The real coronavirus super-spreader is the global economy

Editorial: The financial effects of coronavirus may soon become apparent. So much so that the old saying might be adapted – when China catches a cold, the world economy gets pneumonia

In global trade terms, the virus could scarcely have emerged at a more critical juncture (Rex)

Unpleasant and misleading as the label is, the story of the British coronavirus “super-spreader” gives an indication of how easily transmitted such a virus is in a world of (relatively) cheap and easy travel.

Steve Walsh, to grant him the dignity of his correct moniker, picked up the infection himself at a conference in Singapore, before unwittingly infecting some more people at a ski resort in France and again on his return home to East Sussex. Fortunately Mr Walsh, who is also a scout leader going by the more complimentary nickname Shere Khan, sought medical attention before he met any of his young charges and has made a recovery.

The reported incidence of infections and fatalities is on an upward trend. Now, more than 40,000 individuals, mostly in China, are believed to be harbouring the coronavirus, and deaths from it, again mostly in China, have crept above the 1,000 mark. Despite some draconian restrictions on travel within and from China, and from other territories such as Singapore, Korea and Japan, there is no doubt that the virus will spread.