Asian stocks gained on Friday as President Donald Trump's plans to gradually re-open the U.S. economy offset data that showed China suffered its worst economic contraction on record due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Some investors are wary about buying into a recent stock market rally. Even with hopes for a quick reopening of the economy, they want more evidence that the United States will not restart, only to have to fall back under another coronavirus lockdown soon.
Finance officials from the Group of 20 major economies agreed on Wednesday to suspend debt service payments for the world's poorest countries through the end of the year, a move quickly matched by a group of hundreds of private creditors.
U.S. retail sales suffered a record drop in March and output at factories declined by the most since 1946, buttressing analysts' views that the economy contracted in the first quarter at its sharpest pace in decades as extraordinary measures to control the spread of the novel coronavirus shut down the country.
Many small-business owners have been stymied by the Paycheck Protection Program, yet some business owners have been able to breeze through the application process.
While headlines have touted stimulus payments of $1,200 to $2,400, many Americans could receive less money or nothing at all. How much you get is based on your income. Here's a look at how much you stand to get based on the rules.
U.S. crude prices fell to an 18-year low and Brent lost more than 6% on Wednesday after the United States reported its biggest weekly inventory build on record, while global demand is expected to fall to quarter-century lows due to the coronavirus pandemic.
U.S. stocks fell on Wednesday as dismal economic and first-quarter earnings reports compounded concerns over the extent of damage from the coronavirus outbreak.
J.C. Penney Co Inc said on Wednesday it will not make a $12 million interest payment on its long-term corporate bonds, a day after Reuters reported the department store operator was considering filing for bankruptcy protection.
Citigroup Inc reported a 46% plunge in quarterly profit on Wednesday as it prepared for losses driven primarily by its credit card business, and analysts raised worries that there is more pain to come as the economic outlook darkens.
By Marc Jones, Karin Strohecker, Tom Arnold and Cassandra Garrison
"If we take this money and don't treat it like the precious capital that it is ... then we've done a disservice to everyone," Junior's Cheesecake owner Alan Rosen told CNBC.
Canadian auto supplier Magna International Inc is planning for a return to production in North America on May 4, with a subsequent gradual increase in output as the industry recovers from the shutdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic, a top executive said on Wednesday.
U.S. companies have been battered by the fallout from the novel coronavirus outbreak, with economic activity plunging at an unprecedented speed over the past few weeks, a Federal Reserve report released on Wednesday showed.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that data suggested the country had passed the peak on new coronavirus infections, and said he would announce "new guidelines" for reopening the economy at a news conference on Thursday.