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calliecat93 · 3 years

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One of the biggest criticisms of Volume 4, if not the biggest criticism, was it usage of multiple plotlines. While an ambitious idea, the balance was really off which really affected the pacing. It felt like everything was scattered around and like things were being dragged out, or not even given as much attention as needed. But it looks like with Volume 8, CRWBY is getting a chance to try it again. One advantage is having all the relevant characters in tow main groups so only two major plotlines to focus on. This chapter focuses on RWBNP as they break into the Atlas Military Facility. How will it go? Well... since this is late you already know, but I’m gonna blab anyhow. Enjoy~

Overview

Team RWBNPM have made it into the military compound and Penny has located where the terminal is. They’re able to wonder around the base undetected via May’s Invisibility Semblance and Penny is able to use Pietro’s credentials to access the doors. They eventually reach an area that even with May’s Semblance, will be too difficulty to get through without being spotted. Penny, however, has a solution. You remember how Harriet pointed out Ruby’s Semblance was more than she thought in V7? Well Penny actually breaks it down here. Ruby essentially breaks down her mass and is able to more or less teleport herself and others before reforming, so Ruby should be able to do this with all of them.

Meanwhile, remember when Watts got taken by security last chapter? Well it’s because Ironwood is now forcing him to work for him, having a whole squadron ready to shoot him to death if he doesn’t comply. What does he need Watts to do? We’ll go into that later. Until then, Watts points out that Pietro’s credentials have been used, causing Ironwood to raise the alarm. This means that the team has to hurry, so they trip a worker with coffee as a distraction. As the guy's co-workers yell at him, RWBNP move past via Ruby’s Semblance as May goes to commandeer a ship.

Eventually, RWBNP reach the terminal. It is a VERY highly secured area with the door being guarded by some powerful electricity. It’s so secure that no humans even work in there. Penny allows Pietro to take over manually to begin the process of green lighting Amity. During this, Blake expresses concern about ruby and Yang’s fight, though Weiss assures her that sometimes sisters just disagree. Nora also tries to help by pointing out that Jaune, Yang, and Oscar should be fine (haha...) but noticeably leaves out Ren. It’s here that Nora expresses how upset she was about their argument and how just when things look up for them, it goes right back to zero. Even worse, without Ren, Nora doesn’t feel like she even knows who she is aside form the strong girl who hits stuff. Blake and Weiss point out to her that Ren is only a part of her, the rest however also matters and that maybe she can use this chance to discover more about herself.

The process is completed and Penny can now launch Amity. But despite wanting to resume helping Mantle afterwards, both Pietro and the girls believe that it’s best for Penny to remain with Pietro and Maria in Amity once it launches. This disappoints her. As the group gets ready to leave, they are confronted byt he Ace-Ops. Vine tries to reason with the g4roup, but they continue to refuse. it doesn’t help when Harriet and Elm essentially blame Penny for Winter’s condition and accuse her of stealing the Maiden power, nor does Harriet threatening to lock up Ruby alongside her uncle. To no one’s surprise, the group refuses, so the Ace-Ops trap RWBN in the room, leaving Penny to fight on her own.

Penny is ale to hold her own, even managing to make good use of her Maiden powers. However, the Ace-Ops are able to match against her and eventually Marrow is able to use his Stay power on her. RWBN try to break through the door, bot nothing is working. Nora, staring at the electric door, decides to do what she dos best be strong and hit stuff. Using her hammer and Semblance, Nora absorbs the electricity until she’s powered enough to blow the door off it’s hinges. However, even for Nora, this was far too much as her body gets some ugly scarring. She collapses, her Aura breaking.

Seeing the fight, Watts suggests that the Ace-Ops get one of Penny’s swords. Ironwood orders this, and they bandage to rip one off of Penny before retreating, though Marow noticeably is hesitant. WBNP reach a hangar where May has gotten an airship. They escape, but Nora is still passed out and seriously injured. After this, Penny agrees that she needs to remain in Amity and it’s time for her to go. She and Ruby hug one more time, promising to see each other again before Penny flies off for Amity. Meanwhile, the Ace-Ops turn over the sword to Ironwood. Why did they need this? The same reason that Ironwood recruited Watts: to hack into Penny and turn her back onto their side.

Review

Ah, action, emotions, and spilt coffee. All the things I love in a RWBY episode~

Let’s talk about Ruby’s Semblance first since I’ve seen some debate about it. IDK how scientifically accurate Penny’s explanation is... but Ruby is a girl who can trail rose petals behind her, so I’m not all that concerned about accuracy here. But this just more or less confirmed what I’ve been thinking for a long time now. I, as well as others, have pointed out that her Semblance doesn’t really appear to act line a speed-based one. Heck as I said, Harriet pointed it out just last volume. Now we know that Ruby’s power is essentially a slow-formed teleportation. Considering I always assumed that Summer’s Semblance had a similar breaking her body down function, this makes a lot of sense to me.

I’ve seen some complain about how Ruby didn’t know this... but really? That’s perfectly in-character for her. She’s a clever girl, but she’s always been one to act more than give deep contemplation. She knows the basic function of her Semblance, to move fast compared to normal, and that works for her. Heck remember last volume when she used her split apart trick. Oscar asked how long she could do that, and she answered that she had never really thought of it. Sure Ruby HAS carried people with her Semblance before (Penny in V2, Nora in V4, Weiss in V6), but that was with a single person. She had never tried it with a group before. It fits into how Semblances evolve over time and I’m really happy to see Ruby grow more. I get the feeling that she needs all the happy development she can get before things really go off the deep end.

Speaking of though, the chibi art accompanying Penny’s explanation? Both cute and hilarious. It reminded me of Ruby’s imagine spots back in Volume One. This chapter had quite a few funny moments. Weiss pulling Nora’s ear for last episode, Nora pushing all the elevator buttons. Blake clearly hating all forms of unconventional transportation, and while I feel it clashed with the tone a bit the coffee guy tripping up was great. The crude poster of a Shark Grimm (when do we get that?) especially got a giggle out of me. Like I said last review, it’s nice to have these bits of levity. I love it when Ruby gets feelsy and serious, but I don’t want it to divert form fun and light-heartedness all the time. They’ve gotten a lot better at keeping a balance and transitioning us from one mood to the other. I feel last chapter did it a bit better, but this was still well done.

Now lets talk about Penny. It was nice to see her act like her usual perky self a bit with her Semblance explanation and the direction to the terminal. But still, it’s clear that things are still haunting her. She’s still reminded of her robot identity with May’s comment, which no IDT May was trying to be offensive or anything, after all Robyn uses nicknames like that all the time and she DID use Penny’s name after the correction. But even past that, we have Pietro manually taking control of Penny. Now it WAS done with permission and there’s a good reason why, but my reaction to it was the same as Ruby’s. You ca tell that Penny wasn’t looking forward to it since it one more emphasizes that she is a robot. We all know she’s more, but Penny is still trying to figure out her new place.

This is especially evident in her reaction to remaining on Amity. Of course she doesn’t want to do that. She still considers herself the Protector of Mantle. She is now the Winter Maiden. She wants to help people. She wants to be out there doing good alongside her friends. But unfortunately with the target on her back from both sides, it’ simply too dangerous. She not only puts herself at risk, but those around her. We already know that ironwood will now go to any extreme to get his way, including work with an evil scientist and have a firing squad ready to fire. Salem... do I need to explain any further? The safest thin is for Penny to remain in Amity, but it still clearly pains her even after accepting it as necessary. And with Watts now having a piece necessary to hack her AND the episode showing us how it can be done... yeah, pray for Penny folks.

She DID however get to kick ass with her Maiden powers. While we had some Grimm fights last chapter, this was the first major fight of the volume, and it was awesome. Penny, even after just getting her power, uses it to great effect. Not as much as Raven or even Cinder, but is clearly more than capable of controlling it. But the Ace-Ops do manage to match her. They aren’t holding back now, they are going in for the kill and all of them (save Marrow, I’ll talk about him in the CH4 review) seem to be on the same wavelength. I think this helped the complaints about the Ace-Ops losing to RWBY (ones I don’t agree with, but still) and shows how even with Clover dead, they are still a capable force. Harriet and Elm’s words were still overly cruel, but I can’t deny that they can fight. Oh and we also FINALLY got to see Vine’s weapon, so there’s that. It was a fun action sequence~

But now we get to the star of this episode for me: Nora. Now... I have made it no secret that Nora is my least favorite character of the main group. Why? There’s two main reasons: her lack of development compared to the others and her character largely revolving around Ren. I won’t lie, some of the over-exposure and her portrayal in Chibi also contributed, but those don’t really affect her character in-show. While I feel that she has slowly improved, last volume especially being a step up, I still felt like she was the least developed. So going into Volume 8, I was very curious about hat they would do with her now that she and Ren are divided and she is on her own.

