· CORONAVIRUS CRISIS:
Ø Total confirmed cases: More than 2,718,139
Ø Total deaths: At least 190,635
Ø The coronavirus COVID-19 is affecting 210 countries and territories around the world and 2international conveyances: the Diamond Princess cruise ship harbored inYokohama, Japan, and the Holland America's MS Zaandam cruise ship.
Ø US cases: At least 880,204 and deaths: 49,845
Ø Spain cases: At least 213,024 and deaths: 22,157
Ø Italy cases: At least 189,973 and deaths: 25,549
Ø Thailand cases: At least 2,839 and deaths: 50
- Pence says 16 states have released plans to lift coronavirus restrictions
Sixteen states have released “formal reopening plans” to lift coronavirus restrictions, Vice President Mike Pence said.
“At the present moment, 16 states have released formal reopening plans,” Pence said at a news briefing. “States are beginning to make those plans and we’re encouraged to see so many states embracing the phased approach to reopening their economies that’s contemplated in our guidelines for opening up America again.”
Missouri, Pennsylvania, Oregon and Idaho have all released plans to lift restrictions meant to curb the spread of the coronavirus, Pence said. The White House did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for the complete list of states.
The administration is now also calling on states to resume elective surgeries, which were largely suspended as health systems sought to boost capacity for an expected surge of Covid-19 patients, Pence announced. He said several states have already unveiled plans to do so, including Arizona and Indiana.
- Trump says he may extend coronavirus social distancing guidelines to early summer
President Donald Trump said that his administration may extend its national social distancing guidelines until early in the summer or later.
“We may, and we may go beyond that,” Trump said at a White House press briefing when asked if the federal guidelines would need to be extended at least until the start of summer.
“We’re going to have to see where it is,” Trump said. “I think people are going to know just out of common sense. At some point, we won’t have to do that. But until we feel safe, we’re going to be extending.”
The coronavirus guidelines, which were first shared in mid-March and had already been extended once, were set to expire at the end of April.
- U.S. House passes $500 billion coronavirus bill and oversight panel
The U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a $484 billion coronavirus relief bill on Thursday, funding small businesses and hospitals and pushing the total spending response to the crisis to an unprecedented near $3 trillion.
The measure passed the Democratic-led House by a vote of 388-5, with one member voting present. House members were meeting for the first time in weeks because of the coronavirus pandemic.
- U.S. Fed balance sheet increases to record $6.62 trillion
The Federal Reserve’s balance sheet increased to a record $6.62 trillion this week as the central bank used its nearly unlimited buying power to soak up assets to keep markets functioning amid an abrupt economic free fall due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The central bank’s balance sheet as of Wednesday rose about $200 billion from $6.42 trillion a week earlier. That is up from just $4.29 trillion in the first week of March.
· Dollar cedes early gains vs euro as investors look to euro zone stimulus
The U.S. dollar gave up its early gains against the euro on Thursday amid hopes that European Union heads can come up with a joint financial fund to help the region recover from the coronavirus pandemic.
Against the dollar, the euro was about flat on the day after slipping to a 1-month low.
The coronavirus has infected more than 2.57 million people globally and killed over 178,000, and with citizens told to stay at home economic activity has plummeted.
The economic data out of the United States was also grim.
U.S. business activity plumbed new record lows in April as the coronavirus severely disrupted manufacturing and services industry production, pushing the economy into uncharted waters.
Separately, the Labor Department said on Thursday 4.427 million more people applied for unemployment benefits for the first time last week.
The U.S. Dollar Currency Index, which measures the greenback’s strength against six other major currencies, was 0.25% lower at 100.22. The index hit a more than two-week high of 100.69 earlier in the session.
The yen gave up some early gains against the dollar to trade about flat on the day after a report in the Nikkei newspaper said the Bank of Japan will discuss scrapping its cap on government bond purchases at its next policy meeting on April 27.
· Japan's March consumer inflation slows as pandemic hit deepens
The rate of growth in Japan’s annual core consumer inflation slowed for the second straight month, data showed on Friday, underscoring fears that slumping oil costs and soft consumption blamed on the coronavirus pandemic may push the country back into deflation.
The March data was released ahead of the Bank of Japan’s rate review on Monday, at which sources have told Reuters it will sharply cut its growth forecasts and take further steps to ease funding strains on companies hit by the fallout from the pandemic.
The outbreak has further dented an economy already on the cusp of recession by keeping citizens home and forcing shops to shut down, distracting the BOJ from its efforts to achieve its elusive 2% inflation target.
The core consumer price index, which includes oil products but excludes volatile fresh food prices, grew 0.4% in the year to March, government data showed on Friday, matching the median market forecast. It was slower than a 0.6% increase in February.
Many analysts expect consumer price growth to flatten and turn negative in coming months as gasoline and utility costs fall, reflecting the recent plunge in oil prices.
The so-called core-core price index, which excludes food and energy prices and is closely watched by the central bank as a narrower gauge of inflation, rose 0.6% in March.
· Oil rallies on faster output cuts to offset virus-induced falloff in demand
Oil soared on Thursday, extending its rebound after major oil-producing nations said they would accelerate planned production cuts to combat the dramatic slump in demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Since the start of the year both benchmarks have lost more than two-thirds of their value. Fuel demand is down about 30% worldwide in April and supply will outstrip demand for months to come due to the pandemic.
Brent rose 96 cents, or 4.7%, to settle at $21.33 a barrel, while WTI jumped $2.72, or 19.7%, to settle at $16.50.
- Oil prices recovered from earlier losses overnight, but it might not be a rebound and could simply be markets taking a “breather,” analysts said, warning that crude prices could turn negative again.
Oil demand has been badly hit as travel restrictions remain in place in many countries and people are told to stay home. Both air and vehicular travel have come to a virtual standstill, among other factors.
That plunging demand has caused oil supply to rapidly build up — and main storage facilities are quickly running out of capacity.
· Trump thinks report on Kim Jong Un illness was incorrect
U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday threw more cold water on reports earlier this week that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was gravely ill, but declined to say if he had been in touch with officials there.
“I think the report was incorrect,” Trump said at a daily White House briefing, adding that he had heard it was based on “old documents.”
“We have a good relationship with North Korea, I have a good relationship with Kim Jong Un and I hope he’s ok,” Trump added.
Reference: Reuters, CNBC
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