2020年2月3日星期一

Monday Morning Briefing: China accuses U.S. of whipping up panic over virus as stocks tumble

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The economic and diplomatic costs of China’s coronavirus epidemic mounted with investors knocking $400 billion off the value of stocks and the government accusing the United States of over-reacting to the outbreak and whipping up panic. The number of deaths in China from the newly identified virus had risen to 361 as of Sunday. Meanwhile, Thai doctors have seen success in treating severe cases of the virus with a combination of medications for flu and HIV, with initial results showing vast improvement 48 hours after applying the treatment.

Barring a dramatic development President Donald Trump appears almost certain to be acquitted in his Senate impeachment trial. Here is a look at the road to his impeachment and trial and a factbox on what happens next.

Scores of volunteers from across the United States descended on icy Iowa ahead of Monday’s Democratic caucus with one goal: nominating a candidate who can defeat Donald Trump in November. Walking door-to-door to try to win over campaign-wary Iowans can be lonely and thankless work, but opinion polls showing a tight race and Democrats’ widespread aversion to Trump have kept volunteers coming.

Bernard Ebbers, who built WorldCom into a telecommunications giant and was convicted in one of the largest U.S. accounting scandals, died on Sunday. He was 78. His health had been rapidly deteriorating before a federal judge granted him a compassionate release from prison in December 2019, after he had served a little over 13 years of a 25-year sentence.

The Kansas City Chiefs ended a 50-year Super Bowl drought with a dramatic 31-20 comeback win over the San Francisco 49ers in a breathtaking finish to the NFL’s 100th season that may have also revealed a new star to kickoff the next century. The Chiefs’ young quarterback Patrick Mahomes stepped onto America’s biggest sporting stage and produced an enthralling fourth-quarter rally that even the 49ers grudgingly applauded.

World

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will set out tougher rules for terror convicts after a man released early from a jail term for Islamist-related terrorism offences injured two people in a stabbing spree in south London. Sudesh Amman, who was jailed in 2018 for “Islamist-related terrorism offences” but released half way through serving his 3-year sentence, was shot dead by police when he began stabbing people on a busy street.

Iran is no longer sharing evidence from the investigation into the Ukraine airliner crash with Ukraine after audio from the investigation was leaked by Ukrainian media, the director in charge of accident investigations at Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization was quoted as saying. The audio file was part of the evidence that was given to Ukrainian experts as part of the joint investigative team’s examination of the crash.

Irish nationalists Sinn Fein surged ahead of the governing Fine Gael party to draw level at the top of an opinion poll a week before an election that looks set to be a major breakthrough for the former political wing of the Irish Republican Army. Setting out her party’s priorities, Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald said voters had an opportunity to disrupt the political balance that has seen Fianna Fail and Fine Gael swap power since the foundation of the state.

The daughter of Mexican drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman married another offspring of a drug empire in a lavish ceremony held in the cathedral of Sinaloa’s state capital Culiacan, in a new display of her family’s prominence. Alejandrina Gisselle Guzman married Edgar Cazares, the nephew of Blanca Margarita Cazares, Mexican newspaper Reforma reported, in the heartland of Mexico’s powerful Sinaloa Cartel.

Business

Utilities stocks trump other havens as virus fears spread

U.S. utilities stocks have outperformed other traditional havens in recent days, as worries over the spreading coronavirus epidemic sparked a rush to safety. Comparatively high yields and expectations of steady earnings during troubled times have made utilities a popular destination for nervous investors.

4 min read

Huawei, Chinese chip makers keep factories humming despite virus outbreak

Some technology firms in China have maintained operations to manufacture parts and products despite government calls in various cities and provinces for companies to halt work to help stop the spread of a new coronavirus. Telecom giant Huawei said it had resumed production of goods including consumer devices and carrier equipment, and operations were running normally.

5 min read

Worldline agrees to buy Ingenico, creating new European payments leader

Payments company Worldline agreed on Monday to buy French peer Ingenico, in a deal which the companies said would create the fourth-biggest payments company in the world and a new European champion in the sector.

3 min read

Top Stories on Reuters TV

Trump and Bloomberg trade insults

Iraqi protesters reject new PM

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