I have to say... I am very happy with her in this episode. It addressed my complaint about her and Ren being co-dependent as far as their portrayals in-show went. They outright existed more or less to fill out Team JNPR, and they spent Volumes 1-3 as comic relief to focus on Jaune and Pyrrha. I miss Pyrrha to this day, but her death DID allow the two to finally grow as characters. I don’t like it when the focus of a character is mainly on their relationship with another, hence why shipping gets on my nerves a lot. It was a HUGE issue I had with Renora until they became fleshed out. Here we have Nora expressing how upset she is about Ren, how every time it looks like they’ve gotten closer something comes in to ruin it (Volume 4 for example), and now that she’s without him for the first time in who knows how long... she doesn’t really know who she is. This has been something that I’ve wanted the show to go into since at least Volume 4, and it is FINALLY happening.

I love how the ones who talk to her are Blake and Weiss. Blake struggled with separating herself from a previous attachment, and knows how hard it is to remember that that’s only one part of yourself. Weiss has struggled with carving her own identity which while not in the romantic context, is still relevant as her family name is only a part of her, not the whole thing. It’s a dynamic I never knew I needed, but I am SO glad we have it now! I think as hard as it is, Nora needed to part from Ren for now. She needs to remember to care about herself and know that she is more than just the girl who likes Ren and hits stuff with a hammer. She’s funny, she’s caring, she’s loyal, she’s fun to be around, she can get carried away with things yet it’s always entertaining when she does. She is Nora Valkyrie before everything else. And in the end, she more or less sacrificed herself to break the door and save Penny. IDK if she knew that the electricity would be too much, but she still made the choice by herself. Now we just need to hope that she recovers... and that when Ren finds out, he doesn’t snap...

In the intro, I talked about how V8 seems to be a second attempt at the split teams plot in Volume 4. While I find V4 underrated and a nice character development/world-building volume, the handling of the split plots... did certainly cause pacing issues. The biggest issue was cramming essentially six storylines into the volume, four of which were vital, and not being able to give them all proper attention. Essentially, it worked fine when binged, but going week by week it could get tiresome very quickly. This time, we have the entire team split into two groups with the side plots being the villains and Ironwood’s forces. This only leaves two major plotlines that need the main focus and allows for unique character dynamics, like Nora with Weiss and Blake.

So far, the pacing with these two groups has been done very well. While we don’t see JYRO in this episode, last chapter did enough that we already know what to expect when we get back to them. Nothing feels out of focus or like one plot is getting more attention than the other. It feels balanced. It feels like both plots matter and I want to see what happens. The writers have clearly learned and improved over the years, with this being a clear example. It’s been really fun (and scary) so far and I’m really excited to see more of these different group dynamics (and since I’ve already seen Chapter 4, they are delivering!), though hopefully we will get the team reformed before long. But for now, I’m loving this~

Chapter Stats

Favorite Character: Nora Valkyrie Favorite Scene: Nora, Weiss, and Blake talk Least Favorite Scene: Coffee Guy Favorite Voice Actor: Samantha Ireland (Nora) Favorite Animation: Penny going Winter Maiden against the Ace-Ops Rating: 9.9/10

Final Thoughts

Three chapters in, and already this volume is looking to be one of the best. Some nice humor, great character dynamics and focus, an epic action sequence, and a lot of heart and emotion put in especially with Penny and Nora. This was a fantastic episode that gave me everything that I was hoping for! If the quality stays at this pace, the this is absolutely going to become a great one! And considering what happens next chapter, we haven’t strayed from that yet. But that review is for another day, for now I’ll say that this chapter was great~

#rwby #rwby8 #rwby spoilers #rwby reviews #rwby musings #callie reviews

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gordonwilliamsweb · 4 years

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As COVID-19 Lurks, Families Are Locked Out Of Nursing Homes. Is It Safe Inside?

Navigating Aging

Navigating Aging focuses on medical issues and advice associated with aging and end-of-life care, helping America’s 45 million seniors and their families navigate the health care system.

To contact Judith Graham with a question or comment, click here.

Join the Navigating Aging Facebook Group.

See All Columns

Families are beset by fear and anxiety as COVID-19 makes inroads at nursing homes across the country, threatening the lives of vulnerable older adults.

Alarmingly more than 10,000 residents and staff at long-term care facilities have died from COVID infections, according to an April 23 analysis of state data by the Kaiser Family Foundation.

But often facilities won’t disclose how many residents and employees are infected with the coronavirus that causes the disease, citing privacy considerations. Unable to visit, families can’t see for themselves how loved ones are doing.

Are people getting enough to eat? How are their spirits? Are they stable physically or declining? Are staff shortages developing as health aides become sick?

Perhaps most pressing, does a loved one have COVID symptoms? Is testing available? If infected, is he or she getting adequate care?

“This is the problem we’re all facing right now: If you have family in these facilities, how do you know they’re in danger or not?” Jorge Zamanillo told the Miami Herald after his 90-year-old mother, Rosa, died of COVID-19 only days after staffers said she was “fine.”

In recent weeks, amid mounting concern, states including California, Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts and New York began releasing data about cases and deaths in individual nursing homes. (The data varies by state.) And the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said it would require homes to report cases to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and to notify residents and families. (Previously, facilities were required to report only to states.)

Families’ worst fears have been expressed in recent headlines, including a New York Times story that described “body bags piled up” behind a New Jersey nursing home where 70 residents had perished. Another investigation called nursing homes “death pits” and reported that at least 7,000 residents across the nation had died of COVID-19 — about 20% of all deaths reported at the time, April 17.

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What can families do? I asked nearly a dozen long-term care advocates and experts for advice. They cautioned that the problems — lapses in infection control and inadequate staffing foremost among them — require a strong response from regulators and lawmakers.

“The awful truth is families have no control over what’s happening and not nearly enough is being done to keep people safe,” said Michael Dark, a staff attorney at California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform.

Still, experts had several suggestions that may help:

Stay in touch. With virtually all visitors barred from nursing homes since mid-March, frequent contact with loved ones via telephone calls or video visits has become even more important. In addition to providing much-needed emotional support, it signals to staffers that family members are vigilant.

“When a facility knows someone is watching, those residents get better care,” said Daniel Ross, senior staff attorney at Mobilization for Justice, a legal aid agency in New York City. “Obviously, the ban of visitors is a real problem, but it doesn’t make family oversight impossible.”

If a resident has difficulty initiating contact (this can be true for people who have poor fine motor coordination, impaired eyesight or hearing, or dementia), he or she will need help from an aide. That can be problematic, though, with staff shortages and other tasks being given higher priority.

Scheduling a time for a call, a video chat or a “window visit” may make it easier, suggests Mairead Painter, Connecticut’s long-term care ombudsman.

AARP is pressing for Congress to require nursing homes to offer video visitation and to provide federal funding for the needed technologies. If you can afford to do so, buy a tablet for your loved one or organize a group of families to buy several.

Band together. More than likely, other families have similar concerns and need for information. Reach out through email chains or telephone trees, suggested Richard Mollot, executive director of the Long Term Care Community Coalition in New York City.

Ask your nursing home administrator to update families weekly through a conference call or Zoom video chat. Explain that families will probably call less often with repetitive questions if communication is coordinated.

Many nursing homes have family councils that advocate for residents, potentially valuable conduits for support and information. Your long-term care ombudsman or administrator can tell you if a council exists at your facility.

Working with a group can reduce the fear that complaining will provoke retaliation — a common concern among families.

“It’s one thing to hear ‘Mrs. Jones’ daughter is making a big deal of this’ and another to hear that families of ‘everyone on the second floor have noted there’s no staff there,’” Ross said.

Contact ombudsmen. Every state has a long-term care ombudsman responsible for advocating for nursing home residents, addressing complaints and trying to solve problems. While these experts currently are not allowed to visit facilities, they’re working at a distance in this time of crisis. To find your ombudsman, go to https://theconsumervoice.org/get_help.

Twice a week, Painter holds an hourlong question-and-answer session on the Connecticut Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program’s Facebook page. Among dozens of questions that people asked last week: What kind of communication can I expect when a family member is COVID-positive and in isolation? What’s the protocol for testing, and are homes out of test kits? Could families get a robocall if a resident died?

One person wondered whether installing cameras in residents’ rooms was an option. This practice is legal in eight states, but facilities may consider this elsewhere on a case-by-case basis. A fact sheet from the National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care lays out the pros and cons.

