his mea

Coro

n??virus Special Report

Bloomberg Businessweek

1

The coronavirus t at causes Covid-1 is

a minute, studded wrecking ball that’s ot

even truly alive. But in its machinelike way, it’s

defeating every effort to halt its spread. M re

than100 nations had reported infecti ns

as of March 10, and almost 4, 000 peo le

had died, according to a Bloomberg tally.

On March 11, the World Health Organization

declared the outbreak a pandemic.

business activity, profits, and stock pri es

have plunged. N95 masks have beco e

rare and precious, and things that were o ce

valued are in surplus—take crude oil, he

price of which plunged as spigots ope ed

in an impromptu geopolitical knife fight.

The most valuable commodity? Distan e.

There is security in the ability to stay m re

than a cough’s distance away from oth rs.

You don’t want to be a barista, a dentist,

Cover: Photograph by Daniel Xie