Business & Finance News
WASHINGTON Reuters) – The Trump administration, while insisting the risk to Americans from coronavirus is low, nevertheless declared a public health emergency on Friday and announced the extraordinary step of barring entry to the United States of foreign nationals who have recently visited China.
Airbus, the world’s largest aircraft maker, will pay just under 1 billion euros ($1.11 billion)in a British settlement to draw a line under a three-and-a-half year criminal investigation into allegations of fraud, bribery and corruption.
Airbus bribed public officials and hid the payments as part of a pattern of worldwide corruption, prosecutors said on Friday as the European planemaker agreed a record $4 billion settlement with France, Britain and the United States.
Some companies have warned that a coronavirus outbreak in China that has killed more than 250 people and infected thousands could disrupt supply chains or hurt bottom lines as factories and shops shut and airlines suspend flights.
Amazon.com Inc’s rapid expansion of one-day shipping delivered a strong holiday quarter and showed the rising ambition of the company, which in six years has created a network that handles nearly as many packages as FedEx Corp .
A future U.S.-UK trade agreement must incorporate strong provisions on worker rights, environmental protection, and enforcement to ensure bipartisan support, U.S. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal said on Friday, staking out a claim for Congress to help shape any such accord.
The United States ramped up its response to the coronavirus epidemic on Friday, declaring a public health emergency and saying it would halt entry to foreign nationals who had been to China within the 14-day incubation period.
Walmart Inc , the world’s largest retailer, said it is temporarily limiting “non-business critical travel” to China amid the coronavirus outbreak.
Facebook Inc said it will take down misinformation about China’s fast-spreading coronavirus, in a rare departure from its usual approach to dubious health content that is presenting a fresh challenge for social media companies.
The northern Chinese city of Tianjin has ordered schools and non-essential companies to remain closed until further notice to curb the spread of the coronavirus that has already infected thousands in the country, a local government-run newspaper said.
The total number of deaths from a coronavirus epidemic in China had reached 259 by the end of Friday, Jan. 31, up by 46, state broadcaster CCTV said, citing numbers from the country’s National Health Commission.
Landlocked Paraguay said on Friday that it had suspended indefinitely issuance of visas to people traveling from China because of the coronavirus outbreak centered in the city of Wuhan, Hubei province.
A future U.S.-UK trade agreement must incorporate strong provisions on worker rights, environmental protection, and enforcement to ensure bipartisan support, U.S. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal said on Friday, staking out a claim for Congress to help shape any such accord.
Weaker crude oil and gas prices drove quarterly results sharply lower at Exxon Mobil Corp and Chevron Corp, pushing down shares at the two largest U.S. oil producers and signaling a weak start to the new year.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Friday aimed at preventing counterfeit products from abroad from being sold to U.S. citizens who shop online using Amazon.com , Walmart.com or other ecommerce websites, the White House said.
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