TheChek News Flow

—Investors, fearing that the spread of the coronavirus to at least 56 countries could send the global economy into a recession, drove the stock market to its largest weekly loss since the 2008 financial crisis on Friday, creating the possibility that one of the longest economic expansions in history may be coming to an end.

—Former US president Barack Obama hasn’t gotten involved in the current Democratic presidential race, and has avoided playing favorites, saying that his main role will be unifying the party after a nominee is selected and helping to ease tensions.

—In a ruling that could have far-reaching consequences for executive branch secrecy powers long after Trump leaves office, a divided three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals ruled that Congress can’t sue to enforce its subpoenas of executive branch officials

.—As Turkey presses the European Union for help managing the crisis in Syria, it is threatening to open its borders to refugees, a move that would allow them to start flooding into Europe via Greece.

—The Trump administration may use the 70-year-old Defense Production Act to speed up the manufacturing of medical supplies amid the coronavirus outbreak, an acknowledgment that the virus poses a threat despite Trump’s claims to the contrary.

—In an attempt to soothe investors, Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell issued a short statement Friday reaffirming that the central bank would use its tools and “act as appropriate to support the economy.”

—The fact that global interest rates are dropping “amounts to a powerful and pessimistic warning about the world economy in years to come—and that warning remains valid even if the economic damage from the coronavirus epidemic turns out to be mild and short-lived.”

—Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden won a decisive victory in the South Carolina primary Saturday, giving his campaign a much-needed boost and establishing himself as the leading contender to counter the rise of Bernie Sanders.

—The US signed a deal with the Taliban on Saturday to end the nearly two-decade-old war in Afghanistan that began after the Sept. 11 attacks, killed tens of thousands of people, and left mistrust and uncertainty on all sides.

—The US is better positioned than most countries to deal with the coronavirus outbreak—hospitals have triage plans and state and local governments have broad powers to quarantine, but a shortage of medical supplies such as respirators and masks could hamper containment.

—The Fed and other central banks face a unique economic threat as markets look to them to contain the fallout from the coronavirus with limited ammunition and tools ill-suited to deal with broken supply chains and quarantined consumers.”

—“If a recession happens, it will probably be a result of a poor fit between the economic effects of the potential pandemic and the mechanisms the government uses to try to keep the economy growing.”

—Tom Steyer, the billionaire former hedge-fund executive whose prolific campaign spending altered the Democratic primary and allowed him to persist in the race, withdrew after failing to deliver strong results in the South Carolina primary.

—Story reports on the growing gap between the super-rich and everybody else, noting that “As the rich get richer and more businesses focus exclusively on serving them, there is less attention and shabbier service for everybody who’s not at the pinnacle.”

—Columnist N. Gregory Mankiw says that while most voters ascribe the economy’s ups and downs to Trump, most economists are skeptical that a president can be judged so simply, and that most of what happens in the economy is outside policymakers’ control.

—Front page story reports “The spread of coronavirus world-wide has intensified efforts to prepare for a U.S. outbreak, with hospitals straining to increase capacity to handle an influx of contagious patients and local governments mulling closures.”

—Online furniture seller W is trying to prove to investors that it can moderate its losses—which came to $330M in the past quarter—as revenue growth slows and investor appetite for unprofitable companies dries up.

—A federal appeals court ruled the Trump administration must halt a policy of returning migrants along the southern US border to Mexico while courts consider their requests for asylum in America.

—California’s mountain snowpack is about half its normal level, raising fears of a renewed drought after a string of mostly wet years, a situation state water officials say could be caused by climate change.

—The House passed a bill that would expand current restrictions on flavored tobacco products to include a ban on menthol-flavored cigarettes and e-cigarettes despite some Democratic defections and strong GOP opposition.

—The House Judiciary Committee plans to interview more than a dozen federal prosecutors, including those involved in the sentencing of Trump advisor Roger Stone, as part of a broader examination into whether the White House is interfering in the Justice Department’s independence.

—“Factory shutdowns across China because of the coronavirus have exposed an uncomfortable health-care reality: Many medicines rely on raw materials that are made in that country,” with generic drugs being the most vulnerable to supply disruptions.

—Official gauges of China’s factory and non-factory activity dropped to record lows in February as the nation’s economy struggled to resume normal production as it faced the coronavirus epidemic.

—In East Africa, the worst plague in generations is putting some 20 million people at risk of starvation, as enormous clouds of locusts defy pest control and devour every crop in their path.

—Plans to mandate simulator training for pilots before grounded BA 737 Max jets can return to service—a time-consuming and costly undertaking—are causing friction between the plane maker and regulators, potentially delaying the process.

—Under fire from the Trump administration, Huawei has approached high-profile figures in Washington to try to turn around negative perceptions of the company.

—Vanguard and Fidelity customers faced difficulties accessing online accounts on Friday morning, angering investors who couldn’t trade as stock markets fell.

—H.O.T.S.: Birkin and Kelly handbags are more expensive to buy secondhand than new, making it hard for Hermes to take control of the growing resale market; Betting on a treatment for Covid-19 isn’t likely to be a cure-all for investor portfolios; The coronavirus is weighing on online advertising in China, but that isn’t the biggest problem for BIDU and Weibo.

—Front page story reports the global effects of the coronavirus, which sent stocks down last week and prompted the World Health Organization to raise its risk assessment to “very high.”

—The UK’s Serious Fraud Office lost a high-profile, seven-year case against three former top BCS executives who were charged with fraud relating to deals made with Qatar at the height of the 2008 financial crisis.

—IBM and MSFT signed an “ethical resolution” with the Vatican to develop artificial intelligence in a way that will protect the planet and the rights of all people, a pledge known as the “Rome Call for AI Ethics.”

—“As the Federal Reserve weights up a response to the spread of the coronavirus, it faces a novel challenge—there is not much evidence on whether monetary policy is the right response to a potential pandemic.”

—Iran closed its parliament because of coronavirus fears, leaving the approval of most of the country’s budget for the next financial year unfinished, with only enough approved to prevent an immediate financial shortage.

—Big Read: The coronavirus “has the potential to change politics around the world—the outbreak could make Donald Trump and Xi Jinping more vulnerable politically, feed conspiracy theories, and lead to closed borders.”

—Lex Column: Financially weak airlines and travel businesses may not survive the coronavirus outbreak in its current form; The global second-hand clothing market, including thrift and resale, will more than double to $51B by 2023, says Barclays; Higher traffic on Internet sites doesn’t tend to equate to higher income for search platforms.

—Comment: Buying on the coronavirus dip would be a bold move for investors, says Merryn Somerset Webb, because the global economy was already looking vulnerable to shocks.

—The nation’s wealthiest billionaires, including Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, and Mark Zuckerberg, are seeing their net worth decline as coronavirus fears create dire market conditions on Wall Street.

—A survey by Coresight Research found that American shoppers will avoid malls and shopping centers if the coronavirus outbreak worsens in the US.

—US surgeon general Jerome Adams said face masks aren’t effective in preventing coronavirus infection, and that a shortage could cause an even bigger medical threat if healthcare providers can’t get them to care for sick patients.

—The New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection says that about 14 percent of city residents with student loan debt are 90 days or more past due on loan payments.