“Most of what we do is trying to work out better communication,” Painter said. “When there are staffing issues, as there are now, that’s the first thing that falls off.”

Lodge a complaint. Usually, Painter advises families to take concerns to a nurse or administrator rather than stew in silence. “Tell the story of what’s going on with the resident,” she said. “Identify exactly what the person’s needs are and why they need to be addressed.”

If you think a family member is being ignored, talk to the director of nurses and ask for a care plan meeting. “Whenever there’s a change in someone’s condition, there’s a requirement that a care plan meeting be convened, and that remains in effect,” said Eric Carlson, a directing attorney with Justice in Aging, a legal advocacy organization.

If that doesn’t work, go “up the facility’s chain of command” and contact the corporate office or board of directors, said Robyn Grant, director of public policy and advocacy at the National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care.

If you’re getting nowhere, file a complaint with the agency that oversees nursing homes in your state. (You can find a list at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services website.) This is a formality at the moment, since CMS has temporarily released agencies from the obligation to investigate most complaints. Still, “there may come a day when you’ll want a written record of this kind,” Dark advised.

Complaints that are getting attention from regulators involve “immediate jeopardy”: the prospect of serious harm, injury, impairment or death to a resident. “If you believe your concern rises to that level, make sure to indicate that,” the National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care advises.

Also, contact local, state and national public officials and insist they provide COVID-19 tests and personal protective equipment to nursing homes. “Calls, letters — the lives of your loved ones depend on it,” said Dr. Michael Wasserman, president of the California Association of Long Term Care Medicine.

Bring a relative home. Some nursing homes are asking families to take loved ones out of their facilities and bring them home. Every day, all day, Dark said, he gets calls from California families in this situation who are distraught and terrified.

Families need to think through these decisions carefully, said Dr. Joanne Lynn, a policy analyst with the Program to Improve Eldercare at Altarum, a research organization. What if their loved one becomes ill? Will they be able to provide care? If their relative has dementia or serious disabilities, can they handle the demands such conditions entail?

Researchers in Ottawa, Canada, have developed a useful decision aid for families, available at https://decisionaid.ohri.ca/docs/das/COVID-MoveFromLongTermCare.pdf. (Americans can ignore the Canada-specific information.)

At the very least, “get plans in place in case your relative has a bad [COVID-19] case. People can go from stable to serious illness within hours in many cases,” Lynn said.

This involves updating advance directives, including whether your loved one would want cardiopulmonary resuscitation, mechanical ventilation, transfer to the hospital in the event of a life-threatening health crisis or hospice care, should that be indicated.

As COVID-19 Lurks, Families Are Locked Out Of Nursing Homes. Is It Safe Inside? published first on https://nootropicspowdersupplier.tumblr.com/

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dinafbrownil · 4 years

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As COVID-19 Lurks, Families Are Locked Out Of Nursing Homes. Is It Safe Inside?

Navigating Aging

Navigating Aging focuses on medical issues and advice associated with aging and end-of-life care, helping America’s 45 million seniors and their families navigate the health care system.

To contact Judith Graham with a question or comment, click here.

Join the Navigating Aging Facebook Group.

See All Columns

Families are beset by fear and anxiety as COVID-19 makes inroads at nursing homes across the country, threatening the lives of vulnerable older adults.

Alarmingly more than 10,000 residents and staff at long-term care facilities have died from COVID infections, according to an April 23 analysis of state data by the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Are people getting enough to eat? How are their spirits? Are they stable physically or declining? Are staff shortages developing as health aides become sick?

Perhaps most pressing, does a loved one have COVID symptoms? Is testing available? If infected, is he or she getting adequate care?

Don't Miss A Story

Subscribe to KHN’s free Weekly Edition newsletter.

Please confirm your email address below:

Still, experts had several suggestions that may help:

Scheduling a time for a call, a video chat or a “window visit” may make it easier, suggests Mairead Painter, Connecticut’s long-term care ombudsman.

Working with a group can reduce the fear that complaining will provoke retaliation — a common concern among families.

“Most of what we do is trying to work out better communication,” Painter said. “When there are staffing issues, as there are now, that’s the first thing that falls off.”

At the very least, “get plans in place in case your relative has a bad [COVID-19] case. People can go from stable to serious illness within hours in many cases,” Lynn said.

from Updates By Dina https://khn.org/news/as-covid-19-lurks-families-are-locked-out-of-nursing-homes-is-it-safe-inside/

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stephenmccull · 4 years

Text

As COVID-19 Lurks, Families Are Locked Out Of Nursing Homes. Is It Safe Inside?

Navigating Aging

Navigating Aging focuses on medical issues and advice associated with aging and end-of-life care, helping America’s 45 million seniors and their families navigate the health care system.

To contact Judith Graham with a question or comment, click here.

Join the Navigating Aging Facebook Group.

See All Columns

Families are beset by fear and anxiety as COVID-19 makes inroads at nursing homes across the country, threatening the lives of vulnerable older adults.

Alarmingly more than 10,000 residents and staff at long-term care facilities have died from COVID infections, according to an April 23 analysis of state data by the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Are people getting enough to eat? How are their spirits? Are they stable physically or declining? Are staff shortages developing as health aides become sick?

Perhaps most pressing, does a loved one have COVID symptoms? Is testing available? If infected, is he or she getting adequate care?

Don't Miss A Story

Subscribe to KHN’s free Weekly Edition newsletter.

Please confirm your email address below:

Still, experts had several suggestions that may help:

Scheduling a time for a call, a video chat or a “window visit” may make it easier, suggests Mairead Painter, Connecticut’s long-term care ombudsman.

Working with a group can reduce the fear that complaining will provoke retaliation — a common concern among families.

“Most of what we do is trying to work out better communication,” Painter said. “When there are staffing issues, as there are now, that’s the first thing that falls off.”

At the very least, “get plans in place in case your relative has a bad [COVID-19] case. People can go from stable to serious illness within hours in many cases,” Lynn said.

As COVID-19 Lurks, Families Are Locked Out Of Nursing Homes. Is It Safe Inside? published first on https://smartdrinkingweb.weebly.com/

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automaticpostinfluencer · 4 years

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New Jersey shuts down nonessential businesses

This is CNBC’s 24-hour blog covering all the latest news on the coronavirus outbreak. All times below are in Eastern time. This live blog will be updated throughout the day as the news breaks.

Global cases: More than 287,00

Global deaths: At least 11,921

U.S. cases: At least 19,931

U.S. deaths: At least 275

The data above is from Johns Hopkins University.

1:50 pm: Amazon will ‘double hourly’ overtime pay for warehouse workers

Amazon said its doubling hourly wages for its associates working overtime in its U.S. warehouses as demand continues to grow due to the coronavirus.

“All hourly associates working in the U.S. Ops network will receive double their regular hourly rate for every overtime hour worked in a workweek,” Amazon said in a statement to CNBC. “This temporary increased overtime pay is effective March 15, 2020, and will continue through May 9, 2020.”

Reuters was first to report the news. Amazon said hourly workers will qualify to receive double pay after 40 hours. The announcement following similar one on Monday, when the e-commerce giant hiked the hourly rate for associates from $15 to $17. —Jade Scipioni

1:36 pm: NJ Governor orders nonessential retail businesses to close, issues stay-at-home order for nearly all residents

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy

Scott Mlyn | CNBC

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy signed an executive order mandating that “nearly all” state residents stay at home, NBC New York reported.

“All gatherings are canceled,” Murphy tweeted. “ALL non-essential retail businesses must indefinitely close their physical stores to the public effective 9:00 p.m. [Saturday night].

In New Jersey, 1,327 people have tested positive for COVID-19, Murphy said Saturday, 442 more cases than the previous day. To date, 16 people have died from the virus, Murphy said. —Terri Cullen

1:25 pm: Italy’s number of cases, deaths continue to soar

Italy’s grim tally of coronavirus cases and deaths continues to soar, with officials on Saturday announcing new day-to-day highs: 793 dead and 6,557 cases.

The country, at the heart of western Europe’s rampaging outbreak, now counts 53,578 known cases.

More than 60 percent of the latest deaths occurred in the northern region of Lombardy, whose hospitals have been reeling under a staggering caseload that has left intensive care beds hard to find and respirators in dire supply. The new increases come nearly two weeks into a national lockdown in a desperate bid to contain the contagion. —Associated Press

1:23 pm: UAE shuts beaches, parks, pools, cinemas, and gyms

The United Arab Emirates is shutting beaches, parks, pools, cinemas and gyms from Sunday for two weeks over coronavirus concerns, the state news agency WAM said on Saturday.

