Coronavirus disrupts China’s on-demand apps

A driver for Ele.me, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd's food-delivery platform, riding a motorcycle in Shanghai, China, Feb 3. China's food-delivery industry is facing new obstacles as the number of coronavirus cases on the mainland rises to more than 11,000. — Bloomberg

Beijing is always bustling. But as coronavirus fear grips the globe, the Chinese capital and its more than 20 million residents have practically come to a standstill. Theatres have gone dark, stores are shuttered, and schools are closed indefinitely. The government has called off festivities for China’s most-celebrated holiday, the Lunar New Year. Families, including my own, have cancelled gatherings. Office dwellers are working from home en masse. And the streets are eerily quiet.

As millions shelter in place, there should at least be one economic bright spot: boom times for food delivery businesses. But even that industry is facing new obstacles as the number of coronavirus cases on the mainland rises to more than 11,000.