SARS claims nine lives in one day

HONG KONG reported a record nine SARS deaths in a day yesterday, including its youngest victim to date, as the Chinese capital of Beijing woke up to a virus creeping into its hinterland.

US and Canadian scientists said they had independently mapped the genome of the new virus blamed for causing severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), raising hopes a test could be developed so treatment can be given as soon as possible.

But with airlines canceling flights, tourists staying at home, and shops and restaurants empty in SARS hotspots like Hong Kong and Singapore, Asian governments are facing their greatest challenge since the 1997-98 regional economic crisis.

The Standard & Poor's Rating agency said the impact would cut 0.6% to 1.5% of the gross domestic product in Hong Kong. Singapore's GDP could be 0.4 to 2% lower and China's could lose up to 0.5%.

Carried around the world by travellers after first appearing in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong, the virus has infected 3,300 people and killed 144 in more than 20 countries.

In Hong Kong, which borders Guangdong, the government said that SARS had killed nine more people yesterday and infected 42. The youngest of the victims was a 32-year-old woman, the youngest yet to die.

"I think during the last couple of days, our concern remains the number of deaths and of the people who died, some of them were rather young," Hospital authority acting chief executive Ko Wing-man told a news conference. The dead also included a pregnant woman.

Ko said that the treatment used in Hong Kong now a mix of anti-viral drugs and steroids had seen good response in 80-90% of patients. Of the 42 newly-infected patients, 11 were health care workers.

"We are experiencing a difficult time now because many patients have accumulated in public hospitals," Ko said.

The latest figures bring the Hong Kong death toll to 56 and the number of cases to 1,232.

After months of hiding their SARS outbreak, China's leaders started a highly-publicised battle to halt the spread of the deadly bug.

Premier Wen Jiabao called on the nation to "work closely together to win the fierce battle" against SARS, and ordered a campaign to scrub down planes, trains, buses, trucks, taxis and office blocks to try to kill the virus.

Fearful of a longer-term impact on Asia's fastest-growing economy, Wen and Communist Party boss Hu Jintao have appeared in major hospitals and met doctors on the front lines of the battle against SARS.

Posters have been plastered around city streets and subways calling on people to wash their hands after wiping their noses, cut down on drinking and smoking and keep face masks handy.

But the disease is spreading around China, which has ordered airports to dissuade people suspected of having SARS from boarding planes.

The south-eastern province of Fujian reported its first cases. Infections in Beijing rose sharply.

But the disease is spreading around China, which has ordered airports to dissuade people suspected of having SARS from boarding planes.

The south-eastern province of Fujian reported its first cases. Infections in Beijing rose sharply.

In Hong Kong, the cabinet met to discuss how to ease the pain of Hong Kong's seven million people. About 60,000 restaurant and hotel workers have either lost their jobs or are on unpaid leave. Unions say the jobless rate may hit 8%.

Singapore, with the world's fourth- highest number of cases, backed temporary wage cuts and shorter work weeks for the tourist sector. Twelve people are believed to have died from SARS there.

It said that the number of visitors dropped by more than half in early April, the first official indication of the scale of damage to the sector.

Canadian health officials said SARS had spread to a tightly-knit religious group in Toronto, with 31 probable and suspect cases.

With 13 deaths, Canada is the only country outside Asia where people have died of SARS.