celia hatton reports.e man at the pinnacle of the communist party making his first public appearance in days amid a national crisis. xi jinping told workers at this beijing health facility that he had confidence china would overcome the epidemic. but in a sign of the times, he took all the necessary precautions. "it's a special period", he said, "so i'd like not to shake hands." appearing on chinese state television, mr xi also addressed rising economic anxieties, promising the government would work to prevent large—scale lay—offs. that pledge comes as millions of people in china returned to work after the lunar new year break, which was extended from january 31 to curb the spread of the virus. but precautionary measures remain in place. work hours are staggered to prevent rush—hour crowds. several major cities including beijing and shanghai remain quiet as many factories and offices are still closed. translation: actually, i still think it's a normal life. it's fine as long as we pay a little attention to

celia hatton, bbc news.with the coronavirus outbreak, which is having knock—on effects around the world, including on the economy and big events. many aerospace companies have decided not to attend the singapore airshow, which starts on tuesday, because of concerns over the virus. there are over a0 confirmed cases in the city state. monica miller is at the airshow and she described the precautions being taken to ensure people are safe there. well, this is the biggest event in asia of its kind and organisers say that they have put every precaution in place and what that means, as my crew and i found out this morning, is that several miles away from here you enter a medical tent with your vehicle. you have to get out of the vehicle and the temperature is taken. and then when you get a clean bill of health you go through security, multiple steps, because this airshow is focused on the defence industry, so we went through three checks to do that. but they also have a no—contact policy which means no shaking hand

celia hatton has our first report. resident, the man at the pinnacle of the communist party making his first public appearance in days amid a national crisis. xi jinping told workers are debating health facility that he had confidence china would overcome the epidemic. but in a sign of the epidemic. but in a sign of the times, he took all the necessary precautions. it is a special period, he said, so i'd like not to shake hands. appearing on chinese state television, he also addressed rising economic anxieties, missing the government would work to prevent large—scale layoffs. that pledge comes as millions of people in china returned to work after the lunar new year break which was extended from january 31 to curb the spread of the virus. but precautionary measures remain in place. work hours are staggered to prevent rush—hour crowds. several major cities including beijing and shanghai remain quiet as many factories and offices are still closed. translation: actually, i still think it's a normal life. it's fine as long

the bbc‘s celia hatton has more.line medical workers in hubei will be offered priority access, priority placements in schools. so young children will be given priority placements in really good kindergartens, all the way up to university placements. children who write their university entrance exams, they're going to be getting extra points added on to their exam total. in china, that's a really big deal. there's a lot of pressure on children to get into good schools, so that might actually tip the balance for some people who are considering whether they should go and work in hubei. so just how effectively is china's health system dealing with this outbreak? here is wenhui mao, who is an expert on chinese health reform and policy at duke university, with her assessment. so i think, generally, the chinese government takes quick action and powerful engagement to control the disease break in hubei. however, i think there is some limitation at the health system level to make the implementation of this policy, and it will

the bbc‘s celia hatton has more.line medical workers in hubei will be offered priority access, priority placement in schools. in really good kindergartens all the way up to university placements. children who write that university entrance exams are going to be getting extra points added to the exam total and in china that is a really big deal. there is a lot of pressure on children to get into good schools and that could tip the balance. wenhui mao an expert on china's health reform and policies from duke university in north carolina gave her assessment. generally, the chinese government takes quick action and powerful engagement to control this outbreak in hubei. however there is limitation at the health system level to make implementation of this policy and takea implementation of this policy and take a little bit longer to control the disease. you have been studying the chinese healthcare been studying the chinese healthca re system been studying the chinese healthcare system since sars. have authorities pump eno

and this is the bbc‘s celia hatton who will replace these officials.place in hubei and wuhan are both loyalist to xijinping, especially the man in charge of the province. he comes from shanghai. he is a man known for tough security measures but also last year, he implemented a citywide recycling programme in shanghai. i know that probably doesn't sound that impressive, but in a city of 23 million, almost overnight to get all of those people to suddenly follow new rules, he pulled it off us and that programme are still in place and has been carried out across china. here is a man who is known for security and implementing really big projects overnight. well, those skills will be needed — as the scientists and officials try and fashion an effective response. for more on that, this david heymann — who directed the who's response to the sars virus outbreak in 2003. we are all concerned about what we don't know. we know so far what is happening and what we can see, but what we don't know is the real potential of this virus. whether or not this eventually co

this is worklife from bbc news, with ben bland and celia hatton. finance ministers from the world's richest 20 economies head to saudi arabia to discuss how to tackle the deadly coronavirus outbreak. live from london, that's our top story on friday the 21st of february. the 620 summit takes place in riyadh this week, with the head of the imf warning the virus is causing headaches for the global economy. also in the programme... turbulence for the aviation industry, as a leading airline body warns the coronavirus may cost carriers up to $30 billion. and all eyes on india with us president donald trump due to arrive in the country early next week. but will the two sides finally patch up their differences and strike a trade deal? beyond a numbers game. one of europe's top tech bosses tells us how workplace diversity can boost your compa ny‘s profitability. as an inaccessible first—floor property sells for £1 in the uk, today we want to know, what's the best bargain — or worst purchase — you've ever made? let us know — just use the hashtag bbcworklife.

here's celia hatton.he front—line medical workers in hubei will be offered priority placements in schools, so young children will be given priority placements in kindergartens, all the way up to university places. children who write their university exams are going to be getting extra points added onto the exam total. in china, that is a really big deal, as there is a lot of pressure on children to get into good schools. that might actually tip the balance for people considering whether they should go and work in hubei. the virus has now spread to at least 29 countries worldwide. the biggest concentration outside of china is in yokohama in japan — on this cruise ship, the diamond princess. on this cruise ship, there are a50 cases on board — out of what was over 3500 crew and passengers. that number is down after hundreds of americans were flown home. and also because here you have south korea preparing to fly its citizens home on a presidential plane. we know that canada, australia, the uk, israel and hon

this is worklife from bbc news, with ben bland and celia hatton.