hello. i'm sharanjit leyl in singapore, the headlines: president trump prepares to address the nation on the coronavirus pandemic and its economic impact. inside one of south korea's super labs, where they're processing thousands of samples a day in the fight against coronavirus. i'm kasia madera in london. also in the programme: in italy, new restrictions mean that all shops are closed except food stores and pharmacies. and in new york, the victims of the disgraced hollywood film producer, harvey weinstein, celebrate his jail sentence of 23 years for rape and sexual assault. voiceover: live from our studios in singapore and london.

this is bbc world news. it's newsday. good morning. it's 9am in singapore and iam in london, and the world health organization has for the first time declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic. the number of cases outside china has increased 13—fold over the past two weeks. in the next few minutes, we're expecting president trump to make a statement on the situation. of course we'll bring that to you live as it happens. it's from washington. i believe it isjust i believe it is just starting now and we should be able to ta ke now and we should be able to take you there live to washington. president donald trump is expected to address the coronavirus covid—i9 situation. he is speaking now.

today, the world health organization officially announced that this is a global pandemic. we have been in frequent contact with our allies and we are marshalling the full power of the federal government and the private sector to protect the private sector to protect the american people. this is the american people. this is the most aggressive and comprehensive effort to confront a foreign virus in modern history. i am confident that by continuing to take these tough measures, we will significantly reduce the threat to our citizens, and we will ultimately and expeditiously defeat this virus. from the beginning of time, nations and people have faced unforeseen challenges, including large—scale and very dangerous health threats. this is the way it always was and always will be. it only matters how you respond and we are responding with great speed and professionalism. ourteam is professionalism. our team is the best anywhere

in the world. at the very start of the outbreak, we instituted sweeping travel restrictions on china and put in place the first federally mandated quarantine in over 50 years. we declared a public health emergency and issued the highest level of travel warning on other countries as the virus spread its horrible infection. and taking early, intense action, we have seen dramatically fewer cases of the virus in the united states than are now present in europe. the european union failed to ta ke the european union failed to take the same precautions and restrict travel from china and other hotspots. as a result, a large number of new clusters in the united states were ceded by travellers from europe. after consulting with our top government health professionals, i've decided to ta ke professionals, i've decided to take several strong but necessary actions to protect the health and well—being of

all americans. to keep new cases from entering our shores, we will be suspending all travel from europe to the united states for the next 30 days. the new rules will go into effect friday at midnight. these restrictions will be adjusted subject to conditions on the ground. there will be exemptions for americans who have undergone appropriate screenings and these prohibitions will not only apply to the tremendous amount of trade and cargo but various other things as we get approval. anything coming from europe to the united states is what we are discussing. these restrictions will also not apply to the united kingdom. at the same time, we are monitoring the situation in china and south korea and, as their situation improves, we will re—evaluate the restrictions and warnings that are currently in place for a possible early opening. earlier

this week, i met with the leaders of health insurance industry who have agreed to waive all copayments for coronavirus treatments, extend insurance coverage to these treatments and to prevent surprise medical billing. we are cutting massive amounts of red tape to make antiviral therapies available in record time. these treatments will significantly reduce the impact and reach of the virus. additionally, last week i signed into law and $8.3 billion funding bill to help cdc and other government agencies fight the virus and support vaccines, treatments and distribution of medical supplies. testing and... testing capabilities are expanding rapidly, day by day. we are moving very quickly. the vast majority of americans has a very, very low risk. young

and healthy people can expect to recover fully and quickly if they should get the virus. the highest risk is for elderly populations with underlying health conditions. the elderly population must be very, very careful. in particular, we are strongly advising nursing homes for the elderly suspend all medically unnecessary visits. in addition, all elderly americans should suspend all travel in crowded areas. my administration is co—ordinating with communities with the largest outbreaks and we have issued guidance on school closures, social distance, distancing and reducing large gatherings. smart action today will prevent the spread of the virus tomorrow. every community faces different risks and it's crucial to follow the guidelines of your local officials working closely with oui’ officials working closely with ourfederal officials working closely with our federal fact, officials working closely with ourfederalfact, and officials working closely with our federal fact, and they are

the best. for all americans, our federal fact, and they are the best. forallamericans, it is essential everyone take extra precautions and practice good hygiene. each of us has a role to play in defeating this virus. wash your hands, clean often used surfaces, cover your face and mouth if you sneeze or cough, and most of all, if you asked or not feeling well, stay home. to ensure that working americans impacted by the virus can stay—at—home without fear of financial hardship, i will soon take emergency action which is unprecedented to provide financial relief. this will be targeted for workers you are ill, quarantine or caring for others due to coronavirus. i will be asking congress to take legislative action to extend this relief. because of the economic policies we have put in place, over the last three years, we have the greatest economy anywhere in the world by far.

