In just 10 minutes of trading some $5 billion was wiped off the value of airlines on the American bourse yesterday - a trend mirrored in hotel chain and tour operator shares - as fear over the financial repercussions of the pig flu outbreak gripped the markets.

The outbreak in Mexico has so far claimed the lives of 103 people. The disease has already reached the US, where 40 people are infected, and the first European infection was discovered in Spain. The World Health Organization believes that the pace of the outbreak is not slowing down, thus increasing the odds of a pandemic.

The European Commission has called a special session of health ministers on Thursday. "The European Union is not importing Mexican pork and poultry," said Krzysztof Jażdżewski, Poland's deputy chief veterinary doctor. Analysts are uncertain how long the turmoil related to the outbreak will be felt on the markets.

Sources: Rzeczpospolita; Gazeta Wyborcza