· CORONAVIRUS UPDATES:
Latest on the spread of the coronavirus around the world
Ø Total confirmed cases: More than 1,426,609
Ø Total deaths: At least 81,995
Ø The coronavirus COVID-19 is affecting 209 countries and territories around the world and 2 international conveyances.
Ø US cases: At least 396,416 (+29,412), and deaths: 12,813 (1,942)
Ø Italy cases: At least 135,586 (+3,039), and deaths: 17,127 (+604)
Ø Thailand cases: At least 2,258 (+38), and deaths: 27 (+1)
- France is fourth country to pass 10,000 coronavirus deaths
France has officially registered more than 10,000 deaths from coronavirus infections, making it the fourth country to cross that threshold after Italy, Spain and the United States.
The rate of increase in the number of fatalities also rose for the second consecutive day, official figures showed.
Jerome Salomon, head of the public health authority, told a news conference the pandemic was still expanding in France, which is now in the fourth week of a national lockdown to try to curb its spread.
But he said the number of serious coronavirus cases being treated in intensive care units had risen by only 0.8% in the previous 24 hours — the eighth consecutive day that this rate has decelerated.
Salomon said the number of people who have died in French hospitals after contracting the coronavirus had risen to a cumulative total of 7,091. But if partial data on deaths in nursing homes is included, the death toll from the disease is now 10,328, he said.
The total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in hospitals is now 78,167, and the number of confirmed or possible cases in nursing homes is 30,902
- New coronavirus cases in Italy fall to 25-day low, deaths rise by 604
Deaths from the coronavirus epidemic in Italy rose by 604, a lower daily tally than the 636 seen the day before, while the number of new cases posted the smallest increase since March 13.
The total death toll in the world’s hardest-hit country since its outbreak came to light on Feb. 21 rose to 17,127, the Civil Protection Agency said.
The total of confirmed cases increased by 3,039 on Tuesday to 135,586, the second successive daily decline, underscoring growing confidence that the illness is on the retreat thanks to a nationwide lockdown introduced on March 9.
New cases rose by 3,599 on Monday. Previous daily increases since March 17 had all been in a range of 4,050-6,557.
- China's Wuhan city further eases coronavirus lockdown
The central Chinese city of Wuhan began allowing people to leave on Wednesday for the first time since it was locked down 76 days ago to contain the novel coronavirus, despite fears of a second wave of infection if such restrictions are eased too soon.
- In the U.S., the number of new cases appears to have fallen in recent days from their recent peak. On Tuesday, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo reported the state’s biggest one-day jump in deaths, but also said hospitalizations are slowing. Italy and Spain, two of the hardest-hit countries, are also seeing new cases fall off.
- U.S. economy will eventually reopen but with big changes: Kudlow
The Trump administration is aiming to reopen the U.S. economy when the nation’s top health experts give the go-ahead, but Americans’ lives will be drastically different, White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said on Tuesday.
“We are aware that things are going to be different,” he said. “That’s going to be a new feature of American life. And I don’t know how quickly that gets up and going, but it’s going to be very, very important because we obviously want to prevent any recurrences.”
It remains unclear when the country, which remains largely shuttered amid the ongoing outbreak that has crushed the economy, will resume more normal operations as a number of states approach their potential peak number of cases amid federal guidelines to isolate until the end of April.
- Jim Cramer predicts ‘U’ shape recovery, says economy ‘will bounce back gradually’
CNBC’s Jim Cramer suggested investors take advantage of the recent market upside to sell some stock and build up some cash for the next dip.
“Without a V-shaped recovery, you have to be skeptical of these big moves higher,” the “Mad Money” host said. “Because in a U-shaped recovery I’m expecting, the stock market will pull back again and that is when you can put some money to work.”
A V-shaped recovery happens when a quick decline in economic activity is met by an abrupt rebound in activity, while a U-shaped recovery is one where the economy gradually climbs out of a recession environment, which can take up to two years.
Based on Monday’s 7% market rally, investors are hoping that the economy has a V-shaped recovery, Cramer said, which is where business activity snaps back if the ongoing outbreak is quelled soon.
″‘V’ is what justifies yesterday’s rally” but “I do not believe in the ‘V’ when it comes to this recovery,” he said.
- Former Fed chief Bernanke sees bad year, no quick recovery
The U.S. economy could shrink 30% or more this quarter as stay-at-home orders aimed at slowing the coronavirus outbreak choke off business, and it could be a couple of years before the economy regains its footing, former Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke said on Tuesday.