our banks and financial institutions are fully capitalised and incredibly strong. our unemployment is at an historic low. this past economic prosperity gives us flexibility, reserves and resources to handle any threat that comes our way. this is not a financial crisis, this is just a temporary moment of time that we will overcome together asa that we will overcome together as a nation and as a world. however, to provide extra support for american workers, families and businesses, tonight i am announcing the following additional actions. i am instructing the small business administration to exercise available authority to provide capital and liquidity to firms affected by the coronavirus. effective immediately, the sba will begin providing economic loans in affected states and territories. these low interest

loa ns territories. these low interest loans will help small businesses overcome temporary economic disruptions caused by the virus. to this end, i'm asking congress to increase funding for this programme by an additional $50 billion. using emergency authority, i will be instructing the treasury department to defer tax payments without interest oi’ tax payments without interest or penalties for certain individuals and businesses negatively impacted. this action will provide more than $200 billion of additional liquidity to the economy. finally, i am calling on congress to provide americans with immediate payroll tax relief. hopefully they will consider this very strongly. we are ata consider this very strongly. we are at a critical time in the fight against the virus. we made a life—saving move with early action on china. now we must take the same action with europe. we will not delay. i will never hesitate to take any

necessary steps to protect the lives, health and safety of the american people. i will always put the well—being of america first. if we are vigilant and we can reduce the chance of infection, which we will, we will significantly impede the transmission of the virus. the virus will not have a chance against us. no nation is more prepared or more resilient than the united states. we have the best economy, the most advanced healthcare and the most talented doctors, scientists and researchers anywhere in the world. we are all in this together. we must put politics aside, stop the partisanship and unify together as one nation and one family. as history has proven time and time again, americans always rise to the challenge and ove i’co m e rise to the challenge and overcome adversity. our future remains brighter than anyone

can imagine. acting with compassion and love, we will heal the sick, care for those in need, help ourfellow citizens and emerge from this challenge stronger and more unified than ever before. god bless you and god bless america. thank you. studio: donald trump making his speech updating the american nation on the coronavirus. some headlines for you. the most important thing to speak about is the fact that he is suspending all travel from europe to the united states for the next 30 days, and this travel ban effectively from european countries will kick off from friday at midnight but the restrictions will not apply to the uk. he has been talking about the various different measures he's bringing in, including asking people to stay—at—home if they are not l,

recommending nursing homes and suspend all unnecessary visits and basically saying he will ta ke and basically saying he will take emergency action to provide financial relief for those ill, quarantine or caring for others due to coronavirus. he continued to stress the us has the best economy and the best healthcare has the best economy and the best healthca re system has the best economy and the best healthcare system and the most talented doctors, stressing the united states will overcome this. also underlying that there restrict travel... form —— for anyone from china when they started to appear has helped save lives. let's speak now to our correspondent david willis. what did you make of this? i think the travel ban from europe will make quite a few headlines to say the least. it will kick in at —— on friday at midnight. absolutely, we saw a mix of practical and economic measures announced by president trump

interspersed with an attempted message of reassurance to the american people that the united states will get through this. that effective travel ban that applies to countries in europe aside from the united kingdom will be the headline from this speech over... from this announcement from the oval office tonight, no question about that. president donald trump... this had been anticipated, a lot of speculation there would be some sort of travel advisory or travel ban announced. well, the president grasping that nettle. this, a man who has downplayed the effects of the coronavirus somewhat up until now. he basically said people should stay calm and it will go away. u nfortu nately stay calm and it will go away. unfortunately these facts have overta ken unfortunately these facts have overtaken him somewhat. there are now more than 1000 cases of the virus here in the united

states, and so far more than 30 deaths as well. when it comes to the travel ban itself, because i think this is going to be something that will hit people hard, he says there will be exemptions for us citizens who have undergone screenings. certain exemptions and there. but, my goodness, we're talking about a complete ban for anyone from europe apart from those in the uk. absolutely, and this will have a considerable effect, of course, on commerce and particularly on tourism. at this time of the year coming up to the easter holidays and so on, this means it is a radical move on the president's behalf. he clearly feels the limited bans imposed on travellers from china and south korea helped to mitigate the worst effects of the virus here in the united states, and that it is time to ta ke states, and that it is time to take these quite draconian

