(Bloomberg) — Group of Seven finance chiefs will hold a rare conference call on Tuesday and Bank of England Governor said policy makers were crafting a “powerful and timely” response to the spreading outbreak. Stocks surged in Europe and U.S. equity futures gained.Earlier, Australia cut rates to a record low and U.S. President Donald Trump urged the Federal Reserve to “ease and cut rate big.” Malaysia reduced its benchmark interest rate while the Fed, Bank of Japan and European Central Bank have all pledged to act.Infections rose again in Iran and South Korea. British businesses were warned that as many as a fifth of workers could be forced off sick if the U.K. is hit by a widespread outbreak.Key DevelopmentsGlobal cases reach 90,441; death toll rises to 3,123Policymakers intensify their response to the virusGovernments worldwide face calls for major stimulusFoxconn expects China plants to operate normally end-MarchKorea cases up 374 to 5,186; Iran reports 2,336 infectionsClick VRUS on the terminal for news and data on the coronavirus and here for maps and charts. For analysis of the impact from Bloomberg Economics, click here.Carney Sees ‘Powerful’ Global Response as G-7 Call Nears (6 a.m. NY)Bank of England Governor Mark Carney said international policy makers are crafting a “powerful and timely” defense of the world economy against the coronavirus as those from the Group of Seven nations prepared to hold an emergency conference call.Under pressure from investors to match recent pledges of economic support with concrete action, G-7 finance ministers and central bankers including Carney and Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, will discuss their virus response at about 7 a.m. Washington time. A statement is expected to be released afterward.Thermo to Buy Qiagen for $10 Billion (6 a.m. NY)U.S. laboratory equipment maker Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. agreed to buy Qiagen NV, a Dutch maker of tests for diseases including cancer and the new coronavirus, for about 9 billion euros ($10 billion) in the biggest health-care acquisition so far this year. When a new coronavirus emerged in China in January, Qiagen got to work on a test to detect the virus in bodily fluids. The test is now being evaluated at four hospitals in China and one in France. The test gives results in about an hour.Energy Aspects Cuts Oil Demand Growth Forecast Again (6:50 p.m. HK)Energy Aspects cut 2020 oil demand growth forecast to 500,000 barrels a day, a 200,000 b/d reduction from previous week’s estimate, because of the impact of the coronavirus. Before the outbreak emerged in late January, EA was forecasting global oil demand growth of 1.1 million b/d this year.Iran Cases Surge (6:39 p.m. HK)Iran, which has the second-highest number of fatalities from coronavirus, reported 835 new confirmed cases on Tuesday, taking the total to 2,336. The death toll climbed to 77 from 66, while 435 patients have recovered.Saudi Arabia on Monday became the latest Middle East country to report a confirmed case. Most cases in the Middle East are linked to Iran. Business conditions in the United Arab Emirates worsened and Saudi Arabia had the weakest increase in its non-oil private sector output since at least 2009 as disruptions caused by the coronavirus rippled through the Gulf’s two biggest economies.U.K. Firms Are Warned 20% of Staff Could Be Off Sick (6:36 p.m. HK)British businesses were warned as many as 20% of workers could be forced to take time off during peak periods of infection if the U.K. is hit by a widespread outbreak. The U.K. government published its plan for dealing with the disease, including an estimate that in a worst case scenario more than 6 million people could be absent. Such a peak period of infection would be likely to last around three weeks.Prime Minister Boris Johnson unveiled a package of emergency measures to tackle coronavirus on Tuesday after he was criticized for not doing enough to prepare for the spread of the disease. He said he was ready to close schools and cancel public events and that the army was on standby to assist in the worst-case scenarioMerkel Ally Proposes Using Surplus to Offset Impact (6:20 p.m. HK)A top official in Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservative bloc proposed using Germany’s budget surplus to help fund a stimulus package to offset any economic damage caused by the virus. Europe’s biggest economy, already mired in a manufacturing slump, is heavily dependent on exports and stands to suffer from interruption to global supply chains and a collapse in demand for German goods.Alexander Dobrindt, the co-head of Merkel’s parliamentary caucus, told reporters in Berlin as much as 50 billion euros ($56 billion) could be available this year and the package will be discussed March 8 by the ruling coalition. He ruled out loosening rules that limit government borrowing.Indonesia Warns Against Hoarding (6:13 p.m. HK)President Joko Widodo warned against hoarding of food and other essential goods after the country’s first cases of confirmed coronavirus sparked panic buying at supermarkets. The country is working on a second stimulus package, adding to the central bank’s aggressive moves to counter the impact of the coronavirus on markets.Singapore to Bar Travelers From Iran, Italy, Korea (5:48 p.m. HK)Singapore will bar visitors who recently traveled to Iran, northern Italy or the Republic of Korea in the last 14 days, including transits. The measures will take effect from March 4.EDF Tracing Staff Close to Hinkley Point Worker with Coronavirus (5:40 p.m. HK)EDF is tracing people who were in contact with a man working on the U.K. Hinkley Point C nuclear plant site last month to see if they have shown symptoms, according to a company memo seen by Bloomberg. A Chinese national who was on secondment at Hinkley Point fell ill with coronavirus on his return to China after working at the