It's too early to tell the total financial impact the coronavirus will have on Texans, but the squeeze is already being felt by several.
Oil and gas prices have dropped dramatically, major events including Houston's Livestock Show and Rodeo and Austin's South by Southwest have been canceled, and conferences scheduled in Galveston and Corpus Christi have been postponed or called off.
Travel restrictions, school closures and guidelines for group gatherings may be just the beginning of disruptions to daily life.
Some businesses are struggling after the major events that brought in the majority of their annual income were canceled. Billy Benedict, owner of J&J Spirits in east Austin depends on the crowds from South by Southwest every year. The festival is a major moneymaker for the city. Last year, the festival generated more than $350 million for the city's economy. Benedict put a clever sign outside his store, biding his time for the Major League Baseball season, but the league postponed opening day.
Houston is the state's hardest-hit region according to the The Texas Tribune. The first confirmed cases were passengers on contaminated cruise ships. No cruises originating in Galveston have been canceled, but four organizations that scheduled conferences in the city have backed out.
Ray Perryman, an economist in Waco, told The Texas Tribune, “Until people have a sense of the ultimate magnitude of the situation, they are going to be reluctant to spend discretionary funds.”
Perryman said that the uncertainty across different business sectors has already begun. There have been disruptions in the supply chain and the tourism and travel industries are taking a major hit during the spring break season.
Other businesses outside of the areas where the virus has been confirmed are also experiencing the effect of people choosing to stay home. Steven Startz in New Braunfels said his revenue is down 60% and he has had to cut staff hours dramatically.
Samantha Staples of High Beam Events had signed more than 20 contracts with clients for South by Southwest. The festival is usually her company's biggest moneymaker.
“There’s so much uncertainty right now on group gatherings, I just think it’s going to be a very lean period for the next six to nine months," Staples said.