measures and in an attempt to basically sendoff the worst effects of this virus, which the world health organization has now called a pandemic. but there is a lot of concern in there is a lot of concern in the united states that with the financial markets having gone somewhat into freefall that this could pave the way to economic recession. the darren jones lost 20% today. it's been in freefall since february, since the first announcement came out of this about this virus and the spread and its potential reach —— dowjones. the president has, of course, very much founded his reputation and been selling himself to voters ahead of the elections in november on his ability to boost the stock market. well, that now lies in tatters and that's the kind of thing that going to get to him and he's bound to be keen to

get a handle on this virus if not for that reason... if not for any other reason than that reason alone. you mentioned economic measures and a note of compassion. reaching out to small businesses, saying they will provide capital, liquidity, low interest loa ns provide capital, liquidity, low interest loans amongst other things so trying to calm people, holding out a hand and asking congress to increase funding by 50 billion us dollars. very much cutting across any kind of party lines and reaching out to congress to show a united front. absolutely but whether or not congress agrees to this is another question because the democrats have said they would prefer com pletely have said they would prefer completely different measures, for example paid sick leave. the president favouring tax

cuts and stimulus to small businesses. democrats arguing approach should be completely different. there is no agreement so far on that stimulus planned and of course congress takes a week off from the end of this week so difficult to see that there will be any agreement on that rather ambitious funding plan the president announced tonight in the next few days at least. interesting to see the president being extremely presidential. previously, there have been instances where he has been talking about the deep of the economy due to the coronavirus and throwing it out that one of the reasons was the candidate into the presidential race to take him on this time around strictly sticking to the script. absolutely and he has

argued this has been played up by the democrats, by the media but you are absolutely right, it isa but you are absolutely right, it is a recognition tonight of the potential seriousness of this coronavirus here in the united states. the president taking to the oval office in prime time. the first time he has done that in a more than a year to address the concerns of many people here is the fracture of this virus spreads. how are people finding this? of course, we are seeing empty shelves across europe, disputes over to i let shelves across europe, disputes over toilet rolls that we have seen people in australia fighting over that that how about america? up in seattle, not far from where i am speaking to you right now, they have limited public gatherings in certain counties to know

more than 250 people at once. there is concern about quarantining people in new york and also allowing public gatherings in the nation's capital, washington, dc. we see clear signs of public buying, hand sanitising materials, toilet rolls and so on so a lot of concern here and that was a concern the president felt he had to address clearly tonight from the oval office. coming back to the headline news that the president is suspending of flies to europe. can he do this automatically or does he have to go through a political system, to go through a political syste m , get to go through a political system, get approval?|j to go through a political system, get approval? iwould imagine andi system, get approval? iwould imagine and i am not certain on this, i would

imagine and i am not certain on this, iwould imagine imagine and i am not certain on this, i would imagine he could do this by executive order. the president favours executive orders and has issued quite a lot of them in his time at the white house. i would imagine this is something he could do with an executive order, and instruction to the federal aviation authority and to other government departments that are responsible for ports et cetera. clearly, this is something people feel is not a bad idea. in orderto something people feel is not a bad idea. in order to protect the spread of this virus. indeed, one of the president's own advices on this, a doctor, testified today at a congressional committee and he said it is ten times worse than the seasonal flu, the effects of the coronavirus and he made the point that the only way to

stop it spreading is to stop the arrival of people here who actually had or were vulnerable to the virus so the president perhaps following through on that advice from one of his advisers and it will of course have considerable impact on the us economy. there will be an awful lot of reaction to this. strong but necessary action is how the president describes it. thank you for your analysis on this breaking news of this travel ban to the united states from europe. obviously there will be reaction from asia as well. you heard president trump speak at the oval office talking about travel bands, initially with china, south korea and now extended to europe as well for the next 30 days. some draconian measures, as david just mentioned.

