TOP HEADLINES

- Six die in COVID-19 prison riots as Italy bans family visits.

- Romania shut down all schools and suspend all flights to Italy. 

- UK health minister says fourth person has died from the coronavirus in Britain.

-  First two confirmed deaths due to COVID-19 in Germany, says health minister.

- China records zero new confirmed patients of virus outside Hubei for two consecutive days.

- The Tokyo 2020 Olympics torch lighting ceremony in Olympia will be the first in more than 35 years to be held without spectators due to the virus outbreak.

- Portugal's president has self-isolated after meeting a group of students from a school that has since been closed after a pupil tested positive for the COVID-19 coronavirus.

- France's final Six Nations rugby match against Ireland has been postponed, but Wales's final match against Scotland will go ahead as scheduled on 14 March. 

- The Grand Princess cruise ship, has been directed to Oakland, U.S. where all passengers will complete a 14-day quarantine.

- Saudi Arabia suspends travel to Oman, France, Germany, Turkey and Spain.

ACROSS EUROPE

By Ross Cullen in Rome

On Monday, 16 million Italians in the north of the country spent their first day under the strictest lockdown measures imposed in Europe so far. Italy has the highest number of cases in Europe and has now registered the second-highest number of deaths after China.

The authorities are trying to get a grip on the crisis and hope the new measures of closing schools and cinemas, suspending weddings and funerals, cutting bar and restaurant opening times and placing restrictions on travel will have an impact. 

Giuseppe Conte, the country's prime minister, has announced further spending in a "massive shock therapy" attempt to shore up the economy.

By Ira Spitzer in Berlin

Germany's health minister, Jens Spahn, repeated his recommendation to cancel events with more than 1,000 people to try to slow the spread of coronavirus. 

The country has more than 1,100 confirmed cases so far, and a German man infected with the virus died on Sunday while on vacation in Egypt. Spahn's recommendation increased pressure on the nation's football leagues to play matches without spectators. He also recommended that older people get a pneumococcal vaccine to reduce the risk of complications from an infection. 

German officials said they are increasing testing capacity for the virus nationwide and are urging the public to follow guidelines to help protect older people and those with underlying health issues, who are at the greatest risk of infection.

By Nawied Jabarkhyl in London

The UK government held its second major emergency meeting on COVID-19 on Monday and says its focus will remain on "containing" the virus, for now.

That means, based on the scientific advice, it doesn't see a need to move to the next of the four stages in its "battle plan" – to "delay" the spread of the virus throughout the country.

That would have required stricter measures, such as potentially banning large gatherings and closing schools.

Ministers also met with sports bodies and broadcasters to discuss holding events behind closed doors, or even postponing or canceling them. The UK's culture secretary, Oliver Dowden, said that was a "possibility" but that the country was "nowhere near that sort of stage."

The government has also urged people not to stockpile. Research by Retail Economics shows one in ten UK consumers is already buying extra goods because of fears over the coronavirus. Ministers have been meeting supermarkets to weigh up a response. 

Some major high-street retailers such as Tesco, Waitrose and Boots have already introduced their own measures to limit the amount of some items people can buy, such as antibacterial gels and wipes.

By Isobel Ewing in Budapest

There are seven confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Hungary, among them Iranian, British and Hungarian citizens as the country's coronavirus task force has declared disobeying quarantine orders a crime. 

The government has called for all health workers to suspend any overseas travel "for the duration of the epidemic," so they are readily available to respond to the outbreak here.

The national commemorations of the Hungarian revolution of 1848 have been cancelled. The state celebration, held on 15 March, is Hungary's largest event and draws people from across the country.

From today, air traffic between Hungary and areas within 100 kilometers of Milan and Treviso in Italy will be shut down.

By Aljosa Milenkovic in Belgrade

Only one COVID-19 case has been recorded in Serbia so far. It was a businessman from the northern town of Subotica who caught it while visiting his sister in Budapest. But there are a few Serbian citizens across the world that are infected by this virus.

Although there are few signs of people wearing masks in the streets of the capital Belgrade, those cannot be found in any of the pharmacies. As a precaution, the government banned all organized travel abroad for students from March 6. 

Through public announcements, the government is issuing public health advice on how to avoid contracting the virus. 

By Guy Henderson in Geneva

Switzerland is now in the top 10 countries most affected by the coronavirus as Swiss authorities are advising citizens to maintain "social distancing." This weekend, the number of people infected with COVID-19 rose above 300. 

Switzerland's Federal Council was quick to ban large public gatherings in late February as the virus spread across neighboring northern Italy.

Only now are officials confirming the first case of community transmission though – that is someone catching the disease from another person in Switzerland. All other cases have originated overseas.

More than 500 people have been tested, with more than 100 currently in quarantine and officials say they are expecting the number of cases to continue to rise.

MARKETS AND BUSINESS

- European firms have now lost nearly $3 trillion in value since the rapid spread of the coronavirus sparked a worldwide sell-off in February.

- In Italy, the only stock that even started the day trading was pharmaceutical group Recordati. The Italian blue-chip index fell by more than 10 percent in early deals.

- Banks have led losses across European capitals, with Germany's Deutsche Bank falling 12 percent and France's Crédit Agricole and Société Générale both falling around 10 percent in early trading.

- Market volatility has even hit so-called safe-havens such as bonds. While German bonds are acting as a refuge, Italian bonds have been sold off, sending yields higher.

- Gold briefly topped $1,700 per ounce for the first time in more than seven years as investors fled stocks.

Read more here

FROM OUR GLOBAL COLLEAGUES

- China's Premier Li Keqiang sounds alert over imported COVID-19 cases amid rapid spread overseas

- Nigeria announces second case of COVID-19

- Boao Forum for Asia delayed amid COVID-19 outbreak

- Mexico ramps up safety protocols, five COVID-19 cases confirmed

- U.S. wrestles with best way to contain COVID-19

CGTN Europe has been providing in-depth coverage of the novel coronavirus story as it has unfolded. Here you can read the essential information about the crisis.