Restaurants and cafes will be allowed to operate for the same period at 20% of capacity, and as long as customers are at least two metres apart, and for delivery services, subject to review. —Reuters

1:02 pm: Kudlow says coronavirus relief package worth more than $2 trillion

Larry Kudlow, director of the U.S. National Economic Council, speaks during a television interview at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S. on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2020.

Alex Edelman | Bloomberg | Getty Images

The stimulus package under negotiation in the Senate to combat the economic damage from the coronavirus pandemic will likely total more than $2 trillion, White House Economic Advisor Larry Kudlow said on Saturday. The package is equal to about 10% of U.S. economic output, Kudlow told reporters as he went to a meeting with Republican senators on Capitol Hill. “We’re just trying to cover the right bases,” Kudlow said. —Emma Newburger

12:55 pm: Coronavirus relief must include expanded Social Security payments, Sens. Warren and Wyden say

The next coronavirus economic relief package must include increased payments for Social Security recipients, U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, wrote Saturday in a CNBC op-ed. “These Americans are scared about their heightened risk for severe illness — and scared about the future as they watch their retirement savings disappear as the pandemic shocks the U.S. economy,” they wrote.

The senators are calling for $200 increase in the monthly benefit payments through the end of 2021. In addition to Social Security recipients, Warren and Wyden wanted monthly payment increases for Veterans and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) beneficiaries. —Kevin Stankiewicz

12:06 pm: USA Track joins swimming in pushing for Olympic postponement

U.S. Olympic leaders face a growing rebellion after the USA Track and Field chief added to the call for a postponement of the Tokyo Games because of the mushrooming coronavirus crisis.

CEO Max Siegel sent a two-page note to his counterpart at the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee, Sarah Hirshland, asking the federation to advocate for a delay. It came late Friday, only a few hours after USA Swimming’s CEO sent a similar letter.

The national committees in Norway and Brazil also have each went public with requests to postpone. —The Associated Press

11:44 am: Stitch Fix temporarily closes two distribution centers due to coronavirus

Katrina Lake, CEO of Stitch Fix

Adam Jeffery | CNBC

Stitch Fix announced Friday that it will temporarily close two of its distribution centers, one in California and the other in Pennsylvania, due to the coronavirus.

“As a result, please bear with us if your Fix arrives a little later or your return is processed later than planned while we manage through these changes. We will be doing our best to communicate with you individually in these cases, please know our team is working hard to make sure your experience is still the best it can possibly be,” Stitch Fix CEO Katrina Lake said in a statement.

The online personal styling service has four other facilities in the U.S. The company also said it plans to pay its employees impacted by the closures in the near term and “will continue to evaluate doing so if the closures are extended.” Founded in 2011, Stitch Fix went public in 2017. —Amanda Lasky, Jade Scipioni

10:50 am: Facebook’s response to coronavirus could improve its reputation

10:17 am: Google launches coronavirus information site to help find testing

Google dropped its much-anticipated website for coronavirus testing on Friday night. The platform allows users to fill out a questionnaire and learn how to obtain a test for the virus. It also provides resources for safety and prevention and a donation option to the UN Foundation’s COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund for the World Health Organization. —Emma Newburger

10:05 am: Congress is working on a $1 trillion rescue package, but it might not be enough for US businesses

Congress is scrambling to put together a third coronavirus relief package − and lobbyists are flooding the phones.

Lawmakers this weekend are pushing to meet the White House’s Monday deadline of coming to an agreement on a rescue package likely to top $1 trillion. Executives have zeroed in on language in Senate Republicans’ initial proposal allocating a portion of those funds to Big Business.

The proposed bill funnels $50 billion to airlines, $8 billion to cargo air carriers, and $150 billion for other “distressed businesses” — a category it leaves notably undefined. But companies have no interest in leaving the definition of “severely distressed business” up to Treasury. —Lauren Hirsch

10:04 am: S&P 500 could post record highs early next year, JPM says

The S&P 500 could return to record highs by early next year if U.S. efforts to contain the coronavirus outbreak work and the government can quickly move forward with fiscal stimulus to cushion the impending economic blow, JPMorgan‘s chief U.S. equity strategist said Friday. Dubravko Lakos-Bujas wrote in a note to clients he expects the S&P 500 to reach 3,400 in early 2021. That would top an all-time high of 3,386 set on Feb. 19. —Fred Imbert

9:19 am: German cases rise by more than 2,000

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany has risen by 2,705 within a day to reach 16,662, the Robert Koch Institute for infectious diseases said on Saturday.

It said a total of 47 people had died after testing positive, an increase of 16 from a tally of 31 published on Friday. —Reuters

8:30 am: WHO offers tips for living under quarantine

Don’t smoke, limit drinking, exercise and try not to watch too much news.

These are some of the recommendations from the World Health Organization to stay physically and mentally healthy while living under quarantine. The new coronavirus that originated in Wuhan, China less than three months ago has spread to more than 300,000 people in nearly every country across the world.

More than 100 million people across the world are living under some form of social confinement as public officials struggle to contain the COVID-19 outbreak that’s already claimed more than 12,000 lives. —Dawn Kopecki

8:15 am: Hospitals seek emergency credit and $100 billion in US aid

Medical workers and other officials gather outside of the Brooklyn Hospital Center where testing for the coronavirus has started on March 19, 2020 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City.

Spencer Platt | Getty Images

U.S. hospitals are setting up coronavirus wards and tents, seeking emergency credit lines and lobbying Washington for a $100 billion stabilization fund to help meet an expected onslaught of patients as the pandemic sweeps the nation.

“We believe hospitals and health systems should be top priority number one for the Congress, at this moment,” said Robyn Bash, vice president for government relations at the American Hospital Association.

The AHA estimates that some hospital systems are losing up to $1 million a day, and the costs are mounting. In many states hospitals have been forced to cancel all elective surgeries, along with non-emergency procedures which generate higher revenues for their facilities. At the same time, they are ramping up staffing to handle the expected influx of acute care patients and spending on as much acute care equipment as they can find. —Bertha Coombs

7:43 am: Confirmed cases in Spain nears 25,000 as more than 1,300 people die

The Spanish health ministry said Saturday that 1,326 people had now died from the coronavirus in the country, a rise of 324 on the day before. The total number of confirmed cases now stands at 24,926.

It comes after Isabel Diaz Ayuso, the president of the region of Madrid, said Friday that the majority of people in Spain’s capital city will get the coronavirus. Speaking to state radio Thursday, she said eight out of 10 people in the city would contract COVID-19.

Spain is second only to Italy for coronavirus-related cases and deaths in Europe, which has become the epicenter of the outbreak. The WHO has advised all countries to adopt a mix of interventions based on an analysis of the local situation and context, with containment as a major pillar. —Katrina Bishop and Sam Meredith

6:21 am: Iran’s death toll tops 1,500 as confirmed cases in the country continue to rise

The number of people who have died from the coronavirus in Iran has reached 1,556 — a rise of more than 100, a health ministry spokesman said on Saturday, Reuters reported.

Speaking on state TV, Kianoush Jahanpour said the total number of confirmed cases was now at 20,610.

Iran has the fifth-highest number of cases of the virus in the world, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. It comes behind China, Italy, Spain, and Germany.

Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani said Saturday that the country had to “do everything necessary to return economic production to normal,” Reuters reported. Rouhani said that social distancing measures would likely be lifted in two-to-three weeks. —Katrina Bishop

2:40 am: Starbucks to shut most cafes in US and Canada

Starbucks said it will close most company-operated cafes across North America for two weeks, and service will be limited to drive-throughs, in helping to slow the spread of the virus, according to a Reuters report.

Cafes in or near hospitals and health care centers will be exempted from closing, it said. —Weizhen Tan

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Pence staffer tests positive, US cases over 17,000

This is CNBC’s live blog covering all the latest news on the coronavirus outbreak. All times below are in Eastern time. This blog will be updated throughout the day as the news breaks.

Global cases: More than 259,000

Global deaths: At least 11,000

US cases: At least 17,000

US deaths: At least 210

All data above is provided by John Hopkins University.

8:30 pm: Boeing suspends dividend, CEO foregoes pay after virus-related aid request

Boeing will cancel CEO pay, suspend its dividend and extend a pause on share buybacks, the U.S. planemaker said on Friday, as companies eager for government aid to curb fallout from the coronavirus face pressure to cut payouts to investors.

