FM to meet industry heads to assess nCoV impact
February 18, 2020 11:00
![image](https://im.rediff.com/news/2019/may/31nirmala.jpg)
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday will meet industry and trade associations in the national capital to assess the impact of coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) on Indian trade and industry.
The death toll from the COVID-19 epidemic outbreak has climbed to 1770 in mainland China and infected more than 70,000 others so far in the country.
The virus which was first detected in Wuhan, Hubei Province of China, in late December 2019, has since spread to more than 20 countries including India.
The viral outbreak comes at a time when the Indian economy is going through a difficult phase and the virus outbreak could make the slowdown worse.
Besides, India is dependent on China for a whole lot of sectors such as smartphone, solar cells and modules, TVs and electronics, toys, furniture, computers and cars.