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CNN NEWSROOM

U.S. States Impose Restrictions, Order Closures; Asia Markets Look To Rebound From Monday's Sharp Fall; Trump's Economy May Be Headed To Recession; Panic Buying Leads to Empty Shelves, Shortages; Chinese Economy Hit Hard During January, February; Helping Kids Cope with Coronavirus. Aired 1-2a ET

Aired March 17, 2020 - 01:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


[01:00:00]

JOHN VAUSE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to CNN NEWSROOM. I'm John Vause at the CNN Center in Atlanta. For weeks, the U.S. president has downplayed the threat of the potential impact of the coronavirus, calling it a hoax, claiming it was shut down, under control, predicted the warmer weather in April would see it miraculously disappear. He played down the number of confirmed cases saying they would quickly fall.

On Monday, reality arrived. Trump's tone and demeanor were more serious, as he warned the outbreak may not be contained until July or August. Notedly, he can see that the economy could fall into a recession. And CNN's Kaitlan Collins asked if he stood by his weekend comment that the virus is under control.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If you're talking about the virus, no, that's not under control for any place in the world. I think I read -- I think I read -- no I didn't. I was talking about what we're doing is under control, but I'm not talking about the virus.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: The White House wants Americans to avoid groups of 10 or more, delay discretionary travel, and cancel social visits, and stay away from bars, restaurants, and gyms. Elsewhere, Italy remains on lockdown which began last week with restaurants there and shops closed and sporting events canceled. And as the number of cases soars in Spain, a partial lockdown is now in place with exceptions for traveling to work, grocery shopping, and visits to a pharmacy or hospital.

This is an upheaval of everyday life not seen for generations. And this new reality is summed up with two words, social distance. Here's CNN's Nick Watt reporting from Los Angeles.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Inside or go home. NICK WATT, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Closures and chaos, the

message, get used to it.

TRUMP: We'll see what happens but they think August, it could be July, it could be longer than that.

JEROME ADAMS, SURGEON GENERAL, UNITED STATES: We have the same number of cases now that Italy had two weeks ago, and we have a choice to make.

WATT: Because in the past two weeks, Italy has seen more than 1,400 deaths to avoid that fate as a society and this fate as individuals.

KEVIN HARRIS, PATIENT WITH CORONAVIRUS: Yes, that's the cough.

WATT: We must now social distance. At 8:00 p.m. tonight, all movie theaters, gyms, and casinos across New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut will close indefinitely. Bars and restaurants now take out only, other states and cities already doing the same.

GOV. ANDREW CUOMO (D-NY): You can purchase through takeout and we hope that goes a long way towards alleviating any economic hardship.

WATT: In New Jersey now, all non-essential travel strongly discouraged between 8:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. From midnight tonight in San Francisco, everyone must stay home except for essential needs. Meanwhile, about 36 million school kids in at least 35 states now forced to stay home, schools closed.

GOV. MIKE DEWINE (R-OH): It would not surprise me at all if schools did not open again this year.

WATT: At airports, long lines for screening international passengers.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's very crowded, which is not ideal considering what this contagion is.

WATT: Some stores now disinfecting hourly.

STEVEN SLOAN, GROCERY STORE OWNER: When 9/11 occurred, I was around. The blackouts, with the hurricanes, nothing has ever been like this.

WATT: Supply chain slowing as demand explodes.

MIKE GRAHAM, BUSINESS OWNER: Right now, we're not charging people when they come in. As long as I can keep getting deliveries, I'll get food. I might go bankrupt.

WATT: Amazon, under a surge of online orders, now warning of delivery delays.

ADAMS: When you look at the projections, there's every chance that we could be Italy, but there's every hope that we will be South Korea, if people actually listen, if people actually social distance.

WATT: In South Korea, of course, there has been aggressive testing and strong social distancing. And they have seen the daily number of new cases full dramatically, but it did take some time. And in the United States, as the Surgeon General points out, there's only a limited amount that the federal government can do. As he says, we are not an authoritarian state. Nick Watt, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Sanjaya Senanayake, a specialist in Infectious Diseases at the Australian National University in Canberra. So Doctor, thank you for being with us. I'm sorry, I mangled your name, but I'll try and get it right. I want to talk about the reasons why social distancing actually works. It's because what, the vast majority of people catch the virus and if they live, they have an immunity and the virus doesn't survive.

So if they've avoided contact with others. The virus has nowhere to go. And what, for the few who die, the virus will die with them. So until there's a vaccine and other treatments, this is the best we've got to slow the spread.

SANJAYA SENANAYAKE, INFECTIOUS DISEASE SPECIALIST: Yes, absolutely, John. You hit the nail on the head. We've got this wonderful thing called immunization or vaccination. But unfortunately, we're a good 10, 12 months from having a vaccine widely available for us. So the next best thing is quarantine or social distancing, which are somewhat interchangeable terms. But we know that over the centuries that social distancing, quarantine, those sorts of measures can stop or slow an outbreak down.

