Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd said on Friday that it will close its three cabin crew bases in the United States, laying off 286 staff as the coronavirus pandemic has virtually halted global travel.

The carrier has grounded most of its planes because of the fall in demand, flying only a skeleton network to major destinations such as Beijing, Los Angeles, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo and Vancouver in April and May that represents just 3% of normal capacity.

In a statement, Cathay said it was communicating with the affected crew in New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles as well as their union.

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The head of its French business said on Friday that Amazon do not know when its warehouses in France might reopen but hopes it can be soon.

Frederic Duval also told BFM TV that an appeal procedure would take place next week against a French court decision ordering the e-commerce giant to focus only on delivering essential items such as food while it revised health protocols.

Amazon closed six French warehouses used to stock and package goods for shipment on Thursday until at least April 20, in one of the biggest fallouts yet from a growing stand-off with its workers over safety measures during the pandemic.

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A record of 22 million Americans have sought unemployment benefits over the past month, with millions more filing claims last week, almost wiping out all the job gains since the Great Recession and underscoring the toll on the economy from extraordinary measures to control the novel coronavirus outbreak.

The deepening economic slump was also amplified by other data on Thursday showing manufacturing activity in the mid-Atlantic region plunged to levels last seen in 1980 and homebuilding tumbling by the most in 36 years in March.

Economists are predicting the economy, which they believe is already in recession, contracted in the first quarter at its sharpest pace since World War Two.

Data for the prior week was revised to show 9,000 more applications received than previously reported, taking the tally for that period to 6.615 million.

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U.S. President Donald Trump laid out new guidelines on Thursday for states to emerge from a coronavirus shutdown in a staggered, three-stage approach. The recommendations call on states to show a "downward trajectory" of Covid-19 cases or positive tests for the disease over 14 days before gradually loosening restrictions on businesses that have been shuttered to blunt the spread of the virus.

The United States announced Thursday that 5.2 million people claimed unemployment over the past week, bringing the total number of unemployed Americans to over 20 million over the last month.

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The EU plans to help block foreign takeovers of European companies struggling with the virus downturn.

It wants to allow governments to invest in weak companies, which could include some form of ownership.

The European Commission says it is consulting member states while it called them "measures of last resort",

A focus for the regulator is to counter unfair competition from state-owned firms, which are the backbone of economies such as China's.

It is now looking at further protection for businesses based in the EU, in light of the significant financial impact coronavirus lockdowns are having on them.

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China's economy shrank for the first time in decades in the first quarter of the year, as the virus forced factories and businesses to close.

The world's second biggest economy contracted 6.8% according to official data released on Friday.

The financial toll the coronavirus is having on the Chinese economy will be a huge concern to other countries.

China is an economic powerhouse as a major consumer and producer of goods and services.

This is the first time China has seen its economy shrink in the first three months of the year since it started recording quarterly figures in 1992.

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Banco Comercial Portugues (BCP) has taken legal action against Mozambique, becoming the latest bank to pursue the heavily indebted East African state, which has been embroiled in a long-running $2 billion debt scandal.

A filing dated April 8 shows BCP has begun proceedings in London’s High Court against both the Mozambique government and state firm Mozambique Asset Management (MAM) related to general commercial contracts and arrangements also BCP is being represented by Enyo Law.

Mozambique’s Attorney General’s Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday.

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Government regulators on Thursday announced that South Africa will allow mines to operate at 50% capacity during a nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

The government had ordered most underground mines and furnaces to be put on care and maintenance during the lockdown, which started on March 27 and has been extended until the end of April, apart from coal mines supplying state power utility Eskom.

South Africa is the world’s biggest producer of chrome ore, accounts for around 70% of global mined platinum supply and is a major producer of other minerals and metals.

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The Ghana Standards Authority, GSA, says it is collaborating with the Food and Drugs Authority, FDA, to ensure that all Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) being produced on a large scale locally meets the set standards for use.

Some local companies have started producing about 3.6 million masks as government steps us efforts to encourage their use in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. The companies include Dignity DTRT, Sleek Garments, Cadling Fashions and Alfie Designs Limited.

Speaking to Citi Business News, Chief Executive Officer, CEO, of the Ghana Standards Authority, Prof. Alex Dodoo, said the producers are expected to comply with the standards set by his outfit and the FDA, before releasing them for use. He added that initial quantities should be made available by the end of this week.

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The Ghana Union of Traders’ Associations, is calling on government to refrain from claiming ‘demurrage and rent charges’ at the country’s ports during the period of the partial lock-down amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

Demurrage is a charge payable to the owner of a chartered ship on failure to load or discharge the ship within the time agreed.

According to GUTA, attempts to get the authorities of the Ghana Port and Harbours Authority, GPHA, as well as owners of shipping lines through the Ministry of Trade and Industry and the Ghana Shippers Authority to waive off the charges have proven futile.

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