Boeing’s decision echoes similar measures taken by the largest U.S. airlines in an effort to win over taxpayer support for their requests for stimulus packages, as the fast-spreading virus virtually erases air travel demand and hits the global economy. —Reuters

8 pm: Washington governor asked Trump to declare ‘major disaster’ in state

Washington state Gov. Jay Inslee sent a 74-page letter to President Donald Trump requesting that he declare a federal major disaster in the state to unlock additional federal assistance, including unemployment assistance and basic food benefits. “The state urgently requires additional supplemental federal emergency assistance in order to save lives, protect public health and safety, and limit further spread of the disease,” Inslee said. —Salvador Rodriguez

7:31 pm: GM to lend its auto factories to support production of ventilators in coronavirus fight

General Motors on Friday announced it will lend its auto factories to support Ventec Life Systems’ production of ventilators in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

“We are working closely with Ventec to rapidly scale up production of their critically important respiratory products to support our country’s fight again the COVID-19 pandemic,” GM CEO Mary Barra said in a statement. “We will continue to explore ways to help in this time of crisis.” —Salvador Rodriguez

6:57 pm: Gary Cohn says the US is in a recession that will cost ‘trillions’ as unemployment ‘skyrockets’

The U.S. is in a recession that will see unemployment soar and cost trillions of dollars to solve, Gary Cohn, former White House economic advisor and Goldman Sachs executive, told CNBC.

With markets in turmoil and companies announcing a stream of layoffs, the former National Economic Council director under President Donald Trump said it was hard to put an optimistic face on what’s happening now.

“We’re in recession, I’m not going to tell you that we’re not in recession right now. You cannot remove the consumer from the U.S. economy … and say that we’re not in recession,” Cohn said on “Closing Bell. “The unemployment number is going to skyrocket.” —Jeff Cox

6:49 pm: ‪Member of Vice President Pence’s staff tests positive for COVID-19

U.S. Vice President Mike Pence speaks as U.S. President Donald Trump, left, listens during a Coronavirus Task Force news conference in the briefing room of the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Thursday, March 19, 2020.

Yuri Gripas | Bloomberg | Getty Images

A member of Vice President Mike Pence’s office tested positive for the new coronavirus COVID-19, according to Katie Miller, the vice president’s press secretary.

“Neither President Trump nor Vice President Pence had close contact with the individual,” Miller said. “Further contact tracing is being conducted in accordance with CDC guidelines.”

The office was notified of the positive test Friday evening, according to a statement. —Chris Eudaily

6:39 pm: Macy’s taps $1.5 billion credit line, suspends earnings outlook and dividends

Macy’s said that it has fully drawn its $1.5 billion revolving credit facility, in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. The department store chain said it did so as a “proactive measure.”

Macy’s has also withdrawn its 2020 sales and earnings outlook, and it is not offering an updated forecast at this time.

The retailer is further suspending its quarterly cash dividend, starting in the fiscal second quarter. It said its previously announced dividend payment, set for April 1, will not be impacted. The company said that shareholders of record as of March 13 will receive a first-quarter dividend payment, as scheduled. —Lauren Thomas

6:32 pm: Updated map of US coronavirus cases, which now total 17,402

6:26 pm: Novartis to donate malaria drug in the fight against COVID-19

Novartis will donate enough doses of malaria drug hydroxychloroquine to treat several million patients in the fight against the coronavirus, if it wins approval, the Swiss company said.

There are no vaccines or treatments approved for the disease, but there is currently a 1,500-person trial, led by the University of Minnesota, to see whether hydroxychloroquine can prevent or reduce the severity of COVID-19. Two other trials are studying blood pressure drug losartan as a possible treatment.

Novartis makes the malaria drug, which is also used to treat lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, at its Sandoz unit in the United States. It plans to donate 130 million doses of the drug and is in talks with U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulators over expanding its use for coronavirus. —Reuters

6:20 pm: CEOs say food supply chains are so far holding up during outbreak shopping rush

Food supply chains have so far held up despite the coronavirus bringing swaths of the American economy to a halt, CEOs from across the industry told CNBC.

“As of right now, the supply chain remains strong. It remains healthy,” Chipotle CEO Brian Niccol said on “Power Lunch.” “We’re fortunate that we’ve got such great partners getting us the Chipotle food we need to run our business.”

Niccol’s comments come as the food industry across the U.S. experiences upheaval due to the coronavirus pandemic. State and local governments are mandating the closure of restaurants and bars, except for takeout and delivery food, while grocery stores face increased demand as consumers stockpile goods. —Kevin Stankiewicz

5:50 pm: New York City is the new coronavirus epicenter with one-third of all US cases, Mayor de Blasio says

New York City accounts for roughly a third of all the coronavirus cases in the nation with 5,151 confirmed infections as of 10 a.m., Mayor Bill de Blasio said.

“We are now the epicenter of this crisis,” he said at a press conference, adding that 29 residents have died. Some 52 New York City police are among those infected, city officials said. —Noah Higgins-Dunn

5:30 pm: Hospitals set up coronavirus tents, seek emergency credit and $100 billion in US aid

5 pm: Global auto production could fall by 1.4 million vehicles this year

As the coronavirus spreads across the globe, shuttered auto plants in Europe, North America and Latin America could reduce global production this year by more than 1.4 million vehicles, according to new research from IHS Markit.

Auto plants across the globe have announced plans to temporarily suspend production in order to sanitize facilities and prevent the spread of COVID-19. The hiatus, which could last for nearly three weeks in some cases, would create an immediate cash crunch to automakers through lost vehicle production. —Noah Higgins-Dunn

4:40 pm: Illinois Gov. Pritzker issues ‘stay-at-home’ order

Streets are quiet due to a “shelter in place” order given to residents to slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus on March 20, 2020 in Oak Park,Illinois.

Jonathan Daniel | Getty Images

Illinois Gov. Jay Pritzker announced a statewide “stay-at-home” order, a measure that takes effect on Saturday at 5 p.m. and will last until April 7. Pritzker said people will still be able to leave their homes to buy groceries, go running and for other purposes.

“To avoid the loss of potentially tens of thousands of lives, we must enact an immediate stay-at-home order for the state of Illinois,” he said at a news briefing. “For the vast majority of you already taking precautions, your lives will not change very much.” —William Feuer

4:26 pm: Delta warns second-quarter revenue to fall $10 billion because of coronavirus

Delta Air Lines CEO warned Friday that the airline’s second-quarter revenue will be down 80% — or $10 billion — from the same quarter a year ago because of coronavirus.

Executives say demand has collapsed because of the illness, forcing them to encourage workers to take unpaid leave. The carriers are on edge and are betting on a government bailout to help soften the blow of the disease’s impact on their business. —Leslie Josephs

4:00 pm: Dow losses accelerate into the close

3:52 pm: United warns of possible job cuts

United Airlines on Friday warned it could cut jobs if the U.S. government doesn’t provide aid by the end of the month to the industry, which is struggling with the devastating impact of coronavirus on travel demand.

U.S. airlines, which directly employ close to 750,000 people, are on edge about how quickly lawmakers will provide aid to the industry, grappling with a collapse in demand that executives have described as worse than 9/11.

United and its competitors have raced to slash flights, freeze hiring and ask employees to take unpaid leaves, but executives have warned it’s still not enough. —Leslie Josephs

3:46 pm: Google’s big developer conference is fully canceled

The big annual Google I/O developer conference is now completely canceled, Google said. On March 3, the company moved the in-person event to an online-only affair over growing concerns about the spread of COVID-19. But, now those sessions are also being canceled.

″Out of concern for the health and safety of our developers, employees, and local communities — and in line with ‘shelter in place’ requirements by the local Bay Area government — we sadly will not be holding an I/O event in any capacity this year,” Google said in a tweet. “Right now, the most important thing all of us can do is focus our attention on helping people with the new challenges we all face. We’ll continue to do everything we can to help our communities stay safe, informed, and connected. Please know that we remain committed to sharing ongoing Android updates with you through our developer blogs and community forums.” —Todd Haselton

3:33 pm: WHO officials say at least 20 coronavirus vaccines are in development

The World Health Organization is working with scientists across the globe on at least 20 different coronavirus vaccines with some already in clinical trials in record time — just 60 days after sequencing the gene.

“The acceleration of this process is really truly dramatic in terms of what we’re able to do, building on work that started with SARS, that started with MERS and now is being used for COVID-19 ,” Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, the technical lead for WHO’s emergencies program, said at a press conference at the organization’s headquarters in Geneva on Friday.

The vaccines are still a long way away from being available for public use, WHO officials cautioned. Leading scientists say the clinical trials and safety approvals needed to get a workable vaccine to market could take up to 18 months. —Noah Higgins-Dunn, Emma Newburger

3:27 pm: Italy closes all parks in further tightening of lockdown

Medical personnel transport the first patient affected by COVID-19 to an ICU tent a Samaritan’s Purse Emergency Field Hospital on March 20, 2020 in Cremona, near Milan, Italy.

