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BEIJING (AP) — Asian stock markets have risen after the chief U.S. central banker expressed optimism the the American economy might start to recover this year from the coronavirus pandemic. Benchmarks in Shanghai, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Australia all advanced. That came despite Japan’s announcement its economy contracted in the first quarter and the Trump administration’s decision to step up a technology conflict with Beijing by tightening restrictions on Chinese tech giant Huawei. Investors appear to be looking past the outbreak to a recovery despite rising infection numbers in the United States, Brazil and some other countries. Forecasters warn the the latest market buoyancy might be premature and a return to normal could be some way off.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s economic growth plunged into recession in the first quarter as the coronavirus pandemic squelched production, exports and spending. Worse times may lie ahead. The Cabinet Office on Monday reported the economy contracted at a 3.4% annual pace in the January-March quarter. Exports dove nearly 22%. Private residential investment slipped nearly 17%, and household consumption fell 3%. The downturn worsened by the pandemic is the biggest challenge for the world's third-largest economy since World War II. The government has come up with a rescue package and is announcing more, including aid to small businesses and cash handouts.
MIAMI (AP) — Tropical Storm Arthur is crawling closer to the North Carolina coast, amid threats of some minor flooding and rough seas as the system moves off the Southeast seaboard. Arthur formed Saturday off Florida, marking the sixth straight year a named storm has developed before the official June 1 start of the Atlantic hurricane season.The National Hurricane Center in Miami issued a tropical storm warning for North Carolina’s Outer Banks on Sunday. At 11 p.m. EDT, the storm’s center was located about 210 miles south-southwest of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. Arthur had top sustained winds of 45 mph as it moved north-northeast.
UNDATED (AP) — China has reported seven new coronavirus cases. No new COVID-19 deaths have been reported in the country in more than a month, although some have been announced retroactively after further tests were performed, and 82 people remain in treatment while another 450 are under isolation and monitoring as suspected cases or after testing positive for the virus without showing symptoms. China has reported a total of 4,634 deaths among 82,954 cases since the virus was first detected in the central industrial city of Wuhan. With the decline in cases, China has moved to restart schools and reopen businesses and industries. However, some government offices that tend to attract large numbers of people in restricted spaces have largely remained closed to the public.
ATLANTA (AP) — There was an abundance of evidence when the officers arrived at the scene on a Sunday afternoon in coastal Georgia: A man, apparently unarmed, lying on the street, soaked in blood. The suspected shooter, a shotgun, eyewitnesses. And video of the incident. But no arrests were made in the death of 25-year-old Ahmaud Arbery until last week, after video of the shooting surfaced that stoked a national uproar over race relations in America. Now a newly appointed investigative agency and prosecutor have to untangle the criminal investigation, build a case and make up for lost time and missed opportunities.
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