number of coronavirus cases in India rose to 606 on Wednesday as authorities beefed up preparedness to fight the pandemic with a chain of hospitals of the Army ordnance factories and central paramilitary forces earmarking over 2,000 beds for isolation and treatment of people affected by COVID-19.

In addition, the Hamirpur district administration in Himachal Pradesh took over all the ten hostels with 2,000 rooms of the National Institute of Technology (NIT) for creating an isolation centre, an official said in Shimla.

A 2,200-bed state-run hospital in Kolkata has stopped admitting new patients who are suffering from other diseases and was discharging patients whose condition had improved as part of efforts to create a dedicated isolation centre, another official said in Kolkata.

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Addressing people of his constituency in Varanasi via a video link, Prime Minister Narendra Modi reiterated that social distancing and staying indoors were the only way out and the best option to deal with coronavirus.

“Around one lakh people infected with coronavirus are recovering, this also needs to be highlighted,” he said.

“People should focus on how deadly this virus is. This disease doesn't discriminate between rich and poor," the prime minister said, a day after he announced a 21-day nationwide lockdown to try halt the spread of the coronavirus. The lockdown came into effect from midnight.

21-day lockdown: E-commerce firms set to resume work after police assurance

The Delhi police issued a statement saying they were proactively engaging with e-commerce portals and were issuing passes to ensure agents were able to commute seamlessly.

Walmart-owned Flipkart said on Wednesday it would resume services and Amazon said it was working with the government to enable its deliveries after state governments reached out to the firms, which had temporarily stopped accepting new orders amid reports of police high-handedness.

The Delhi police issued a statement saying they were proactively engaging with e-commerce portals and were issuing passes to ensure agents were able to commute seamlessly and deliver essential goods to residents during the 21-day lockdown. The Bengaluru police, too, came out with guidelines for issuing curfew passes.

Following this, Flipkart Chief Executive Officer Kalyan Krishnamurthy said, “We have been assured of the safe and smooth passage of our supply chain and delivery executives by local law enforcement authorities and are resuming our grocery and essentials services later today (Wednesday).”

Similarly, a note on Amazon India's Pantry page said, “Dear customers, due to local restrictions, we are not able to deliver. We are working with the government authorities to enable us to deliver essential items. We will communicate through e-mail/SMS when we have an update”. It also offered customers the option of cancelling orders.

These developments came after e-commerce firms sought the support of local governments and police authorities to meet customers’ needs after there were reports of some deliver personnel being beaten up while on duty. Additionally, officials of the Confederation of All India Traders met Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade Secretary Guru Prasad Mohpatra and highlighted the issues faced.

Investors brace for more pain as India goes under lockdown to curb Covid-19

Analysts say the market bloodbath is worse than in 2008. Last week, investor sentiment was crushed with the Sensex dropping as much as 17%.

Investors may have to brace for more pain as selling pressure could extend with India entering a virtual shutdown phase to contain the spread of COVID-19. 

Already, foreign portfolio investors’ selloff in March hit a record of $6.24 billion (Rs 46,200 crore).

This is far in excess of $4.4 billion outflows seen in January 2008 due to the global financial crisis.

Analysts say the market bloodbath is worse than in 2008.

Last week, investor sentiment was crushed with the Sensex dropping as much as 17% before recovering sharply on Friday to end the week with a 12% deficit.

On a month-to-date basis, the markets are down 22%, while the India VIX has more than doubled, signalling extreme anxiety.

“Many nations may have to eventually adopt harsh steps to contain the pandemic.

 However, such extreme measures, though desired, will result in extreme short-term pain for several parts of the economy,” Sanjeev Prasad, co-head, Kotak Institutional Equities, said.

Global travel industry in agony as airlines cut flights, coronavirus grows

American Airlines Group Inc and United said they would continue normal flights to and from Europe for the next week but would be reducing capacity to Europe.