Emanuele Cremaschi | Getty Images

Italy’s health ministry approved new measures to limit people’s movements in an effort to contain the worst coronavirus outbreak in Europe.

From Saturday, parks and public gardens will be shut down and people will be allowed to take exercise only around their homes, a directive seen by Reuters said. Games and recreational activities in the open air will also be prohibited.

“We must do even more to contain the contagion,” Health Minister Roberto Speranza said in a statement. —Reuters

3:18 pm: Banks offer help

2:56 pm: Global smartphone sales tank

Global smartphone shipments dropped 38% year-over-year during February from 99.2 million devices to 61.8 million, the largest fall ever in the history of the smartphone market, according to a new report from Strategy Analytics.

Shipments to distributors plunged in China and and slumped across Asia as work shut down and people stayed at home, according to the report.

“We started to track smartphone market back to 2003. This is the biggest ever fall historically,” Linda Sui, analyst at Strategy Analytics said in an email. —Kif Leswing

2:40 pm: Stock losses worsen

Stocks slashed their earlier gains as investors concluded a week of wild swings. Wall Street has been grappling with fears over the coronavirus’ economic blow, fueling historic market volatility.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded 500 points lower, or more than 2%, after rallying more than 400 points earlier in the day. The S&P 500 slid 2.3%. The Nasdaq Composite traded 1.4% lower after jumping more than 2%. —Fred Imbert, Pippa Stevens

2:31 pm: Private jet industry — the transportation of choice for the wealthy — asks for bailout funding

The private-jet industry is asking Congress for bailout money, even as many private jet companies say sales are strong as wealthy flyers avoid commercial flights.

The National Business Aviation Association, or NBAA, which represents private-jet companies and corporate jets, sent a joint letter with other industry groups to congressional leaders saying the industry is facing “increasing financial uncertainty” and that private-jet companies should be included in any airline or aviation bailout. —Robert Frank

2:24 pm: How states are expanding unemployment eligibility to include more people impacted by coronavirus

President Donald Trump signed a $100 billion coronavirus relief package into law Wednesday, which will provide free COVID-19 testing and expand paid leave and unemployment insurance to Americans impacted by the pandemic.

More funding to unemployment insurance can help the nearly one in five U.S. households that have already experienced a layoff or reduction in work hours due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to an NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll and reported by NPR.

Following an announcement from the U.S. Department of Labor last week, states, which administer unemployment programs, have been granted greater flexibility in determining who qualifies for unemployment insurance benefits. —Jennifer Liu

2:16 pm: WHO officials warn health systems are ‘collapsing’ under coronavirus: ‘This isn’t just a bad flu season’

World Health Organization officials warned against dismissing the coronavirus that’s swept across the globe as just a bad outbreak of the flu, saying it has overwhelmed health systems around the world in just a few weeks.

“Take one look at what’s happening in some health systems around the world. Look at the intensive care units completely overwhelmed. Doctors and nurses utterly exhausted,” Mike Ryan, executive director of the World Health Organization’s emergencies program, said at a press briefing from the organization’s Geneva headquarters. “This is not normal. This isn’t just a bad flu season.” —Will Feuer

2:09 pm: Trump invoked the Defense Production Act. Here’s how he can use its powers

President Donald Trump said he will use the Defense Production Act in response to the deadly coronavirus pandemic.

The Korean War-era statute can force certain American companies to produce materials that are in short supply in the face of the growing outbreak.

During Friday’s coronavirus task force briefing, Trump said that the administration on Thursday night “put it into gear,” adding that he has already spoken with multiple companies about it.

“Most of the states, in no way did they do anything wrong, they were stocked up,” Trump said. “They were all equipped. Unfortunately they’ve never had a thing like this. So they need help from the federal government.” —Yelena Dzhanova

1:58 pm: NYSE owner defends stock sales after virus briefing by CEO Sprecher and wife, Sen. Loeffler

1:50 pm: ‘It’s a new planet overnight’: New York City businesses hit hard by coronavirus pandemic

Delilah Salon in Brooklyn.

Greg Iacurci

A palpable chill had settled over Park Slope on an otherwise beautiful Monday evening.

The brownstone-lined streets of this South Brooklyn enclave, typically abuzz with commuters at peak rush hour, were near empty. Stores of all kinds — from restaurants, cafes and bars to gyms and bodegas — were closed until further notice.

For a city that never sleeps, the lethargy felt out of place.

But it has become the new normal in the age of the coronavirus, which has wreaked havoc on local New York businesses as customers have stayed home out of fear and lawmakers have shut entire sectors of the city’s economy to halt its spread. —Lorie Konish, Annie Nova, Greg Iacurci

1:41 pm: Joe Biden urges ‘every CEO in America’ to commit to no stock buybacks for a year

Former Vice President Joe Biden on Friday urged “every CEO in America” to commit to a year of no stock buybacks as the coronavirus pandemic wrecks the U.S. economy.

As Congress and the White House hash out an economic relief plan expected to easily top $1 trillion, Democrats have pushed for a proposal to specify that companies receiving aid must stop share repurchases. The suggestion by the Democratic presidential front-runner appears to go even further — to all public companies.

“As workers face the physical and economic consequences of the coronavirus, our corporate leaders cannot cede responsibility for their employees,” Biden said in a tweeted statement. —Jacob Pramuk

1:33 pm: Target pays bonuses, hikes pay by $2 an hour amid surge in shopping

An aisle with cleaning products has partially been cleared out by Coronavirus shoppers at a Target store in Bloomington.

Jeremy Hogan | Echoes Wire | Barcroft Media via Getty Images

Target is temporarily increasing employees’ wages by $2 an hour and giving bonuses of up to $1,500 to thousands of employees as the retailer experiences a surge in shopping during the coronavirus outbreak.

The Minneapolis-based retailer said all employees at stores and distribution centers will get a pay increase until at least May 2. Target said each employee will earn an average of $240 to $480 more during that time frame.

The retailer is paying bonuses of between $250 and $1,500 to 20,000 hourly team leaders who oversee store departments. —Melissa Repko

1:25 pm: UK PM Boris Johnson announces nationwide lockdown measures

U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced nationwide lockdown measures, telling cafes, bars and restaurants to close.

“We are collectively telling cafes, pubs, bars and restaurants to close tonight as soon as they reasonably can and not to open tomorrow,” Johnson said at a daily briefing on the coronavirus.

He said takeout services for these businesses would be able to continue.

“We are also telling nightclubs, theaters, cinemas, gyms and leisure centers to close on the same timescale.” —Sam Meredith

Correction: This entry has been updated to reflect that U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced nationwide lockdown measures. An earlier version misstated the extent of the closures.

1:19 pm: Microsoft and Adaptive Biotechnologies are studying how the human immune system reacts to the coronavirus

Microsoft and Adaptive Biotechnologies are working together to study how the human immune system responds to the COVID-19 coronavirus.

By understanding the immune signature, meaning how humans are responding to the disease, the companies hope to speed the process of developing a more accurate diagnostic test and treatment for COVID-19.

“Most efforts we’re seeing so far are focused on the biology of the virus,” said Adaptive Biotechnologies CEO Chad Robins by phone. “Now we’re turning our focus on COVID-19 and adding a new dimension, which is the immune response.” —Christina Farr

1:09 pm: Saudi Arabia announces $32 billion in emergency rescue funds to mitigate oil, virus impact

Saudi Arabia’s government unveiled stimulus measures amounting to 120 Saudi billion riyals ($32 billion US) on Friday to support an economy hit by the double blow of the coronavirus crisis and dramatically lower oil prices.

The sum includes Riyadh’s 50 billion riyals package announced last week to support small and medium-sized businesses. Friday’s announcement introduces a further 70 billion riyals to aid businesses, including the postponement of tax payments and exemptions of various government levies and fees. —Natasha Turak

1:04 pm: Don’t panic — International Paper CEO says there will be ‘plenty’ of toilet paper and diapers

People shop for toilet paper at a Costco store in Novato, California on March 14, 2020.

Josh Edelson | AFP | Getty Images

The shelves of some stores may not have toilet paper and diapers, but the products are weaving through the supply chain, International Paper CEO Mark Sutton told CNBC on Friday.

“Diapers and toilet paper, there’s plenty of it,” Sutton said on “Squawk Box.” “It’s just got to get the velocity through the system, through the distribution centers and directly to the consumers.”