construction project in England between Feb. 15 and Feb. 27.Singapore to Include Swab Testing at Checkpoints (5:30 p.m. HK)Singapore will implement new screening mechanisms at checkpoints to tackle the coronavirus spread globally. Travelers entering the country and exhibiting fever or symptoms of respiratory illness but who do not meet coronavirus suspect case definitions will still be required to undergo a swab test.L’Oreal Freezes Headcount After Halting Business Trips (5:20 p.m. HK)L’Oreal plans to freeze headcount through June, the company told Bloomberg News in response to questions on Tuesday. The company had suspended business travel through March 31 last week as a precautionary measure.Confirmed German Cases Rise to 188 (5:17 p.m. HK)The number of confirmed cases in Germany has risen to 188 and the virus has spread to 13 of the country’s 16 federal states, the Robert Koch Institute said on Tuesday. “We are seeing that the focus is moving away somewhat from China and the rest of the world is more and more affected,” RKI Vice President Lars Schaade said. The threat level for Germany remains at “moderate,” but this could quickly change and more cases are to be expected, Schaade added.Separately, Belgium’s federal public health service said they had found five new cases after conducting tests the previous night. All of the patients had been traveling in the north of Italy.Gilead’s Remdesivir May Be Used in South Korea (5:03 p.m.)Gilead’s experimental antiviral drug remdesivir is expected to be used to treat patients infected with the coronavirus in South Korea as part of a trial, Yonhap reported. The company was given permission from local drug authorities to begin phase 3 clinical trials of remdesivir in adult patiences infected with the coronavirus.Separately, a medical report on the Japanese Association for Infectious Diseases website said Teijin Ltd.’s asthma drug Alvesco helped treat three patients who contracted the coronavirus on the Diamond Princess cruise ship. Teijin shares rose as much as 8.2%, their biggest intraday gain in four years.Nissan Ready for Deeper Cost Cuts (5 p.m. HK)Nissan Motor Co. is ready to make deeper cuts to fixed costs as the carmaker’s business deteriorates in a tough environment exacerbated by the coronavirus, Chief Executive Officer Makoto Uchida said.Hon Hai Sees China Returning to Normal Soon (4:37 p.m. HK)Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Apple Inc.’s most important manufacturing partner, expects its Chinese plants to begin operating normally by the end of March after resolving severe labor shortages. The Taiwanese company, which assembles the majority of the world’s iPhones from China, joins a growing number of corporations envisaging a return to normalcy in the world’s No. 2 economy.Japan Says End of May Key Stage for Olympics Decision (4:30 p.m. HK)Japan’s Olympics minister said the end of May would be an important point in making a decision on whether to hold the Tokyo Games starting on July 24 amid worries the coronavirus could cause the first cancellation since World War Two.Seiko Hashimoto said she was aware of the comments by International Olympic Committee senior member Dick Pound, who has said late May would be the latest a decision could be made.China Pledges More Cuts in Taxes, Fees (4:28 p.m. HK)China will further reduce taxes and fees to deal with the coronavirus situation and support the economy, Wang Jianfan, head of tax administration department at finance ministry, said.Pope Tests Negative (4:28 p.m. HK)Pope Francis has tested negative for the coronavirus after suffering a slight cold which led him to cancel several public gatherings, newspaper Il Messaggero reported on Tuesday.South Korea Total Exceeds 5,000 (4:15 p.m. HK)South Korea’s health ministry reported 374 more cases of the novel coronavirus, taking the country’s tally to 5,186. Yonhap News Agency said 31 people have died. The country is “at war” with the novel coronavirus, President Moon Jae-in said earlier, according to a pool report from a cabinet meeting.Moon asked all agencies to operate a 24-hour emergency system to monitor the situation, and the government will directly and indirectly input more than 30 trillion won to fight the outbreak and minimize its impact on the economy.Separately, Philippines is lifting a travel ban to South Korea imposed barely a week ago, and citizens are now allowed to go to the country except for the North Gyeongsang province. The ban on foreigners coming from the same South Korean province remains in effect.Trump Says Fed Should ‘Cut Rate Big’ (2:39 p.m. HK)President Donald Trump, noting Australia’s central bank rate cut, said the Federal Reserve’s inaction thus far in the face of the coronavirus puts the U.S. at a “competitive disadvantage” and it “must be the other way around.”RBA Cuts Rates to Fight Virus Fallout (11:30 a.m. HK)Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Philip Lowe reduced the cash rate by a quarter percentage point to 0.5%, a new record low, and said the central bank is prepared to ease monetary policy further to support the economy.Separately, Australia’s Treasury is working with other agencies to address the boost “that we believe will be necessary,” Prime Minister Scott Morrison said. “It will be a targeted plan, it will be a measured plan, it will be a scalable plan,” he said at a media briefing.–With assistance from Jordan Fabian, David R. Baker, Kara Wetzel, Dominic Lau, Isabel Reynolds, John Follain, Iain Rogers, Shaji Mathew, Robert Hutton and Thomas Penny.To contact Bloomberg News staff for this story: Adveith Nair in London at anair29@bloomberg.net;Robert Langreth in New York at rlangreth@bloomberg.net;Michelle Fay Cortez in Minneapolis at mcortez@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Stuart Wallace at swallace6@bloomberg.net, Angus Whitley, Adveith NairFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.