February 6 coronavirus news

More than 7,300 people are being quarantined on two cruise ships off Hong Kong and Japan because of concerns that passengers and crew have been exposed to the Wuhan coronavirus.

One of the vessels -- the Diamond Princess -- is anchored off the coast of Yokohama, near Tokyo. It has 1,045 crew and 2,666 passengers -- including 428 Americans -- on board, and ended its planned 14-day itinerary early.

Japan's Health Ministry said that 20 people on board the cruise liner had been infected. Passengers on board will remain under quarantine for at least 14 days, "as required by the Ministry of Health," the cruise company said in a statement.

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Two newborn babies in Wuhan, China, have been infected with the novel coronavirus, with the youngest baby diagnosed at just 30 hours old, according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.

The baby's mother was also infected with the virus, and CCTV suggested that "there may be mother-infant transmission,” where the mother passes the virus on to the baby in utero.

Without more details, however, it's impossible to know if the infants were infected in the womb. There are other ways they could have been exposed -- through handling by healthcare workers, mothers coughing, breastfeeding or even in the delivery process. 

Here's a look at the numbers of confirmed cases and deaths, both within mainland China and globally.

Total confirmed cases globally: There have been 28,273 and 565 deaths.

Mainland China: 28,018 cases, 563 deaths

Outside mainland China: 260 cases in more than 25 places, 2 deaths.

Airlines: At least 25 airlines have suspended or reduced flights to and from China, and at least nine countries are denying entry to travelers from China.

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is dramatically increasing the amount it is spending to combat the coronavirus -- which has killed more than 560 people and infected over 28,000 -- pledging up to $100 million to help contain the outbreak.

The foundation said in a statement Wednesday that its funds would be used to help find a vaccine for the virus, limit its spread and improve the detection and treatment of patients.

Read the full story here.

Chinese officials lashed out today at a growing number of international airlines and countries for suspending flights to China, criticizing the measures as "neither cool-headed . nor rational."

Well over 20 airlines have suspended or reduced flights to and from China, including major American carriers like Delta, American Airlines, and United Airlines.

US sends supplies to China: Just a few days ago on Monday, Hua criticized the US for implementing travel restrictions and emergency measures while not providing any assistance to fighting the virus.

Yesterday, China confirmed that it had received supplies from the US. Today, Hua thanked the international community for its support, "including American companies, institutions, organizations and individuals."

Dutch airline KLM has temporarily suspended all flights to mainland China as a result of the coronavirus outbreak.

The airline plans to resume flights to Beijing and Shanghai on March 16 on alternate days, with a connection from Amsterdam to mainland China.

KLM’s daily flights to Beijing and Shanghai are to resume March 29, but for the time being, services to Chengdu, Hangzhou and Xiamen will remain suspended up to and including 28 March.

Air France has also extended its suspension to Shanghai and Beijing -- which started at the end of January -- until March 15. 

Air France said in a statement it plans to alternate one daily flight to both cities with KLM “depending on the evolution of the situation.” It plans to resume a normal flight schedule, including to and from Wuhan, from March 29.

China announced on Thursday that it will halve additional tariffs on $75 billion worth of US imports, as the world's two largest economies continue to step back from a years-long trade war that has hurt both countries and dented global growth.

The move comes as China is grappling with the escalating coronavirus outbreak. The disease has killed 565 people, mostly in China, and infected more than 28,000 people in over 25 countries and territories.

The reduction affects US goods that China imposed tariffs on last September. Starting next week, China will cut the additional 10% tariff rate it enacted back then on some goods to 5%. Other goods that were taxed an extra 5% will now be levied 2.5%, according to a statement from China's State Council Tariff Commission.

Read the full story here.

Evacuations of Americans from Wuhan started last month, after one flight landed at a base in California with nearly 200 Americans aboard.

This Wednesday, two more flights out of Wuhan arrived in California carrying a total of 350 passengers. Both planes landed at Travis Air Force Base -- between San Francisco and Sacramento.

Of those, 178 passengers from one plane stayed at Travis while the other plane refueled before taking the others to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego.

Last flights out: Two more evacuation flights are scheduled to arrive later this week -- one headed to Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas, and the other one to Eppley Airfield in Omaha.

This week's flights will likely be the last ones. The State Department does not anticipate chartering any planes after this week, an official said.

Americans in Wuhan: About 1,000 Americans live in Wuhan, and priority on chartered flights was given to US citizens at a higher risk of contracting coronavirus if they stay in the city, the State Department has said.

With several Chinese cities under lockdown, businesses closed, and residents staying home to avoid the coronavirus, travel within the country has dropped dramatically.

Huang Xin, a director of the China Railway Group, said daily average passenger numbers are down 80% from what they would typically be at this time of year.

Lunar New Year just passed -- meaning these few weeks should be packed with travelers going home to celebrate, then returning to their cities of residence to continue work after the long public holiday.

But in the past 15 days, the Chinese railway has only sold an average of 1.2 million tickets a day -- about a tenth of the original estimated figures, Huang Xin said.

Safety measures on trains: In response to the coronavirus outbreak, trains are only selling 50% of tickets available to make sure passengers can have one empty seat between them, Huang Xin said.

Trains and train stations are also sanitized and disinfected regularly, and passengers have their temperatures checked before boarding.

There's still a lot we don't know about the Wuhan coronavirus, and scientists around the world are racing to gather data and develop a treatment.

Here's what we can tell you so far: