The United Arab Emirates (UAE) will shut down passenger services for its national carrier - one of the world's largest airlines to fall victim to the economic effect of the new coronavirus.

The Dubai-based carrier says the decision was made to preserve business viability and to ensure there were no job losses.

There are 153 confirmed cases in the UAE, of which 38 have recovered.

The death toll there stands at two.

Kurt Hofmann, aviation journalist at Air Transport World and Aviation Week, discusses the outcomes with Al Jazeera.