Fear can be contagious. The world needs a co-ordinated economic response to the fast-spreading strain of the coronavirus, not only to address the disruption to finance, commerce and industry directly but also to reassure the public and restore confidence.

The OECD, the Paris-based club of mostly rich countries, has warned that the virus and associated shutdowns could cut its global growth forecasts in half. Factory closures in China alone would shave 0.5 percentage points off growth, the OECD said. A more widespread outbreak would cut the expansion of the world economy from 2.9 per cent to 1.5 per cent this year. Even the more benign scenario is enough to push the global economy into a recession, defined as growth below 2.5 per cent.

Given China’s role as the world’s workshop, providing components and raw materials to factories, the shutdown has disrupted the supply chains that underpin modern manufacturing. US port managers have warned that trade volumes could fall by a fifth in the first three months of this year while the cost of leasing big containers ships is far below normal seasonal levels. The oil price has fallen below $50 a barrel.