The dramatic increase in demand for products such as toilet paper, paper towels and diapers due to the coronavirus will not last forever, Sutton said. —Kevin Stankiewicz

12:59 pm: Americans who have lost wages amid coronavirus outbreak worry they’ll be short over $900 on their bills

Over half of Americans say that the coronavirus outbreak has already negatively affected their household income, according to a new TransUnion poll. About 45% say at the very least, their work hours have been reduced.

That’s leading to some financial shortfalls. Nearly three out of four Americans are concerned about paying their bills and making good on loans, according to TransUnion’s poll of over 1,000 U.S. adults fielded on March 19. Within the next month, Americans financially impacted by the current pandemic estimate they’ll be short by roughly $900, on average, on the payments they owe. —Megan Leonhardt

12:54 pm: Goldman sees unprecedented stop in economic activity, with 2nd quarter GDP contracting 24%

Goldman Sachs economists forecast an unprecedented 24% decline in second-quarter gross domestic product, following a 6% decline in the first quarter, based on the economy’s sudden and historic shutdown as the country responds to the coronavirus pandemic.

The economists then expect a bounce-back of 12% in the third quarter and 10% in the fourth quarter, but unemployment will surge to 9%. They also expect GDP to contract by 3.8% for the full year on an annual average basis, and 3.1% on a fourth-quarter over fourth-quarter basis. —Patti Domm

12:48 pm: Kraft Heinz factories are working three shifts a day to keep up with demand

Some Kraft Heinz factories are working three shifts a day to meet increased demand for its products as stockpiling for the coronavirus pandemic has left many grocery store shelves bare.

“I have to say that our teams in our factories, in our distribution systems, are incredibly proud and understanding of the duty they have ahead of them,” CEO Miguel Patricio told CNBC’s Sara Eisen on “Squawk Alley.”

Patricio also said that the company has fully drawn down its $4 billion revolving credit line as a precautionary measure. —Amelia Lucas

12:38 pm: US and Mexico restrict travel across border

View of San Ysidro port of entry as few cars enter the US from Tijuana, Baja California state, Mexico, on March 19, 2020.

Guillermo Arias | AFP | Getty Images

The U.S. and Mexico have agreed to restrict all non-essential travel across their border, the Trump administration announced.

Members of the White House coronavirus task force also said that people who enter the country from Mexico and Canada without proper documentation will be immediately turned away from the United States’ borders. —Kevin Breuninger

12:21 pm: Panicked wealthy are fleeing to the Hamptons and Hudson Valley

Wealthy New Yorkers fleeing the city are driving up the prices of rentals in the Hamptons and Hudson Valley, with rates more than tripling for some properties.

As New York imposes strict stay-home guidelines and the number of coronavirus cases skyrockets, New Yorkers who can afford it are decamping to more rural locales. Brokers say they’re getting barraged with calls from families wanting rentals immediately, some for two weeks, some for up to a year.

“This is unprecedented,” said Delyse Berry, of Upstate Down, a Hudson Valley real estate advisory and management firm. “It’s like a panic. I have never placed so many people in rentals in one week, and at these prices, ever. Even in the summer.” —Robert Frank

11:58 am: Retailers grapple with closed stores and coronavirus

Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, dozens of retailers, big and small, have said their stores will temporarily go dark through at least the end of the month, likely choosing that initial time frame because they have already paid March rent in full. The list includes everyone from Nike and Apple to start-ups Allbirds and Glossier.

The consequences of still having to pay rent on a location that is not in business could deal a huge blow to some retailers that are already strained for cash. Typically, rent is one of a retailer’s biggest expense items. Couple that with the fact that many retailers’ sales are about to shrink drastically, so long as consumers are holed up and home and stocking up on groceries and household essentials, not discretionary items like shoes and shirts.

The closures raise a huge question. In some of these instances, stores are closing as the shopping mall itself remains open for business, per the landlord’s decision. Retailers are left wondering: Do we still have to pay? —Lauren Thomas

11:48 am: Dow gives up Friday gain, heads for 13% loss for the week

Stocks slashed their earlier gains as investors concluded a week that featured wild swings. Wall Street has been grappling with fears over the coronavirus’ economic blow, fueling historic market volatility.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded 40 points higher, or 0.2% after rallying more than 400 points earlier in the day. The S&P 500 dipped 0.2%. The Nasdaq Composite traded 1.1% higher after jumping more than 2%. —Fred Imbert, Pippa Stevens

11:41 am: New York Gov. Cuomo orders 100% of non-essential businesses to work from home

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered non-essential businesses to keep 100% of their workforce at home as coronavirus cases across the state surged by 2,950 overnight to 7,102.

“When I talk about the most drastic action we can take, this is the most drastic action we can take,” Cuomo said at a press conference in Albany. —Will Feuer, Noah Higgins-Dunn

11:35 am: California’s stay-home order not necessarily a ‘one-size-fits-all’ policy for other states, Pence aide says

The Freeway 110 is pictured with downtown Los Angeles, California on March 19, 2020.

Apu Gomes | AFP | Getty Images

A top aide to Vice President Mike Pence, who leads the White House’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, said that California’s sweeping order for residents to stay at home should not necessarily be copied by other states.

Marc Short, Pence’s chief of staff, was asked on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” whether California’s decision, issued Thursday evening by Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, will soon be copied by most other states.

Short said that since three states — California, Washington and New York — comprise more than half of all confirmed coronavirus cases in the U.S., Newsom’s order may not become “a one-size-fits-all policy.” —Kevin Breuninger

11:26 am: Spain official warns 80% of people in Madrid will get virus, as nationwide death toll tops 1,000

On Friday, Spain’s health emergency chief reported that the country’s death toll from the coronavirus outbreak had soared to 1,002, up from 767 on Thursday. Speaking to state radio Thursday, Isabel Diaz Ayuso, the president of the region of Madrid, said eight out of 10 people in the city would contract COVID-19.

Spain is second only to Italy for coronavirus-related cases and deaths in Europe, which has become the epicenter of the outbreak.

The World Health Organization has advised all countries to adopt a mix of interventions based on an analysis of the local situation and context, with containment as a major pillar. —Sam Meredith

10:30 am: IRS will move tax filing deadline to July 15, Mnuchin says

The IRS will move the national income tax filing day to July 15, three months after the normal deadline for Americans to send in their returns.

The move announced by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin is the latest in a series of highly unusual emergency measures to deal with the financial fallout of the coronavirus pandemic.

Mnuchin said the extension will give “all taxpayers and business this additional time” to file returns and make tax payments “without interest or penalties.” —Dan Mangan, Darla Mercado

10:28 am: JC Penney yanks its earnings outlook

J.C. Penney has withdrawn its earnings outlook due to the uncertainty surrounding COVID-19.

The department store chain announced it is not providing an updated outlook at this time.

On Wednesday, Penney said it would close all of its stores across the country at least until April 2 in the fight against the pandemic. It did not clarify whether or not it would be paying workers during this time. A spokesperson declined to comment.

Penney is also postponing its analyst day, which had been set for April 7, until future notice. —Lauren Thomas

10:26 am: Restaurateur Danny Meyer: It’s going to take a month to recruit our team back and train them

Shake Shack founder Danny Meyer told CNBC that it’s going to take some time for restaurants to reopen once the coronavirus pandemic has slowed.

“It’s going to take a good month or so to recruit our teams back and to get train them, trained before we could serve like we used to,” Meyer said on “Squawk on the Street.”

Meyer’s Union Square Hospitality Group laid off about 2,000 workers on Wednesday. —Kevin Stankiewicz

10:20 am: Analyst anticipates ‘worst crisis since 1929’ amid fears of a global recession

People gathering on Wall Street in front of the New York Stock Exchange, October 25, 1929.

Ullstein bild | Getty Images

Financial markets are facing their worst crisis since 1929, a veteran analyst told CNBC on Friday, as top economists downgrade their forecasts to point to an impending global recession.

Stephen Isaacs, chairman of the investment committee at Alvine Capital Management, said that having entered the crisis with “record levels of leverage” and overbought stocks, the situation was “unprecedented.”

“We came into this with all sorts of problems hiding within the momentum of a massive bull market, which again leads me to feel extremely concerned that the selling is only abating temporarily, and that we are still looking, unfortunately at a very, very difficult situation,” Isaacs told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe.” —Elliott Smith

10:15 am: YouTube and Netflix are cutting streaming quality in Europe due to lockdowns

YouTube and Netflix are reducing streaming quality in Europe as more countries and regions enter lockdown to combat the spread of the coronavirus.

The move is intended to help the internet run smoothly as traffic spikes due to more people in the region being forced to stay at home.

