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The Trump administration scrambled on Monday to assure Americans it was responding to a growing coronavirus outbreak as stock markets plunged and top health officials urged some people to avoid cruise ships, air travel and big public gatherings.

U.S. President Donald Trump will meet with U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and other economic officials later on Monday to weigh possible actions to stem the fallout over the coronavirus, an administration official told Reuters.

CVS Health Corp said on Monday it would immediately waive charges for home delivery of prescription medications, in response to the U.S. health agencies urging patients to stay at home amid a fast-spreading coronavirus outbreak.

Ireland canceled all St. Patrick's Day parades due to take place across the country next week over the risk of a further spread of coronavirus as the government set aside 3 billion euros to tackle the infection.

Closed shops, plunging stock markets and prison riots marked the first day after Italy locked down much of its northern region in a bid to fight the coronavirus outbreak with its most draconian control measures since World War Two.

Italy's top sports body on Monday called for all sports events to be canceled until April 3, and asked the government to issue a decree to enforce the measure as the country fights with the worst coronavirus outbreak in Europe.

Canada on Monday reported its first death from a new coronavirus as the number of people in the nation who have contracted the disease jumped to above 70, officials said.

The coronavirus is closer to causing a pandemic, but outbreaks in countries can still be controlled through a combination of containment and mitigation measures, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday.

All schools in the region of Madrid are to be shut over coronavirus concerns, Spain's Cadena Ser radio reported on Monday.

Mainland China reported no new locally transmitted coronavirus cases outside the epicenter of Hubei province for the second day running on Monday, but a top Communist Party official warned against people dropping their guard.

The words "bear market" and "recession" are being used with increasing frequency as investors try to assess how badly the coronavirus outbreak will damage global growth and to what extent it could further weigh on asset prices.

Two U.S. Republican lawmakers, Senator Ted Cruz and Rep. Paul Gosar, said on Sunday they will quarantine themselves after contact at a late February gathering of conservatives with someone who has since tested positive for coronavirus.

Gambling software maker Playtech said on Monday its Snaitech betting units in Italy will remain closed until April 3, as per the government's decree on all betting shops, arcades and bingo halls to halt the coronavirus spread.

Twitter Inc has used its new "manipulated media" label for the first time on a video clip of U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden that was retweeted by President Donald Trump.

Twitter Inc on Monday reached an agreement with Elliott Management that lets Jack Dorsey stay as chief executive and adds three new directors a few days after Elliott's plan to push out the social media company's chief became public.

Apple sold fewer than half a million iPhones in China in February, government data showed on Monday, as the coronavirus outbreak halved demand for smartphones.

Fintech startup Robinhood Markets Inc said on Monday trading on its platform has been partially restored after suffering an outage for the third time this month.

Indonesia's Supreme Court has annulled the government's move to increase health insurance premiums for hundreds of millions of people, news website Detik.com reported on Monday, citing a court ruling.

Vietnam on Monday decided to temporarily suspend visa-free travel for citizens from eight European countries amid growing concern over the coronavirus epidemic, its government said.

A Disneyland Paris maintenance worker tested positive for coronavirus over the weekend, a spokesman for the theme park said on Monday.