The Wall Street Journal - 13.03.2020

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL. Friday, March 13, 2020 |A

PARIS—French President
Emmanuel Macron delivered a
national address that called
for international cooperation
in the fight against the new
coronavirus.
Speaking on national televi-
sion Thursday, Mr. Macron
cast France’s struggle to slow
the rate of infections as an ef-
fort that would require collec-
tive national action.
He announced a nationwide
shutdown of the school system
starting Monday and urged
people over the age of 70 and

anyone with chronic diseases
or respiratory ailments to re-
main at home.
“We are only at the begin-
ning of the epidemic. Every-
where in Europe it is acceler-
ating,” Mr. Macron said.
However Mr. Macron also
portrayed the coronavirus as a
challenge in need of a global
solution, just one day after
President Trump described it
as a foreign virus that had ar-
rived on U.S. shores.
“This virus doesn’t have a
passport,” Mr. Macron said,
adding that he planned to speak
to Mr. Trump on Friday. “Being
divided won’t allow us to re-
spond to what’s a global crisis.”
Mr. Macron said he might
need to limit travel to areas in
France that are severely affected
by the virus. Any decision to
close national borders, Mr. Ma-
cron said, will occur “only when
relevant” and will be coordi-
nated “at the European level.”

BYNOEMIEBISSERBE
ANDSTACYMEICHTRY

Macron

Calls for

Global

Response

“This virus

doesn’t have a

passport,”

French

President

Emmanuel

Macron said.

The Italian economy ab-

sorbed another blow on Thurs-

day as the government imple-

mented even-stricter measures

to stem the spread of the coro-

navirus in what is the worst

outbreak outside China.

The escalation of Italy’s dras-

tic restrictions is the most radi-

cal measure any country has ap-

plied to its entire national

territory to fight the epidemic.

Economists say the only ques-

tion about Italy’s economic con-

traction is how bad it will be.

Small and midsize businesses

are at particular risk. Such busi-

nesses are the backbone of the

economy in Italy, where about

95% of companies have fewer

than 10 employees.

With daily life in Italy under

increasing restrictions over the

past two weeks, most retail

stores have seen their business

dry up. Italy’s government has

earmarked up to €25 billion

($27.9 billion) to help the ailing

economy. Finance Minister Ro-

berto Gualtieri said the money

would be spent on measures

such as postponing tax pay-

ments and liquidity for compa-

nies that are struggling to pay

suppliers and employees.

“Now all we can do is wait

anxiously” for the government

to implement the measures, said

Stefano Papandrea, 44 years old,

who owns a vintage clothing and

accessory shop in Italy’s north-

eastern Veneto region. “Luckily

we don’t have employees.”

He and his partner, who also

owns and runs the shop with

him, had decided to close for a

while, even before the govern-

ment’s announcement Wednes-

day night. Sales last week were

down 70% from normal levels,

even before Italy instituted a na-

tionwide quarantine that obliges

people to stay home if possible.

Mr. Papandrea wasn’t alone.

Small independent stores and

large chains—including Benet-

ton, sporting goods giant De-

cathlon and Burger King—had

also said they were shutting

their stores in Italy.

All restaurants, bars and

most retail stores are closed

until March 25. A series of

other restrictions, including

strict limits on when people

can leave their homes, are due

to run until April 3.

Food stores and pharmacies

remain open, as do newsstands

and tobacco shops.

While retail is taking a par-

ticularly hard hit, the negative

effects of the virus are reaching

into all aspects of the Italian

economy. Factories can con-

tinue to operate under certain

conditions, and farmers and

food producers can also con-

tinue their businesses, but con-

ditions are deteriorating.

Italy’s Tighter Curbs Fan Its Economic Woes

ByEric Sylvers

in Milan andGiovanni

Legoranoin Rome

on Mr. Trump’s comments.

German Foreign Minister

Heiko Maas said: “I believe we

are dealing with a global issue

and a global challenge. We

don’t do it justice, including in

the U.S., by taking decisions

that are garnished with blame.”

The coronavirus crisis “re-

quires cooperation rather than

unilateral action,“ European

Commission President Ursula

von der Leyen and European

Council President Charles

Michel said in a statement.

“The European Union disap-

proves of the fact that the U.S.

decision to improve a travel

ban was taken unilaterally and

without consultation.”

A spokesman for the Euro-

pean Commission, the EU’s ex-

ecutive, said officials were still

seeking to understand the

scope and consequences of the

U.S. decision. Eric Mamer, the

chief spokesman said there

were no immediate plans for

any retaliatory steps but

didn’t rule that out.

Mr. Trump repeatedly has

accused the EU and European

countries of taking advantage

of the U.S. on defense and

trade. European nations have

pledged significant defense

spending increases. On trade,

the two sides recently hoped to

reach agreement later this

month to avert fresh U.S. tariffs

on EU products, though that

target date now looks doubtful.

grounds.

EU leaders and officials

said imposing the travel ban

without consultation is partic-

ularly counterproductive be-

cause governments need to

work together to stem the

spread of the new coronavirus.

Mr. Trump’s decision ran-

kled further because he said

the EU failed to restrict travel

from China and contain the vi-

rus, which, he said, then

seeded outbreaks in the U.S.

The EU wouldn’t comment

placing of tariffs on European

steel and aluminum, which Mr.

Trump justified on national-

security grounds, stunned EU

leaders, who note that Europe

contributes to U.S. security by

participating in the North At-

lantic Treaty Organization and

other alliances.

Mr. Trump has jangled Eu-

ropean nerves by criticizing

those contributions as insuffi-

cient and by threatening to

impose tariffs on European

cars, also on national-security

most non-U.S. citizens who

have traveled through 26 Eu-

ropean countries—comes on

top of other U.S. decisions

made unilaterally under Mr.

Trump that have dismayed Eu-

ropean leaders.

Some decisions, including

the U.S. withdrawal from the

Paris climate accord and the

multinational Iran nuclear

deal, followed pledges Mr.

Trump made during his 2016

run for president.

Other decisions, such as his

President Trump’s announced

travel ban on Europe, beyond

surprising European capitals,

deepens tensions among trans-

Atlantic allies whose ties already

are strained over trade, security,

climate change and what Euro-

peans say is the U.S. failure to

consult them.

European governments

complained that the announce-

ment, made early Thursday Eu-

rope time, came without notice

and coordination on what is a

global health problem. More-

over, the U.S. ban, European

Union leaders said, directly af-

fects European citizens, bar-

ring many of them from travel

to the U.S., and disregards the

EU’s “strong action” to contain

the new coronavirus.

Mr. Trump defended the

ban and the timing, saying the

situation demanded fast action

so not all European leaders

could be notified.

“We had to make a decision

and I didn’t want to take time,

and, you know, it takes a lot of

time to make the individual

calls, and we are calling, and

we have spoken to some of

them prior to....But we had to

move quickly,” Mr. Trump told

reporters in the Oval Office as

he met with the prime minis-

ter of Ireland, whose citizens

aren’t affected by the ban.

The ban—which covers

BYLAURENCENORMAN

Travel Ban Fuels Tensions With Europe

Governments said the U.S. announcement came without notice. Above, Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport.

BERTRAND GUAY/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE/GETTY IMAGES

THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

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