And I think it is important as so many countries are doing at the moment, for the U.S. to embark on social distancing.

[01:05:17]

VAUSE: The other parts of this and the example I read is to think of this -- think of your community like a family of four, you know, mom and dad and two kids. So would it be better for everyone to get sick all at once, eliminate the parent's ability to work and provide care for the family, or would you rather get sick one at a time, so only one person needs to be cared for? So in other words, it's all about managing resources. And that's the difference between a crisis and catastrophe.

SENANAYAKE: Yes, exactly. And I'm sure in the U.S., you've probably seen these two different curves, one where the outbreak happens very quickly, and ends very quickly, but you get this big curve. And when you get that big steep curve, that means that your health infrastructure can't cope with all the cases that are thrown at you.

But if the outbreak is -- takes longer, it drags on and there's a smaller curve, then your health infrastructure and other societal infrastructure can cope. So that's why we're trying to slow the spikes down with measures such as social distancing.

VAUSE: Standup comedian Mel Brooks and his son Max, they posted a video online explaining why social distancing is important, especially for those who are younger and could be carriers, but they don't know it. Look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAX BROOKS, SON OF MEL BROOKS: Hi, I'm Max Brooks. I'm 47 years old. This is my dad, Mel Brooks. Hi, dad. He's 93. If I get the coronavirus, I'll probably be OK. But if I gave it to him, he could give it to Carl Reiner, who could give it to Dick Van Dyck, and before I know it, I've wiped out a whole generation of comedic legends.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: It's a good point. We also heard from Dr. Deborah Briggs from the White House Coronavirus Task Force. She said it would be the millennials who would lead us through this crisis. This is what she said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEBORAH BIRX, CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE COORDINATOR, WHITE HOUSE: I think we've always heard about the greatest generation. We're protecting the greatest generation right now, and the children of the greatest generation. And I think the millennials can help us tremendously.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: The problem is though, in many places, Millennials are not following that advice. They going out, they're going to bars. So if that continues, does that undermine the efforts that everyone else is taking?

SENANAYAKE: Look, absolutely. For social distancing to work, everyone's got to do it, John. And I understand from U.S. data that the millennials aged between 20 and 35 actually make up the largest population group. So if they're not complying, then the efforts aren't going to be very successful.

And perhaps it is that the millennials like me have grown up in a very fortunate world where we really have what we like. We haven't had to face many sacrifices. So this might involve a slight thought adjustment. And I'm hoping they'll come around to it.

VAUSE: Very quickly, best-case scenario and worst-case scenario. How long do you think social distancing will be necessary?

SENANAYAKE: Look, I would have thought at least -- now if we say the virus has an incubation period of about 14 days, so just to be on the safe side, close to two incubation periods, so maybe three or four weeks, but it could drag on for much longer.

VAUSE: OK, we'll leave it there. Sanjaya Senanayake, thank you very much for talking with us from Canberra. We appreciate it.

SENANAYAKE: Thank you, John.

VAUSE: Another devastating day on Wall Street. On Monday, we saw a 13 percent fall in the Dow, its biggest one-day point loss on record. But us futures especially Dow futures are up right now. They're all up by between three and four percent. Stocks plummeted from the opening on Monday so quickly and so fast, a circuit breaker was triggered and trade automatically halted for 15 minutes. At the close, the Dow was just a few hundred points higher compared to the day President Trump took office.

Meantime, in Asia, stocks are trying to shake off the big losses they had on Monday. Let's go to journalist Kaori Enjoji in Tokyo, live this out with more on this. So what are we looking at here with Asia stocks?

KAORI ENJOJI, JOURNALIST: A lot more resilient than you would expect given the big losses overnight, John. And we're seeing that play out in the futures. We're seeing that play out in equity markets like Tokyo. Australia is trying to shake off yesterday's big loss of more than 10 percent. The dollar seems to be stabilizing as well. And I think oil inching above the $30 per barrel mark is also helping sentiment a little bit as well.

You're also hearing -- you're also seeing central banks really pour money into the system as they pledged to after the Fed cut interest rates on Sunday. And that seems to be helping somewhat because the magnitude of the money they're putting into the financial markets is akin to what they did in the 2008 financial crisis. So that seems to be helping.

[01:10:14]

Also, rumors and talks that government-related entities, so to speak, are coming in to buy and shore up the equity market seems to be offering a little bit of floor under the equity market today. I think what people are focused on right now is what governments are going to do in terms of fiscal spending, fresh fiscal spending. Their expectations that Japan will roll out some new measures to try and help particularly the small businesses that are hurting very badly because of the decline in tourism in particular from China and South Korea.

And the general mood here with people staying out -- off the streets, out of the restaurants, and so forth, and hunkering down at home. And I think that kind of fiscal stimulus package is what the market hopes that the government will unveil, especially if it involves fresh spending. And there are expectations that that might be coming out sometime later this week, or at least the Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said that he would craft them as soon as possible.

Right now, I think the financial markets are focused primarily on that fiscal stimulus because I think they have learned the lesson earlier on this week, that monetary stimulus can only go so far, particularly in countries like Europe, particularly in countries like Japan, where interest rates are already at zero in some cases in negative territory.

