The number of deaths in Italy, which is the largest outbreak of the Corona virus in Europe, rose to seven today, Monday, and the number of new infections exceeded 220, while the authorities closed the rich north of the country to curb the spread of the disease.
Italian stocks plunged by more than five percent in the biggest daily decline in nearly four years due to fears that the outbreak would cause a recession, while shelves were empty of commodities after residents bought them to store them.
The latest data showed that the number of infected people has exceeded 220 since Friday, the vast majority of them in the rich northern regions of Lombardy and Veneto.
In Lombardy and Veneto, the country's stronghold of industry and finance, authorities have closed schools, universities, museums and cinemas for at least a week, and public gatherings, including the famous Venice Festival, have been banned.
The authorities have placed approximately ten towns in the Lombardy region, near Milan, the country's financial capital, with a total population of approximately 50,000 people, subject to actual quarantine measures, and the authorities have taken similar measures in a small town in the neighboring region of Veneto.