Coronavirus: Italy records seventh death as European outbreak worsens

Markets slid on Monday due to virus fears despite strict containment measures in Italy

Italian police at the entrance to the small town of Casalpusterlengo, south-east of Milan, on Sunday, as Italy took drastic containment steps to fight the outbreak. EPA

Four deaths from the novel coronavirus sparked fears throughout northern Italy as about 50,000 people were poised for a weeks-long lockdown imposed by authorities trying to halt a further increase in infections. EPA

On February 21 Italy became the first country in Europe to report the death of one of its own nationals from the virus. EPA

At least 200 people in Italy's north have tested positive for the virus and four people have died, including an 84-year-old man who died overnight in Bergamo, the Lombardy regional government reported. AP

A woman wearing mask takes a selfie in Milan on Sunday. AP

Medical workers in protective gear work outside a closed school in Vo' Euganeo, Padova, Italy, on Sunday. EPA

Seven people infected with coronavirus have died in Italy, officials said on Monday, as the government struggled to contain Europe’s worst outbreak of the virus.

More than 200 people in the country have tested positive for the virus since Friday, the vast majority of them in the wealthy northern regions of Lombardy and Veneto.

Italian media reported that the dead patient was 88 and came from Lombardy.

The southern European country now has the third highest number of confirmed cases of the virus after China and South Korea.

In an effort to stop the spread of virus, authorities in the worst-hit areas of Italy ordered schools, universities, museums and cinemas to be closed, as well as banning all public events.

About a dozen towns, with a combined population of about 50,000, have been placed under effective quarantine in Lombardy, a region that includes Milan.

Similar measures are in place for a town in Veneto, a neighbouring province that contains Venice, which draws millions of tourists to Italy each year.

Lombardy, the region in Italy most badly affected by the virus, announced 53 new coronavirus cases on Sunday night, bringing the total there to 165 in only four days.

At least three of the other victims had serious underlying health problems.

At least 22 people had the virus in Veneto, while a handful of infections were also recorded in the nearby regions of Piedmont and Emilia Romagna.

In the UK, four people who returned to the country from the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan on Saturday tested positive for the virus.

Three passengers died while another tested positive at home, despite a negative reading while the ship was quarantined.

The worsening outbreak caused Italian shares to slump by 4 per cent on Monday, leading a sell-off in European stock markets as an increase in the number of coronavirus cases outside China prompted fears of a greater than expected toll on global growth.

Milan shares were on course for their biggest percentage loss since June 2016 as Italy faced the biggest flare-up of coronavirus cases in Europe.

The pan-European STOXX 600 and all the major regional indexes were down by more than 3 per cent.

The euro and British pound dropped as investors sought safety in the US dollar.

Sterling lost most of Friday’s gains on the dollar by Monday morning and the euro weakened by 0.3 per cent to $1.0805, close to last week's level of $1.0778 - a nearly three-year low.