And you get to a certain point where if you continue to cut interest rates, it becomes almost counterproductive, particularly for the financial institution, the banks that they're trying to help. And I think with the fiscal year end approaching here, this is pretty much crunch time in terms of liquidity for many of these companies. John?

VAUSE: Kaori, thank you. Kaori Enjoji there with the live update and some analysis on the markets and the banks, thank you. I appreciate it. Thanks, Kaori. Ryan Patel is a senior fellow at the Drucker School of Management. He joins us from Los Angeles. Could be heading into a recession? Could? I mean, the only unknown right now is how big the contraction will be and how long it will last. I want you to listen to White House economic advisor Larry Kudlow.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LARRY KUDLOW, ECONOMIC ADVISOR, WHITE HOUSE: I believe this is a short term problem. I believe it's a matter of weeks and months, and it's not a matter of years.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: When Larry said dumb stuff in his old job at CNBC, it didn't matter. But now saying stupid stuff does because this is not going to be over a matter of weeks or months.

RYAN PATEL, SENIOR FELLOW, DRUCKER SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT: Oh, you said could, I bet you'd be saying wow, you got Donald Trump to say could. He actually acknowledged that it could be the thing versus saying no, it's not. And to your point, this is not a two-week shutdown. Like here in the United States, people are saying let's close for two weeks. This has an effect. People are moving conferences. Businesses are planning to move to the fall. That's a six months kind of delay, no matter how you look at it, when you get consumer conferences to come back.

There's no switch, John. There's no on switch after this, because you know why? We went from three weeks ago when you and I were together actually, initially before it was a world emergency saying, well, nothing really is going to happen outside of China with you and I believe that it would spread. And that kind of confidence when consumers and businesses hear that, that it's not that big of a deal, and now it's a big of a deal. Yes, people are not going to trust.

I hate to say it. Trust what is out there except for the numbers. And the numbers. Unfortunately, when you talk about the coronavirus is accelerating, governments and cities in the states are doing are blocking small businesses to open from restaurants and bars, rightfully so. And that does have an impact on even how you do your job remotely.

Here even at CNN, majority of everybody is at home working, and most other companies are not able to do that.

VAUSE: I want you to listen to President Trump from last week during his Oval Office address.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Because of the economic policies that we have put into place over the last three years, we have the greatest economy anywhere in the world by far. This vast economic prosperity gives us flexibility, reserves, and resources to handle any threat that comes our way. This is not a financial crisis. This is just a temporary moment of time that we will overcome together.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Yes. Now, here's what happened to the Dow when the President opened his mouth on Monday, instead of talking to the White House coronavirus briefing. The sell-off accelerated. You know, the message for investors is that maybe those amazing policies aren't so great, and maybe this is a sell-off which has got a lot more to do with the overvalued stock market which has been high on tax cuts and cheap money for way too long.

PATEL: Well, listen, if you've seen the last three weeks, every time either the Fed or the U.S. administration would say some, it did not react great. You saw on Sunday when the Fed decided to discount the rate. We knew this was going to be bad on Monday. There was no reason for President Trump to come out and maybe hoping that there would be an academic.

And then you see the futures right now, because he's not talking, they're saying, well, maybe it's going to come back up a little bit. But we're going to we're out over the next few weeks. This is not over, John. We're going to see this bumpy ride because of the effect of businesses closing. And we won't know really until end of April.

We see what China's doing right now. We saw their numbers and how January, February really hurt them. Yes, their full-fledged a little bit in the economic side, but the question becomes, how fast can they get back into it?

[01:15:29]

VAUSE: We'll get to China's numbers in a moment, but I want you to look at -- I want you to look at some of the headlines which we saw just on Monday alone. From Politico, "How ugly could it get?" Trump faces echoes of 1929 and coronavirus crisis. Over it Slate, not so subtle, "You should be absolutely terrified about the economy." And a headline for an opinion piece in the New York Times reads, "The U.S. economy can't withstand the coronavirus by itself."

And one of the reasons behind these headlines is that you know, in the past few days, the Federal Reserve and the U.S. government have done more than they did in the entire 2008 financial crisis. And as you say, it's had no effect. And it seems there have been like military commanders who are fighting the last war. They need new and creative solutions for an unprecedented crisis and we're not getting that.

PATEL: They're making me nervous, John. I mean, these are the things that you would hold to save, these, you know, bullets per se, to help inject this and it didn't do that. And, you know, what happens to that, to me is like, OK, why are you -- I hate to use the word panic -- why are they panicking this quickly. You know, let this play out, put the right protocols in place, get everyone set in nervousness. Now, listen, there's some fundamentals of these companies that are

going to be fine through the economy. But here's the question. This is not just about the coronavirus. There are some -- plenty of companies that are out there that were teetering on that piece. And this only pushes them into the red because they don't have -- even the cheap money is not going to bail them out. They're going to have to close. And that's what we're going to see over the next few months, those companies that were already on the edge, that are already tied globally.