The fallout from the coronavirus spread across the Pacific on Friday, with travel companies in Australia and New Zealand issuing profit warnings as US airlines rushed to cut flights to Europe in the wake of new US travel restrictions.

US travel curbs on much of continental Europe announced by President Donald Trump on Wednesday evening deepened the sector's misery that began after the virus emerged in China late last year and reduced traffic.

United Airlines Holdings Inc warned of US travel disruption as the virus spreads domestically and major tourist attractions like Walt Disney Co's theme parks in California and Florida said they would close.

American Airlines Group Inc and United said they would continue normal flights to and from Europe for the next week but would be reducing capacity to Europe by around 50 per cent in April.

American also said it was cutting international capacity by 34 per cent for the summer travel season and accelerating the retirement of its Boeing Co 757 and 767 planes.

Delta Air Lines Inc also said it would significantly reduce its US-Europe schedule after Sunday as it continues to watch customer demand.

Several Latin American countries stepped up measures to slow the spread of the coronavirus, halting flights to and from Europe. More than $825 million was wiped off the value of listed Indian airlines on Thursday after the government said it was restricting visit visas.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA), a global industry group representing airlines, called on governments to consider extending lines of credit, reducing infrastructure costs and cutting taxes.

"There is a heightened concern there will be increased airline bankruptcies in 2020 given the fallout from the coronavirus," Cowen analyst Helane Becker said.

Amazon asks staff to work from home if possible as COVID-19 spreads

The move helps enable greater social distancing and lessen the impact of virus on public transportation.

Amazon Inc has asked its employees in India and other locations around the world to work from home till March-end amid a coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

The move is expected to help enable greater social distancing and lessen the impact of virus on public transportation.

"In light of the ongoing international COVID-19 developments, we are changing Amazon's guidance globally for all corporate offic employees who work in a role that can be done from home, do so through the end of March," a communication letter sent to the employees noted.

However, it may be noted that only employees who with a conducive environment to work at home are being encouraged to go ahead after consulting with respective managers.

Amazon had earlier offered the option to work from home only if there are any symptoms of sickness and ailments.

Over 134,670 coronavirus pandemic cases have been reported worldwide with total deaths crossing 4,973. India reported its first coronavirus death on Thursday even as cases rose to 79. The Delhi government has announced several preventive measures to contain the virus outbreak like shutting down schools, colleges and cinema halls in the national capital. Similar steps were taken by Uttarakhand and Manipur.

Coronavirus pain for Chinese mobile handset makers may be Samsung's gain

With manufacturing suspended in China and supply of key components and handset models in jeopardy, Chinese firms are feeling the heat.

As China reels from the coronavirus epidemic, Korean mobile phone maker Samsung seems to be recovering some of the lost ground.

While the outbreak has forced most leading brands like Apple, Xiaomi, Oppo, Vivo, and Realme to rework their launch dates and pricing strategies, Samsung, which struggled to maintain its hold over the market last year, has taken the lead.

The data from the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) shows that the local unit of the Korean major has lined up nine new handset models for launch in early 2020. Among major brands, only Redmi (from Xiaomi) and LG have registered two models each since January 1 with the national standards body, followed by Motorola and Coolpad (one each).

Delhi-based local brand Cellecor, which has a presence in the entry-level segment, tops the chart with 15 models registered since January 1. Hitech, another Indian brand, holds the third spot with eight models registered over this period.

According to Faisal Kawoosa, lead analyst at TechArc, the trend clearly indicates that “major OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) are delaying their launches. Typically, after the BIS registration, models are launched in 4-6 weeks”.

ALSO READ: Are Indian imports worth $70.4 bn from China at risk due to coronavirus?

He said, “As of now it gives advantage to Samsung among major OEMs as it can procure from Korea and other countries, resulting in low impact on its supply chain.”

With manufacturing suspended in China and supply of key components and handset models in jeopardy, Chinese firms are feeling the heat. Though many of them have set up facilities in India, they continue to depend heavily on supplies from China.