Singapore Minister Lawrence Wong said that Covid-19 could threaten public health and cause economic recession for countries around the world.

"The challenge is that the more we try to reduce the curve of the infected graph, the more we make the curve of the recession increase. When we take the right measures to protect people. , economic activities will stall and increase the risk of recession, "Singapore Development Minister Lawrence Wong said in an interview with CNBC today.

Wong, who co-chaired the Singapore Inter-Steering Committee against Covid-19, said the world is facing an unprecedented double crisis, combining a public health emergency. with the economic crisis.

"The economic crisis will be more serious than anything we've ever seen in modern history," he said.

Singapore is taking strong measures against Covid-19. The country's Ministry of Health on March 15 urged people to cancel unnecessary trips abroad to prevent the spread of nCoV. The island nation from March 16 banned entry and transit for foreign visitors who have been to the epidemic area for the last 14 days.

Singapore's Minister of Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing yesterday pledged to provide enough food for people between Covid-19 as long as people "buy responsibly". Singapore, which imports 90% of its food, recently witnessed a wave of panic shopping as people feared the epidemic would disrupt the country's food supply.

Covid-19 has appeared in 167 countries and territories, causing nearly 200,000 infections and nearly 8,000 deaths. Singapore currently records more than 260 nCoV infections, of which more than 100 have recovered and none have died.