obviously, something we have been watching as well and something that a lot of market watchers and investors have been watching because investors are on tenterhooks. global markets have been also incredibly volatile because of this pandemic. monica miller was also watching at that address. what were some of the key things? everybody focus on the travel ban, the fact that europeans are not going to be allowed for the next 30 days to go into the us but it is not just something american, other countries have done at this. india stopped issuing travel visas and they are doing this as well. certainly something we are seeing other countries do. indeed, when the coronavirus first was detected, countries like singapore band flight from china, especially from the epicentre of wuhan. yesterday i

had a discussion with the singaporean official on the tourism board and asked if they we re tourism board and asked if they were looking at a ban of the sort and he said absolutely not, we have not done that since 9/11. hearing president trump say that, jaws dropped. such a broad statement. and interestingly it does not include the uk. exactly and they have seen their fair share of cases. he said this is not a financial crisis and this is something we have looked closely in asia all week but with the us we have seen indices well in the red and it has been a 1—2 punch not only the coronavirus but oil prices but then when you tack this on, we're looking at futures down 600% in the us. this is after wall street went into a bear market. it's first bear market

for 11 years since the height of the financial crisis. a lot of the financial crisis. a lot of concern yesterday at the lack of detail about stimulus measures from the president which possibly lead to wall street falling. we did see some gains again this week. he has talked about getting support to small business, about economic loa ns to small business, about economic loans to affected states and territories, pay relief as well. one of the things i listen to and heard is giving relief to workers. there is not any federal government compensation for that. when you ask people to stay home from work, it is going to have a massive impact on the economy. people may not be able to pay the mortgage, the bills and thatis the mortgage, the bills and that is something investors looking for but it simply does not seem to be enough to check those fears. the markets

continued to lower this morning in asia. thank you for that, talking through some of the specifics which president trump just mentioned in his address at the oval office, talking about the situation and how the us is going to be coping with the coronavirus out break. breaking news to remind you, president trump, within the past few moments has a set of flies from europe will be suspended from friday at midnight stop the restriction does not apply however to the uk and he said the situation with flights and travel from china will be reassessed as the number of cases break. all flights from europe to the united states, not included from the uk, will be suspended for 30 days from friday at midnight. the president announcing that from the oval

office. we are expecting an awful lot of reaction. stay with us on bbc news. hello. meteorologically speaking, it is now the start of spring. but of course, winter is not that far behind us and i think we will get a reminder of that through the next couple of days. cold air flooding into the uk around an area of low pressure will bring us quite a few showers actually, on thursday, the most frequent closest to the low centre, so across the northern half of the uk. but can't rule out some pretty sharp ones whipping through on that strong wind further south, either. and as you can see, the blue has flooded its way right across the uk for today, but all sitting in the polarair. so it will add a definite chill to proceedings, even where we see some sunshine. after showers overnight and plunging temperatures, snow and ice a possible hazard as we start our morning commute.

there could be some further falling snow through the earlier part of the day as well for scotland, the higher ground of northern england and for northern ireland. we should see the snow levels rising as the day progresses, however. some showers to the south, though, could have a little bit of hail mixed in with them from time to time. there'll be quite squally winds here, too. but the showers should be more scattered, they'll tend to come in more persistent bands to the north of the uk, across northern ireland, parts of northern england and scotland. it will feel chilly and the wind, while the strongest across southern scotland, northern england, northern ireland and to the north—west of wales, gusts could touch up to 60 miles per hour here but gusts of a0 miles per hour quite widely. through thursday evening, still a lot of showers around, then we move into the small hours of friday and things start to become quieter. we pick up a northerly wind on the length of the north sea, that will feed some showers into eastern counties the uk, temperatures fall away across the northern half of the uk and in particular again into the small hours of friday.

so ice a risk for the north of the uk for first thing on friday once again but our showers will tend to shift offshore quite quickly through friday morning as high pressure starts to build just a little ridge — a brief ridge of high pressure starts to buil for friday daytime. so the early showers clear, the northerly wind eases, there'll be pleasant sunshine the majority for a time at least before our next low starts to approach from the south—west as we get into friday afternoon. the wind will begin to pick up once again and we'll see the arrival of some further rainfall. and then it's another weekend, another area of low pressure. saturday the wettest of the weather to the north—west of the uk. for sunday, this front needs to make its way through so i suspect all of us will see some rain at some stage. so quite a bit of cloud around widely around the uk on saturday, rainfall fairly limited. sunday definitely looks like soggier prospects across the board.

hello and welcome, i'm cash or nero with bbc news: president donald trump says the us will ban all flights from mainland europe as experts confirmed the coronavirus outbreak is a pandemic —— kasia madera. speaking from the oval office, president trump said the 30 day ban would come into effect on friday and he said he wanted to prevent the spread across the us after europe failed to contain the virus. away from the coronavirus, disgraced film producer harvey weinstein has been sentenced to 23 yea rs weinstein has been sentenced to 23 years in prison for rape and sexual assault. he was found guilty in a trial in new york last month. much more, as always, on all of our stories, including the breaking news about the travel ban from europe to the united states on our website. that's it from me, thank you for watching bbc world