when sneezes, catches a cold (redirected from pneumonia)

when someone/something sneezes, someone/something catches a cold (mainly British, mainly British)

when one person or organization has a problem, this problem has a much worse effect on another person or organization. When New York sneezes, I'm afraid London catches a cold - that is just the way the stock markets operate now. If the country's economy catches a cold, local businesses get pneumonia.

See also: catch, cold