“Overall, it could be a very bad year for the economy,” Bernanke said in a Brookings Institution online event, though he added that so far the fiscal and monetary policy responses have been pretty good, though more will be needed.
“There are things we can do to open up the economy, significantly perhaps, but I don’t see the economy returning to a more normal state until there’s much greater confidence ... that opening up the economy won’t restart the crisis.”
- Mnuchin seeks additional $250 billion in small business relief from Congress by Friday
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Tuesday he wants Congress to approve an additional $250 billion in emergency economic aid for small U.S. businesses reeling from the coronavirus pandemic, as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell pushed for passage as soon as Thursday.
U.S. President Donald Trump said the administration will seek another $250 billion on top of the $350 billion of funds granted by Congress last month which launched on Friday.
In a posting on Twitter, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said he had consulted with congressional leaders on the need for the second round of funding.
If approved by Congress, the aid would add to the $349 billion in forgivable loans to small businesses enacted on March 27 as part of a $2.3 trillion economic stimulus in response to the virus outbreak.
- Trump blames WHO for getting coronavirus pandemic wrong, threatens to withhold funding
President Donald Trump blamed the World Health Organization for getting “every aspect” of the coronavirus pandemic wrong and threatened to withhold funding from the international organization.
“They did give us some pretty bad play calling ... with regard to us, they’re taking a lot of heat because they didn’t want the borders closed, they called it wrong. They really called, I would say, every aspect of it wrong,” Trump said at a White House press conference Tuesday.
The WHO, the United Nations’ health agency, started sounding the alarm on the outbreak of a new coronavirus in Wuhan, China in mid-January, designating the COVID-19 pandemic as a global health emergency on Jan. 30 when there were just 8,200 cases in 18 countries across the world. The coronavirus has since wreaked havoc across the globe, spreading to more than 1.4 million people and killing more than 81,000, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
Trump said he is thinking about withholding funds to the WHO, saying the international agency pushed back on his travel ban to China early in the COVID-19 outbreak. It’s unclear how Trump would do this, however. Congress has already authorized $122 million for the WHO for this fiscal year, and while Trump has proposed $58 million in funding for the group in fiscal year 2021 — a significant cut — Congress is unlikely to authorize such a drastic funding cut, especially in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
· Dollar drops, Aussie, Sterling gain as risk appetite increases
The greenback dropped and riskier currencies, including the Australian dollar, outperformed on Tuesday as risk appetite improved on hopes that lockdowns may be slowing the spread of the coronavirus in some countries. U.S. stocks gained as investors moved back into riskier assets.
Sterling also rose a day after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was moved into intensive care due to worsening coronavirus symptoms.
Analysts said the currency is benefiting from the increased risk appetite that is weighing on the U.S. dollar. Johnson’s condition, while a concern, is also unlikely to mean a change in the government’s policy direction in fighting the virus.
The dollar was last down 0.93% versus a basket of currencies at 99.82.
The Australian dollar jumped 1.91% to $0.6202. Sterling gained 1.08% to $1.2361. The euro rose 1.13% to $1.0913.
The dollar was down 0.18% against the yen as Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe declared a state of emergency for parts of the country on Tuesday to counter the spread of coronavirus.
A recovery in oil prices on hopes that the world’s biggest producers will agree to cut output also boosted risk sentiment.
Action by central banks to ease a scramble for dollars has helped bring some calm to markets.
· Oil drops 9% as oversupply concerns outweigh hopes for a global production cut
Oil dropped on Tuesday as hopes that the world’s biggest producers would agree to cut output were tempered by a worsening crude oil glut and the threat of a deeper-than-expected global recession.
West Texas Intermediate crude fell 9.39%, or $2.45, to settle at $23.63 per barrel, around the lows of the day. Brent crude fell 3.57% to settle at $31.87 per barrel. On Monday WTI dropped 8%, while Brent shed 3%.
“The market is indicating that it wants some more certainty on whether the Russians and Saudis will strike a deal to limit supply,” said Gene McGillian, vice president of market research at Tradition Energy in Stamford, Connecticut.
The top global suppliers of crude, including Saudi Arabia and Russia, plan to meet on Thursday to discuss reducing output, but several energy ministers have said they will do so only if the United States joins in with its own cuts, sources told Reuters.
Reference: CNBC, Worldometers, Reuters
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