You know, the places that's happening in Europe too, John, is going to affect the U.S. Italy and Spain and France, that does have an effect that we're not even talking about because those multinational companies are going to seek aid here in the United States.

VAUSE: You mentioned the numbers from China. Here they are. Retail sales plunged 20.5 percent during January and February over the same period in 2019. Industrial output was down 13.5 percent. Fixed asset investment fell by nearly 25 percent. I think that's the biggest on record according to the National Bureau of Statistics. These numbers were much weaker than expected.

There are forecasts the economy in China will contract by six percent in the first quarter. Do you know the last time China's economy was that bad? It was 1976, the year Mao died, and the end of a decade of economic and social upheaval. You know, this is unprecedented what we're looking at now. And back in 1976, China's economy was what, one percent of the world?

PATEL: Yes. And to your point -- so you just gave me a history lesson. Why don't we look at what history when things happen in front of you. China's a good example of what potentially what the U.S. would face right? China just went through it. This is the numbers they looked at.

Now, for the U.S. there is going to be a lag of getting everything back. Let's just face it. And you're going to see some of those numbers. I'm not saying it's going to be 25 percent like China, but you take about a five to 10 percent hit on some of the sales numbers and GDP numbers, that's a huge, huge hit for the number one economy in the world.

So when you get the number two economy kind of ahead of you going through that process, you have to be smart enough to understand that kind of effect could happen here in the U.S. and more than likely we'll have to face that as well.

VAUSE: Yes. Like you say, this is not over by a longshot. We're going to be talking about this for a very long time to come. And we appreciate you being with us for that, Ryan. Thank you so much. Actor Idris Elba is the latest big name from Hollywood to test positive for the coronavirus. On Monday, he tweeted, we all need to help fight this outbreak.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

IDRIS ELBA, ACTOR: Look, this is serious, you know. Now is the time to really think about social distancing, washing your hands. Beyond that, there are people out there who aren't showing symptoms and that can easily spread it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Elba says he's feeling OK. He is showing no symptoms. And after announcing last week they had the coronavirus, actor Tom Hanks and his wife, Rita Wilson, have now been released from hospital and are under self-quarantine. They're still in Australia on the Goal Coast where Hanks was working on a movie.

In Italy, coronavirus tests are free, and no one has to pay for their time at hospital. But that is not slowing the outbreak. More on that in a moment. Also ahead, Chinese workers back on the job but more people are still getting sick with the virus. Where the new cases are coming from now? That's ahead on CNN NEWSROOM.

[01:20:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PEDRAM JAVAHERI, CNN INTERNATIONAL METEOROLOGIST: Good Tuesday to you. I'm meteorologist Pedram Javaheri, CNN Weather Watch. And we look across the United States whether it's across the western part of the U.S. where wet weather has been persistent or parts of the Gulf Coast in northeastern corner of the U.S. where showers have also been in the forecast, kind of similar pattern continues into Tuesday here.

The temperature is a such, 13 out of San Francisco. It looks to remain dry. Not too bad there for Los Angeles at 15 degrees. Notice, thunderstorms in Atlanta -- showers in Atlanta, thunderstorms in Dallas. And work your way into New York, see a round of showers. And how about Montreal? Gets in a rain, snow, wind mix here to push in the last couple of days of what has been really a winter that has not produced a significant amount of wintry weather events across the region. So not too bad there with the last remaining days of the winter season.

But notice, widespread coverage of showers, generally, the heaviest of which back towards areas of Texas, does stretch as far north as the Ohio Valley. And across the western United States, it's all about the high elevation snow showers. Certainly, they could take that because a significant amount of what falls in the winter season there does come and eventually melt and become their drinking water. So an important amount of water in store there over the next couple of days.

But notice the seven-day forecast out of Los Angeles keeps it somewhat cooler, keeps the showers in the forecast at least a couple of those days. And then we do expect a brief warming trend before yes, a spring arrives, so does some colder air for the first few days.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VAUSE: Italians there sharing their musical talents while on lockdown. We heard the residents in Rome singing the national anthem in an attempt to lift spirits during some very tough times. Italy is Europe's hardest-hit country with more than 3,200 cases in just the past day alone. That's 3,200 in one day. It's Nearly 28,000 overall cases right now. CNN's Melissa Bell reports the country's health system is now being pushed to the brink.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MELISSA BELL, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The pictures become a symbol in Italy of a system in the north of the country that is stretched to its limit. Hospital workers, nurses, doctors, the heroes of the fight against coronavirus themselves near breaking point.

DANIELA CONFALONIERI, NURSE (through translator): We are united and we will fight this forsaken virus.

BELL: At a hospital in Milan, hallways and offices have been turned into makeshift intensive care units. In Prussia, tents are used to treat the sick. Rome too beefing up its capacity. When you lock down the country, the Prime Minister explained --

GIUSEPPE CONTE, PRIME MINISTER OF ITALY (through translator): We live in a system in which we guarantee health and the right of everyone to be cured.

