The president of the European Central Bank and a former French finance minister stated at a news conference that “the heightened uncertainty negatively affects expenditure plans and their financing” and that “even if ultimately temporary by nature, it [the coronavirus epidemic] will have a significant impact on economic activity, in particular it will slow down production as a result of disrupted supply chains and reduce domestic and foreign demand, especially through the adverse impact of the necessary containment measures.” One of the first casualties of the virus may well be European defence spending, especially in Western Europe. Read more here.