USA

Paris, Mar 20 (AFP/PTI) A wave of company defaults is likely to sweep the United States and Europe as measures to contain the coronavirus spark a recession, S&P Global Ratings said Friday.

The agency said it believes the global economy will go into reverse under the impact of the coronavirus crisis and that companies will see cash flow whither and financing conditions tighten.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Two Republican U.S. senators defended themselves on Friday against heavy criticism, including calls that they resign, for selling large amounts of stock before the coronavirus-induced market meltdown and after closed-door briefings on the outbreak.

Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr sold up to $1.7 million worth of stock on Feb. 13 in 33 separate transactions after offering public assurances the government was ready to battle the virus. His financial filings were first reported by ProPublica.

New York, Mar 21 (AFP/PTI) New York and Illinois followed California Friday in locking down to stem the coronavirus pandemic as President Donald Trump declared the United States was already "winning" the war despite a rapid rise in confirmed cases and deaths.

WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. Democratic presidential hopeful Joe Biden’s campaign in February spent less than one-third the amount spent by rival Democrat Bernie Sanders, according to disclosures by the campaigns filed on Friday.

Despite being outspent, Biden’s campaign finished the month surging at the polls with a victory in the February 29 nomination contest in South Carolina.

Since early March, the former vice president has led the Democratic contest to be the nominee to take on Republican President Donald Trump in the November presidential election.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Trump administration on Friday said it was soliciting public comments on lifting additional tariffs on Chinese imports that could help the United States battle the coronavirus pandemic, showing some flexibility in its trade war against Beijing.

The U.S. Trade Representative’s (USTR) office said it would allow members of the public, businesses and government agencies “to submit comments if they believe further modifications to the (Section) 301 tariffs may be necessary”

(Reuters) - Alphabet Inc’s Google said on Saturday it launched a United States-focused website with information about coronavirus guidance and testing, as the country works on slowing the spread of the highly contagious virus.

The site (google.com/covid19), which consists of resources and links focused on the potentially deadly respiratory illness COVID-19, will be available in more languages and countries in coming days, Google said in a blog post. bit.ly/2wq4f27

UNITED NATIONS, March 20 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday expressed the hope that the legislative elections and a constitutional referendum planned for Sunday in Guinea will be peaceful and transparent, said his spokesman.

Guterres is closely following developments in the West African country and takes note of President Alpha Conde's decision to hold legislative elections and a constitutional referendum on Sunday, said Stephane Dujarric, the spokesman, in a statement.

WASHINGTON, March 20 (Xinhua) -- China's experience so far has shown that the right policies make a difference in fighting the COVID-19 epidemic and mitigating its impact, though some of these policies come with difficult economic tradeoffs, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said Friday.

(AP) --- Leaders of United Airlines and its labor unions are raising the threat of massive layoffs if Washington doesn’t provide “sufficient” help to the airline industry by the end of this month.

The airline’s CEO, Oscar Munoz, its president and four union officials said Friday that without federal help this month, “our company will begin to take the necessary steps to reduce our payroll” to match a 60% reduction in flying planned for April.

(AP) --- Major streets and highways were deserted in many parts of the world Saturday as curfews and lockdowns multiplied in the face of a rapidly advancing virus that is severely straining many health systems.

Three American states with a combined population of 70 million are moving to restrict residents to their homes. California started Friday and New York and Illinois were to follow this weekend. Connecticut and Oregon were preparing to do the same.