World stocks were set to close their worst quarter since 2008 on a brighter note, as Chinese factory data on Tuesday held out hope for an economic revival even as much of the rest of the world locked down to fight the coronavirus.
Huawei warned on Tuesday that 2020 would be its most difficult year yet due to American trade restrictions which dealt a blow to its overseas sales in 2019, and predicted the Chinese government would retaliate against the United States.
Russia's Gazprom said on Tuesday that the Bovanenkovo airport, shut due to a coronavirus scare, has partially resumed operations to handle industrial cargoes and food, though there are no plans to rotate staff at the gas field.
Microsoft Corp said it has seen a 775% jump in a month for Teams calling and meeting in Italy, withdrawing an earlier statement that the surge was for its cloud services in regions around the world that enforced social distancing to curb transmission of the coronavirus.
The dollar climbed against a swathe of currencies on Tuesday amid fiscal year-end demand by Japanese firms while the Australian dollar slipped despite a Chinese survey showing manufacturing returned to growth in March.
Google on Tuesday defended the impartiality of its search results after users in Japan seeking to corroborate rumors of an imminent state of emergency declaration by the government were met with no results on its website.
Ford Motor Co said on Tuesday it was postponing its plan to restart production at its North America plants due to safety concerns for its workers amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Russian gas producer Gazprom said on Tuesday that the Bovanenkovo airport, shut due to a coronavirus scare, has partially resumed operations to handle industrial cargoes and food, though there are no plans to rotate staff at the gas field.
U.S. stock index futures rose on Tuesday at the end of one of Wall Street's worst first quarters on record, as an unexpected expansion in Chinese factory activity raised hopes of a more stable economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.
The Federal Reserve has moved into overdrive to try to keep the U.S. economy from suffering lasting damage from the coronavirus pandemic, announcing an emergency interest rate cut on March 3 and rolling out new efforts almost weekly since, including slashing rates to zero and relaunching large-scale asset purchases.
IKEA, the world's biggest furniture brand, said on Tuesday it has started making protective gear such as aprons and facemasks for hospitals battling the spread of coronavirus, and aims to step up output further.
Airlines must suggest possible compensation in return for government cash assistance and agree to conditions that include not cutting pay or laying off employees through Sept. 30, the U.S. Treasury Department said in guidelines issued on Monday as it prepares to quickly hand out $25 billion.
Volkswagen expects vehicle sales in China, the world's largest car market, to quadruple in March, it said, pointing to a recovery following the coronavirus pandemic.
Asian shares were closing out a calamitous quarter with a tentative rally on Tuesday as factory data from China held out the hope of a rebound in activity, even as much of the rest of the world shut down.
Companies both large and small are seeking legal advice about their options for reducing or pausing their contributions to their workers' 401(k) plans — a move that some employers made during the last U.S. economic downturn.