First Person-to-Person Transmission of Coronavirus Confirmed in United States

Markets Tumble Worldwide as Fears Over Deadly Viral Outbreak Grow

WASHINGTON—The outbreak of a new coronavirus in China has raised concerns about the disease’s potential impact on the Chinese economy, causing volatility in global stock markets and oil prices. The epidemic that originated in the central Chinese city of Wuhan and spread across the country is expected to hit China’s economic growth, as the panic has weighed on tourism, consumption, and manufacturing. The virus also has spread to other countries, including the United States, rattling investors further. Mounting fears and uncertainty sent major stock markets lower on Jan. 27, with travel, luxury goods, and mining sectors leading the drop. London’s FTSE 100 index slid 2.3 percent while Germany’s DAX index was down 2.6 percent. U.S. shares also lost at the start of the week with the Dow Jones and the S&P…

The first case of a person contracting the novel (new) coronavirus from another person in the United States was confirmed on Jan. 30.

The patient, who has not traveled to China, is a Chicago resident and is the spouse of the first confirmed travel-related case in Illinois. That patient was a woman in her 60s who returned from Wuhan on Jan. 13.

Both patients are isolated and are in stable condition.

“This person-to-person spread was between two very close contacts, a wife and husband,” Ngozi Ezike, the director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, told reporters on a phone call. “The virus is not spreading widely across the community.”

Authorities are not recommending people take precautions like canceling activities or not going out.

“It’s important to note that this spread was among two people who were in close contact for an extended period of time,” Nancy Messonnier, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases.

Messonnier said health officials expect to see more cases in the United States, which will raise the risk of the virus passing among people.

This illustration shows the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV). This virus was identified as the cause of an outbreak of respiratory illness first detected in Wuhan, China. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention via AP)

Passengers wear protective masks as they arrive at Beijing Capital Airport in Beijing, China, on Jan. 30, 2020. (Kevin Frayer/Getty Images)

Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), said that questions remain about the virus, telling reporters: “At this time, it’s unclear how easily or sustainably this virus is spreading between people.”

People who recently returned to the United States from China should call their healthcare provider if they develop symptoms, officials said. Earlier Thursday, Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar said that the Trump administration is not imposing any travel restrictions.

The new Illinois case is the sixth in the United States and the first new case announced in four days. Five patients had tested positive across four states: California, Washington, Arizona, and Illinois.

The new virus has spread to about 20 countries, hitting the Americas, the Middle East, Europe, Asia, and Oceania. Three new countries reported the first confirmed cases in the past 24 hours—Finland, the Philippines, and India.

The briefing came a day after President Donald Trump formed a coronavirus task force headed by Azar. Redfield is on the task force.

The task force will lead the Trump administration’s efforts to “monitor, contain, and mitigate the spread of the virus” and give Americans accurate and up-to-date health and travel information, White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said in a statement. The group has been meeting daily since Monday.

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Fed Keeps Interest Rates Unchanged Amid Concern for Below-Target Inflation

The Federal Reserve’s interest rate-setting body decided Wednesday to keep the benchmark Federal Funds target rate unchanged within the 1.5 to 1.75 percent range. Members of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) met on Jan. 28-29 to consider economic data before issuing a policy decision on an interest rate hold, cut, or hike. Citing labor market strength, in particular solid job gains and low unemployment, as well as economic activity that “has been rising at a moderate rate,” participants decided to keep rates steady. “The Committee judges that the current stance of monetary policy is appropriate to support sustained expansion of economic activity, strong labor market conditions, and inflation returning to the Committee’s symmetric 2 percent objective,” the FOMC said in a statement. Still, the Committee expressed some concern that…