UAE suspends all flights to/from China, except Beijing, to help contain coronavirus

London — The UAE said Monday that it will suspend all flights to and from cities in China except Beijing, starting Wednesday, putting more pressure on jet fuel demand in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak that has forced global airlines to stop flights.

Oil prices have fallen by a fifth over the last week since news of the virus' spread was made public, with Brent crude trading below $56/b as of Monday.

The Singapore jet fuel crack spread -- measuring the product's relative value to the crude from which it is made -- had dropped to $8.46/b against Brent as of Friday, from $11.34/b January 20, according to S&P Global Platts data.

Dubai is a major hub for Emirates Airlines and five other Chinese airlines, with more than 90 weekly flights to 13 destinations in China, including Hong Kong.

Emirates, the world's biggest airline for long-haul flights and operator of the largest fleets of A380 and Boeing 777 aircraft, spent Dirhams 30.8 billion ($8.4 billion) on jet fuel in its 2018-19 financial year, a 25% uptick from the year earlier. Emirates operates 35 flights a week to mainland China, according to its website.

In 2019, a record 3.68 million passengers from China traveled through Dubai International Airport, the world's busiest hub for international travel. That marked a 5% increase from 2018.

The global spread of the virus, which has infected individuals in at least 23 countries, has roiled oil and stock markets amid investor jitters about the impact of the virus on China, the world's second-largest economy and second-largest oil consumer.

The UAE had already suspended all incoming and outgoing flights to Wuhan, the central Chinese city where the infection originated, since January 23.

The UAE's announcement follows neighboring Saudi Arabia's national airline temporarily suspending all flights to China as of Sunday and Oman's banning of all civil flights between the China and the sultanate starting Sunday.

Qatar Airlines has also halted all flights to China as of Monday, while Egypt Air began suspending flights to China on Saturday.

The first detected cases in the Middle East are in the UAE, where four members of one Chinese family have been infected and a fifth incident was disclosed.

Under the UAE announcement, all passengers traveling from Beijing International Airport will be required to undergo a 6-8 hour medical screening upon arrival.