BELL: Italy's healthcare system is facing a challenge like no other. By its nature, this is an epidemic that spikes quickly and in clusters requiring urgent and expensive treatment for some. So far, the system here has delivered free tests, intensive care, emergency treatment, all free of charge. So is Europe's often criticized public health system now showing its true strengths?

[01:25:13]

ALAN FRIEDMAN, ITALY-BASED AMERICAN WRITER AND ECONOMIST: -- an x-ray, somebody wants to get treatment, they can wait weeks or months for appointment. That's the inefficiency of national health. But the plus side is that at a time of crisis, the test for coronavirus are free for everybody. They take care of all their citizens and there's no worrying about insurance.

BELL: So how does Italy system stack up against America's private profit-driven healthcare system? First, on capacity as the crisis hits. The United States has 2.8 hospital beds per 1,000 people, fewer than Italy's 3.2 beds per 1,000 people according to the OECD. Then, once the outbreak begins, there's the question of the response. And here, the more fragmented American model could make coordination harder.

CARLO PALERMO, HEAD OF ITALY'S PUBLIC SECTORS DOCTORS ASSOCIATION (through translator): To deal with an epidemic which affects the population globally, the response must be centralized. There must be one crisis you need that gets a unanimous response.

BELL: As infections continue to rise here at record daily rates, Italy is a country where everyone fears getting the virus, but no one need to worry about being treated for it. Melissa Bell, CNN, Rome.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: In France, President Emmanuel Macron has some tough words for the French who he says are not taking the outbreak seriously enough. He's ordered borders closed starting noon on Tuesday, and says travel from home should be limited only done when absolutely necessary. The second round of France's municipal elections has been postponed.

EMMANUEL MACRON, PRESIDENT OF FRANCE (through translator): This effort which I'm asking of you is unprecedented but circumstances oblige us to take these measures. We are at war, a health war. Certainly, we're not fighting against an army or nation, but, it's a health war which requires our general mobilization. We are at war. All the activity of the government department has to be focused from now on this thing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: In the U.K., Prime Minister Boris Johnson is wrapping up his government's response to the virus. There's no mandatory lockdown, but Mr. Johnson is urging no contact or travel, again, unless necessary.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BORIS JOHNSON, PRIME MINISTER OF THE UNITED KINGDOM: Now is the time for everyone to stop non-essential contact with others, and to stop all unnecessary travel. We need people to start working from home where they possibly can. And you should avoid pubs, clubs, theaters, and other such social venues.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: This sudden shift in policy comes after much criticism that the Prime Minister's initial response was not serious. Germany is temporarily restricting movements across its border issuing wide- ranging new guidelines to the public. Health officials have reported at least 12 deaths so far, more than 4,000 cases of the current virus. CNN Fred Pleitgen reports now from the Polish-German border.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FRED PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Severe travel restrictions taking place all over Europe, as Germany has closed several of its borders in the south, the west, and also towards the north of the country as well. Poland also closed its border with Germany, and that's where I'm standing right now. Essentially, what the Polish are doing is what many other European countries are doing. They're not allowing travelers from Germany to come in, but they are allowing Pols to come in and go back to their country. And also, people have to commute to work between countries and across the border.

The other thing that most European countries are trying to keep in place and the polls as well is they're trying to keep trucks moving across the borders, keep that cargo going to make sure that the economy of the European Union doesn't completely come from standstill. Now, that's easier said than done. There were massive traffic jams here at the border as every trucker who came across just like every other motorists had to get his temperature taken or her temperature taken, and then fill out a form as well to make sure that the government has all the contact data in case that person needs to go into isolation.

Needless to say, there were massive traffic jams at this border and in many other European borders as well. As the continent's economy, that's public life continues to shut down with the Germans also clamping down putting up new restrictions on public life in that country as well. Fred Pleitgen, CNN, the Polish-German border.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: So when the going gets tough, the tough go shopping. Well, in the many places, they're finding empty shelves. Ahead, what's behind all this panic buying. Also, China's economy has taken a beating from the virus. Up next, Beijing's plans to get back on the block when CNN NEWSROOM continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[01:33:22]

JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back everybody.

To prevent the spread of the virus, health officials have constantly been advising us to regularly wash our hands either with soap and water, or hand sanitizer. Well, good luck trying to buy sanitizer at your local supermarket or pharmacy. Almost everywhere it seems it's sold out. All made worst by people like Matt Colvin.

After the first death from the coronavirus was reported in the U.S. he spent three days driving across the state of Tennessee buying all the hand sanitizers he could find. Nearly 18,000 bottles, telling "New York Times" he resold them on Amazon up to $70 each. After a huge backlash online, Colvin now says what he has not sold he will give away.

But it's not just sanitizer which is sold out. Some everyday items like toilet paper are also being stockpiled by shoppers. It seems just the possibility of quarantine or looming self-isolation seems to have sparked a fear contagion around the world.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Amid all the chaos and uncertainty, the confusion and fear, there seems to be one common response -- panic buying. Around the world store shelves have been laid bare, emptying faster than they can be re-stocked. And in United States and many countries like Australia or in the U.K. there's one item in huge demand.

