Coronavirus Closes Tokyo Disneyland, Large Events Banned In Switzerland

Tokyo Disneyland will be closed from Saturday (Feb. 29) to at least March 15 due to concerns over containing the spread of the coronavirus, according to a report by CNBC.

Tokyo DisneySea will also be closed after the Japanese government recommended no big gatherings for at least two weeks, according to park operator Oriental Land.

The company said it would let ticket holders know about refunds.

“We plan to reopen on March 16, but we will make an announcement after keeping close contact with relevant institutions,” Oriental Land said on its website.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe also asked that all schools be shut down until the new academic year in April.

In Switzerland, the government has banned any events that draw over 1,000 people in its own attempt to stymie the spread of the virus.

“Large-scale events involving more than 1,000 people are to be banned. The ban comes into immediate effect and will apply at least until 15 March,” the government said.

One casualty of this was the Geneva car show. The mandate affects places like concert halls, carnivals and sporting events, but it doesn’t apply to train stations or malls.

Cancelling the event costs the local economy $256 million in lost revenue, organizers said.

“The economic impact for the city and region is tremendous,” said Lars Wagner, general manager of the luxury Hotel Beau-Rivage Genève. “Not only does this impact hotels, but also auxiliary revenues such as hotel restaurant bookings, cocktail and catering events, and other revenues.”

JPMorgan has joined a number of other corporations in restricting travel and business trips over coronavirus fears, according to a report by Bloomberg.

It’s “restricting all international travel to essential travel only,” the company said. This is an escalation of a previous policy to only limit travel to the hardest hit areas like Asia and Italy. 

The virus is spreading around the world, with Nigeria confirming its first case.

“The outbreak can go in any direction based on how we handle it,” World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.

Credit Suisse Group has split its workers into different offices and Deutsche Bank and Goldman Sachs have restricted travel to Italy.

Morgan Stanley has restricted travel to and from South Korea.