A woman walks through a quiet Times Square in New York on Monday, March 16. AP Photo/Seth Wenig

As restaurants, shops, airlines and factories shut down around the world, economists are warning that a global recession is no longer a looming threat. It's here.

Dire economic data released by China on Monday showed that the country was pummeled by the coronavirus outbreak in January and February. The world's second biggest economy looks unlikely to recover any time soon.

Now, with governments and central banks in Europe and North America pursuing drastic measures to try to control the pandemic, Asia still on high alert, and financial markets in meltdown, a growing number of experts say that a global contraction is beginning.

"Whereas 10 days ago there was some legitimate uncertainty about whether the global economy was in the process of going into recession -- 10 days later, there's no question that it is," David Wilcox, former head of research and statistics at the Federal Reserve Board, told CNN Business.

Chinese economy slammed: In China, retail sales plunged 20.5% during January and February compared to 2019, industrial output was down 13.5%, and fixed asset investment fell by nearly 25%, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. The decline in industrial production was the sharpest contraction on record.

The US forecast: Goldman Sachs on Sunday downgraded its outlook for US GDP, citing a cutback in spending, supply chain disruptions and the impact of local quarantines. The investment bank thinks America's economy will now shrink 5% between April and June, after 0% growth between January and March. Growth for the year is forecast to come in at just 0.4%, down from 1.2%.

Read the full story here