This area is where they actually had all paper products like (INAUDIBLE) toilet paper and paper towels and stuff like that. But (INAUDIBLE) it seems in the distance there, toilet paper boxes there -- again, completely and totally empty.

[01:35:02] VAUSE: At this 24-hour Walmart in Atlanta -- a familiar sight, with

key essential household items all sold out.

Clearly a lot of people stocking up. Although what he's telling us that here in Atlanta, it seems there's not a lot of demand for the California pizzas and a couple of others. Certainly a lot of those --

So I guess what would be good right now will be to try and find some hand sanitizer, or at the very least some rubbing alcohol. Somewhere around here, I'm not too sure where. I'm going to ask somebody.

It looks like this is where they had the glass and that's all gone.

Seriously I may actually get some hand sanitizer here. Also I managed to get some alcohol -- rubbing alcohol, which is almost as good. But there is a limit, there per person. And yes I actually had to speak very nicely to a sales assistant or a customer service associate to get the stuff. But yes I feel lucky.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Juliette Kayyem joins me now. She's a CNN national security analyst and former DHS assistant secretary, Department of Homeland Security. So Juliette, good to have you with us.

JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Thank you for having me.

VAUSE: Ok. I mean I gave into that fear that I was going to be wild -- I know -- I thought I was going to be called out --

(CROSSTALK)

VAUSE: -- everyone still has toilet paper around me and I have none. I mean I got napkins that I found at Walmart. I mean there is a real fear that is sort of contagious.

KAYYEM: It is. And I want to tell you the good news. This is not a hurricane. It's not an earthquake. The supply chain still flows. The electricity is still on. Your water still on. This is not like some disaster that we've seen where there's a real deprivation.

And in fact, one of the reasons why you push, you know, social distancing is to protect the workforce that is helping move things. There is plenty of stuff. All of these markets that emptied out on Friday and Saturday where people woke up to what was happening are essentially replenished now.

There is no -- and I'll tell you honestly, you're going to be more likely to be exposed in those horrible lines in those big supermarkets than if you just rationally bought for three or four days and just stayed at home and then occasionally went out to your local market to help the neighborhood and buy things there.

VAUSE: Does this essentially come down to sort of just stopping for a moment and thinking do I really need 412 toilet paper rolls -- KAYYEM: Yes.

VAUSE: -- you know, or 40 lots of baby formula or whatever it is. You do not need that.

KAYYEM: Right, exactly. So the most important thing is what are the things that you are going to need very quickly that if the local store was out of, you would not be good.

So if you have specialized medications obviously. Things like baby diapers it would be a nuisance if you run out of diapers or specialized formula if your children have any sort of issues. Just things like that that, you know, if you had to wait a day it would be a bit of a burden. But if you have to wait a day for Kraft Macaroni and Cheese, you'll survive -- right.

So we just --

VAUSE: Maybe.

KAYYEM: -- put it in perspective. Also the hoarding -- I mean the problem with the hoarding also is, of course, it gives you I think a sense of deprivation which is actually not what we're going through. We're quite lucky is a nation for most of us to be able to stay inside, you know, have an ability to protect ourselves and then protect our community. So I am very against this hoarding.

VAUSE: I can tell. One thing which I realized that when I got to the Walmart, I actually didn't really know exactly what to buy.

KAYYEM: Yes.

VAUSE: So what do you buy?

KAYYEM: Ok. I have -- I'm going to tell you I have three teenagers, sometimes I think the difference between having three teenager and hoarding is very, very thin.

(CROSSTALK)

KAYYEM: But I want to tell you -- so the most important thing is just about what would you want for -- and I'll be honest here, I normally do three days my house. I did go up to seven just in case there is anything, you know, that I need to worry about or just that I don't want to go outside that often.

In other words a mother like me, I feel like I'm at the market every day so I just wanted to, you know, get stuff so that I don't have to go out as often.

So it's just basically you know breads that you can freeze, meat that you can freeze, and then just perishables like crackers, potato chips, and cereals and oatmeal and things like that that you make relatively quickly and then you just -- and then you just keep restocking.

Every time I'm out, I just buy a few things. VAUSE: Yes. Your freezer is your friend, I read.

KAYYEM: Yes.

VAUSE: I want you to listen to the President of H-E-B Food. His name is Scott McClelland. H-E-B is a retail chain with about 400 stores across Texas and Mexico. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCOTT MCCLELLAND, PRESIDENT, H-E-B FOOD/DRUG STORES: We have been through this before with the hurricanes, and it really brings out the best in Houston because we all come together.

There will be food, there is not a reason to stock up. Just come back tomorrow.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[01:40:03]

VAUSE: You know, it's good advice. But what we are seeing is that some items are taking longer than a day or two to restock --

KAYYEM: Yes.

VAUSE: -- and that plays into the fear that maybe supply lines could be disrupted. So how bad would this crisis have to be for the supply chains to be cut in some way?

