Starting late next week, there will be no flights at all landing from China at SFO, and no way to fly directly there from San Francisco either, as the coronavirus crisis worsens.
The last flight out of SFO to mainland China will be China Southern Airlines' non-stop to Guangzhou leaving on February 16. For six weeks thereafter, there are currently no scheduled flights between SFO and China, and that period could extend depending on how bad the coronavirus epidemic becomes.
As the Chronicle reports, there are typically 90 weekly roundtrip flights operating between SFO and China or Hong Kong. After the 16th, there will only be some flights to Hong Kong via Singapore and Cathay Pacific airlines, though Cathay Pacific has reportedly asked its employees to take leave without pay as it continues dramatically reducing its flight schedule.
SFO is currently one of 11 U.S. airports with enhanced CDC screening setups for travelers arriving from China, but there numbers are set to drop to very few in the coming days. This follows President Trump's issuing of new travel restrictions last week that bar entry to the country to anyone who's been in China within the last two weeks.
The virus is poised to have a devastating effect on China's economy, and those effects will likely ripple across the world. As the BBC reports, businesses like restaurants and movie theaters, which are typically busy during the Lunar New Year holiday, are seeing immediate impacts due to virus fears. And international retailers like Starbucks and IKEA have shuttered their locations in China.
World markets have taken a hit, with stock markets down lower than they were two weeks ago, and China's stock market down 8% on the first trading day after the New Year holiday. The price of crude oil, too, has been impacted, dropping 15% to its lowest price in a year due to flagging demand from China.
As the BBC says, "Much will depend on how well the Chinese authorities are able to contain the virus."
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