Hong Kong (CNN Business) China's economy was devastated by the novel coronavirus outbreak in the first two months of the year, according to data published Monday, and analysts say the nightmare is far from over. The hit to the Chinese economy in the first quarter was "devastating," according to Ting Lu, chief China economist for Nomura. "This is not the end of the nightmare," Iris Pang, chief Greater China economist for ING, said in a report on Monday. Nomura's Lu warned there was a risk of a second outbreak of the coronavirus because of the global pandemic and the urgent need for China to restart its economy. The PBOC officials also said they would take other measures to lower borrowing costs to protect the economy.

Source: CNN March 16, 2020 10:18 UTC