KAYYEM: Well, you would have to see -- you would have to see a pandemic so bad, worse than China, worse than Italy. I want to remind people neither of those countries had any food deprivations in the areas hardest hit. The markets still run.

You would have to have it so bad that you would have to impact the supply chain and the workforce, working the supply chain. We're not even looking at numbers that close.

So this is why I do not worry about it. Manufacturing is still working. And remember this is a cycle. So you see China coming back online. Italy will eventually come back online.

It is going to be bad, but it's not bad forever. This is not a deprivation. If you have to wait a day or two, it doesn't mean it's going to last forever.

I will tell you I worry about a lot of things, but this pandemic -- but this is not the thing I worry about. So that should make people maybe feel slightly better, but maybe not. So.

VAUSE: Absolutely. If you don't worry about I don't worry about it.

KAYYEM: Sure.

VAUSE: That's good news. Thank you -- Juliette. Appreciate it. KAYYEM: Thank you so much. Take care.

VAUSE: China continues to report new cases of the virus but mostly visitors from other countries. In fact, all but one of the new cases reported on Monday came from overseas. The World Health Organization says it shows that containment works.

CNN's Steven Jiang with us now live from Beijing.

You know, Steven -- containment may have worked, but the latest numbers from the -- about economy show that it is taking a huge hit because of the really tough measures that were put in place.

STEVEN JIANG, CNN SENIOR PRODUCER: That's right. The economic data for the first two months of the year, they were just horrific, you know -- the industrial output as well as investments in fixed assets which means infrastructure really plummeted for January and February.

That's why you are seeing the authorities here increasingly trying to get businesses back online across the nation, including increasingly in Hubei Province, the epicenter. But they are obviously trying to strike a very delicate balance here.

On one hand they really try to get the economic engine revved up again but on the other hand they're obviously, understandably worried about a second wave of new infections and cases, not only because if they get mass movements people nationwide again, that creates more chances of new transmission routes.

But also they are dealing with the challenge of import (ph) cases as you were saying. That's why you see these two steps forward, one step backward kind of scenarios being played out nationwide where authorities often announcing, the ease of restrictions one day only to walk them back the next day.

So I think -- you know, despite all these hesitations, there is slow but sure signs of things slowly getting back to some sense of normalcy, especially outside of the epicenter. You know, traffic jams have come back to Beijing, more stores have reopened.

But still I think it's going to take a long time for us to go back to the pre-outbreak state of things -- John.

VAUSE: And that's the questions of the timing here, is you know, will this be a V-shaped recovery? Will the economy bounce back relatively quickly? Or will it be sort of more of a big drawn-out U-shape?

JIANG: I think that really is something a lot of people are asking. But the added worry right now which is also creating a massive headache for the leaderships is, of course, how things are getting so much worse outside of China.

You know this economy is very much dependent on international trade, many or if not all of this major trading partners are now dealing with this outbreak, in such a degree then the Chinese economy will have to deal with another blow. That is why I think you're also seeing the authorities here increasingly trying to reshape the narrative here. You know, domestically, of course, they have always been censoring any anything critical of the government response. But they have also been, you know, sowing doubt on the origin of the virus. They that increasingly trying to highlight the chaos, dysfunction, and ill-preparedness of other countries, while very much trying to, you know, ramping up this narrative of China saving the world. Chinese response has worked. And not only domestically but also internationally because John -- they do not want to be blamed for causing this pandemic.

John.

VAUSE: Yes. Ok Steven -- thank you. Steven Jiang there with an update of the economy and these cases that are coming now from China. We appreciate it. Thanks -- Steven.

Well, Donald Trump, actually spoke to his son Barron, about the coronavirus. So what do you say to your kids? We'll give you some ways to help your children deal with the stress of the pandemic when we come back.

[01:44:35]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VAUSE: So one quirk or unique feature about this virus seems to be that children are at much reduced risk of serious illness or death. But what about their emotional and mental health?

Wendy Walsh, psychologist and adjunct professor at California State University is back with us to try and talk about where we stand with all this.

I want to get to the kids in a moment Wendy -- but first of all there is this issue of they keep telling us not to touch our face. But it is really hard not to touch your face. You're actually doing. So why is that? Because it happens a lot in stressful moments.

WENDY WALSH, PSYCHOLOSGIST: In fact in two separate research studies, we touch our face apparently between 16 and 23 times per hour.

Think of it this way. There are lots of nerve endings in our nose, our eyes, our mouth. It's how our sensory awareness is to the world. Also we have tiny little hairs that keep particles from coming in -- dangerous things in both our ears, our nose, of course we have eyelashes and eyebrows to prevent debris from entering our body. And so that debris can cause itch.

And when we are told not to touch our face, we become even more aware of that itch. So we are touching more often.

VAUSE: So do this with your hands because it gives you that moment to think about what you're doing with them before you react to something, I guess is my point. Ok. Let's talk about the kids and the parents having a lot of special

quality time at home right with the little ones. But especially the kids, the younger ones, it can be quite terrifying.

Your advice, and this is important, before dealing with their anxieties and their fears, manage your own feelings first. So explain why that is so important.

WALSH: Because children have an emotional lifeline to their parents. And as a result, they are little sponges. And they absorb, no matter what you say, they absorb what you are feeling.

So the best way to help calm a child is to calm yourself, whether it's mindful meditation, whether it's some cognitive behavioral tricks to sort of to reframe this as a positive, interesting new stage in life. And then you can get to the good work of explaining to kids what is going on in, you know,

In simple language, not scary language, but it's just an interesting science experiment happening right now.

VAUSE: And kids are smart. They know when someone is sort of spinning, you know, a lie at them or something -- you know, when or someone is not being genuine. The question of what to say to your kids, that came up during the coronavirus briefing at the White House on Monday.

This is how President Trump answered the question.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I've spoken actually with my son. He says, how bad is this? I say it's bad. It's bad. But we are going to -- we're going to be hopefully a best case, not a worst-case and that's what we are working for.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Parents should be a really a little more reassuring than that, you know, explaining stuff like, you know, handwashing is really good to (INAUDIBLE) at the virus, empowering children as opposed to terrifying them.

WALSH: Exactly. I mean we can quell people's fears by giving them a sense of control, whether they are a kid or an adult. So what are we telling adults? Wear masks, wash your hands, wear gloves, et cetera.

And we can reassure them with one other thing besides spending time teaching them about microscopic germs. we can also teach them about that there are lots of scientists working very hard right now to quickly make a vaccine.

[01:50:03]

WALSH: Kids understand vaccines. They have been getting the vaccines since they were born. And so explaining to them that very soon, some amazing smart scientist are going to bring a vaccination to all of us and we'll all be safe again.

And in the meantime, just a little separate from each other to keep us safe.

VAUSE: You also point out, it's important how you end the conversation. This is from a blog. As your conversation wraps up, try to gauge the level of anxiety by watching their body language, considering whether they're using their usual tone of voice and watching their breathing.

So it's not just what children will say because sometimes they don't have the words to express their feelings, it is the nonverbal language, which is sort of equally as important.

WALSH: Of course. And even with adults, you know. You're looking to see how (INAUDIBLE) ignore the words, pay attention to the body language and what they are doing. If they are having sleep disruptions, if they're crawling into bed with you -- this is ok. Reassure them, hold them close. They just need to be told that everything is going to be ok.

VAUSE: You have some very good advice on what parents should be doing right now. Essentially play games with the kids. Don't worry about the timing, all that kind of thing.

We're out of time but there are some great advice, it's out there on Web sites but also from you as well So we appreciate you being with us.

Wendy -- thank you very much. Wendy Walsh there --

WALSH: Thank you.

VAUSE: -- for us in Los Angeles.

Well, as we try to stop the coronavirus, the new normal means finding new ways to pass the time.

But a quarantine doesn't have to be well, boring as Internet shows us -- when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VAUSE: Ok. So you decided to social distance, now what?

As CNN's Jeanne Moos reports, self-isolation doesn't necessarily mean alone time.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Going stir crazy? How about to fill those endless hours of quarantine?

The Internet has plenty of suggestions -- from a Pacman type puppet, gobbling up vehicles, to the fitness instructor in Spain who gave a workout class to his neighbors, to turtle tic tac toe, the turtle is the arrow competing from permanent quarantine in his aquarium. The turtle tanked.

There were plenty of cheerleaders like Max Brooks --

[01:55:01]

MAX BROOKS, COMEDIAN: This is my dad, Mel Brooks -- hey Dad.

MOOS: -- urging younger folks to protect their older ones like 93- year-old Mel.

BROOK: If I give it to him, he could give it to Carl Reiner (ph), who could give it to Dick Van Dike. And before I know, I have wiped out a whole generation of comedic legends.

MOOS: Model Heidi Klum, posted herself kissing her husband through glass, not to mention her own reflection.

And Arnold Schwarzenegger trotted out a pet mini horse and donkey --

ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER, FORMER GOVERNOR OF CALIFORNIA: Oh yes, this is yummy. I introduce you to Whiskey and Desmulo (ph) --

MOOS: -- to promote eating at home.

While these live action matchsticks representing the power of social distancing caught fire online, created by Los Angeles visual artist Juan Delcan and his wife Valentina. The message everywhere, "don't be a spreader".

MEL BROOKS, COMEDIAN: Go home.

MAX BROOKS: I'm going, I'm going.

MOOS: Let's hope the message is contagious.

SCHWARZENEGGER: Look at this picture here.

MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN --

SCHWARZENEGGER: No fighting.

MOOS: -- New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Those animals don't look happy.

Stay with us. Rosemary Church will be here after the break when CNN NEWSROOM continues.

I'm John Vause. Thanks for watching.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[01:59:55] ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining

us from all around the world. You are watching CNN newsroom. And I'm rosemary church.

Just ahead -- closing more borders, and restricting movement.

END