Google subsidiary YouTube said it was “making a commitment to temporarily switch all traffic in the EU to standard definition by default” in a media statement on Friday. It said the move would be for a preliminary period of 30 days. —Chloe Taylor

10:03 am: Even if you’re working from home, your employer is still watching

Carlina Teteris | Getty Images

The continued spread of COVID-19 is forcing millions of Americans to work from home. As many workers shift to a new reality, they and their managers may be concerned about staying as productive as possible.

Although it may be tempting to slack off work when stuck inside the comfort of your home, proceed with caution — your boss could be watching.

About half of large companies use some type of nontraditional monitoring techniques to keep tabs on their employees, including methods like analyzing texts of emails and social media messages and gathering biometric data, according to a survey from the research and advisory company Gartner in 2018. The company surveyed 239 large corporations. CNBC’s Make It details some of the ways employers may be keeping tabs on you. —Karina Hernandez

9:54 am: Amazon AWS launches $20 million initiative

Amazon AWS is setting aside an initial $20 million to help accelerate research and development of diagnostic solutions. That includes, but won’t be limited to, helping push forward a more accurate, faster coronavirus COVID-19 test.

Amazon specifies that the program, called the AWS Diagnostic Development Initiative, is open to accredited research institutions and private entities that are AWS customers. At launch, the program includes 35 global research institutions, startups, and businesses. It’ll also be supported by an outside technical advisory group made up of “leading scientists, global health policy experts, and thought leaders” who specialize in infectious disease diagnostics.

It hopes to focus these resources specifically on AWS customers that are working on point-of-care diagnostics, or testing that can be done at home or at a clinic with same-day results. —Christina Farr, Annie Palmer

9:50 am: JPMorgan is giving tellers, other ‘front-line’ employees a $1,000 bonus

JPMorgan Chase said it was giving bank tellers and other “front-line employees” a one-time bonus of up to $1,000 to help cushion the difficulties of working during the coronavirus pandemic.

“Many of our front line employees in our branches, operations and call centers, and other key sites who continue to go into their office or branch each day face particular challenges related to issues like childcare and transportation,” the bank said in a Friday memo to employees.

“To help them meet these challenges and to recognize their ongoing commitment to our customers, clients, and communities, we will make a one-time COVID-19 special payment equal to a maximum of US$1,000 (not to exceed 10% of salary/regular pay or fixed pay in certain countries).” —Hugh Son

9:29 am: Coca-Cola withdraws 2020 outlook

A man walks past shelves of Coca-Cola bottles and cans at a shopping mall in Lagos, Nigeria November 5, 2019.

Temilade Adelaja | Reuters

Coca-Cola on Friday said that it does not expect to meet its outlook for 2020 due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

Around the world, sporting events and concerts have been canceled, movie theaters and restaurants have been closed, and people are working from home. Those initiatives to promote social distancing, along with currency fluctuations, are expected to hit Coke’s business, according to a regulatory filing.

Coke previously forecast that 2020 organic revenue would grow by 5% and adjusted earnings per share would increase by 7% to $2.25.

Coke said it cannot estimate the blow to its business at this time, although it “could be material.” The company said that it expects to provide an update when it reports its first-quarter earnings. —Amelia Lucas

9:22 am: Hopes are high for a treatment, which could come much quicker than a vaccine

Scientists around the globe are racing to develop tests, treatments, and vaccines to combat the COVID-19 disease.

Near term, tests are the priority. Beyond testing, regulators are trying to get treatments approved as quickly and safely as possible to serve as a bridge to a vaccine, which is likely to take 12 months, according to the U.S. FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn.

Health-care experts broadly agree that a treatment is likely to come before a vaccine. “If a good treatment emerges, whatever it is, we expect regulators to prioritize expeditious review,” Laura Sutcliffe, a UBS health-care analyst said in a research note. —Julianna Tatelbaum

9:15 am: How one elite New York medical provider got its patients tested

As U.S. authorities scrambled to ramp up the nation’s capacity to test for coronavirus last week, at least 100 executives and other New Yorkers of means had easy access to testing, according to two sources familiar with the activities of a little-known medical service catering to the affluent.

These people paid a $5,000-a-year membership fee for a medical concierge service in New York City called Sollis Health, which worked with Enzo Clinical Labs Inc to test its members for COVID-19, according to the sources.

The arrangement gave members, which include people in finance, entertainment, advertising, and media industries, access to the tests at home at a time New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said the state had the capacity to test just a few hundred patients a day. The two sources declined to provide the identities of the people the company tested for coronavirus and Reuters could not establish them. —Reuters

9:00 am: GameStop considers itself ‘essential retail,’ tells stores to stay open

GameStop told its stores to stay open even in the event of state or city lockdowns in response to the coronavirus outbreak, according to a memo obtained by gaming website Kotaku. The memo said the videogame retailer considered itself an “essential retail” operation. —Peter Schacknow

8:18 am: US cases cross 14,000

8:06 am: China economy normalizing after coronavirus peaked

A staff worker wearing a protective mask and protective suit checks a visitor’s body temperature with a temperature gun by a monitor showing the current stock information at the Shanghai Stock Exchange Building on March 20, 2020 in Shanghai, China. Health authorities of China said the country has passed the peak of the COVID-19 epidemic on March 12.

Yifan Ding

China’s economy is beginning to show some signs of normalization following the full-blown shock caused by the coronavirus, but stark risks remain, International Monetary Fund officials said in a blog on the economic impact of the pandemic.

Most larger Chinese firms have reopened and many local employees have returned to work, but infections could rise again as national and international travel resumes, the IMF officials said.

Outbreaks in other countries and financial market gyrations could make consumers and firms wary of Chinese goods just as the economy is getting back to work, they said. —Reuters

8:00 am: Germany locks down Bavaria

The German state of Bavaria will impose general restrictions on going outside for two weeks, state premier Markus Soeder said. “It’s not easy to take these decisions,” Soeder said. “We take these decisions according to the best of our knowledge and conscience. There will be a Bavaria after corona, but it will be a stronger one if we don’t look away.” —Reuters

7:43 am: Upcoming job losses will be unlike anything the US has ever seen

When the damage the coronavirus inflicts on the U.S. jobs market becomes clearer, it could be unlike anything the country has ever seen.

Judging by a host of forecasts from economists, the avalanche of furloughs will easily break the record for most in a single month.

Upcoming weekly jobless claims will shatter the standards set even during the worst points of the financial crisis and the early-1980s recession. Those numbers are expected to be bad, in fact, that the Trump administration, according to several media reports, has asked state officials to delay releasing precise counts.

While the headline unemployment rate is highly unlikely to approach the 24.9% during the Great Depression, it very well could be the highest in almost 40 years, something unthinkable for a jobs market that had been on fire as recently as February. —Jeff Cox

7:32 am: New Orleans Saints coach Payton says he tested positive

Head coach Sean Payton of the New Orleans Saints looks on against the Carolina Panthers in the second quarter during their game at Bank of America Stadium on December 17, 2018 in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Grant Halverson | Getty Images

New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton says he has tested positive for the coronavirus, is resting comfortably at home and is making his test result public in hopes he can motivate people to do more to fight the pandemic.

Payton learned Thursday that he has tested positive for the coronavirus, he told ESPN before posting a photo of himself smiling as he sat on a couch next to his dog.

“Appreciate the well wishes,” Payton wrote on his Twitter page. “I’m feeling better and fortunate to not have any of the respiratory symptoms. 4 more days at home.”

Payton, 56, is the first employee of either an NFL team or the league to make such a diagnosis public. —Associated Press

7:30 am: AT&T hits the brakes on share buyback plan

AT&T just canceled plans to repurchase $4 billion of its own shares, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing. The company made the move to “focus on continued investment in serving our customers, taking care of our employees and enhancing our network, including nationwide 5G,” according to the filing.

The news follows several days of public outcry from President Donald Trump and several high-profile investors, including Mark Cuban, who said companies that have received government bailouts should not be allowed to buy back their own shares.

AT&T noted in the filing that the impact of the pandemic “could be material,” but the company said it cannot yet estimate the impact on its financial or operational results. —Elisabeth Butler Cordova

7:25 am: Altria CEO Howard Willard has tested positive

Marlboro cigarette maker Altria CEO Howard Willard has contracted coronavirus and is taking temporary medical leave, a regulatory filing showed on Friday.

Willard, 56, is the latest high-profile person to get the virus in a global pandemic that has infected more than 245,000 people and killed over 10,000 globally.

Chief Financial Officer William Gifford Jr will take over for Willard during his absence, the company said here in a memo to employees. —Reuters

7:20 am: Fine-dining restaurants scramble to start delivery as a way to survive

A delivery person wears a protective mask as the coronavirus continues to spread across the United States on March 15, 2020 in New York City.

Cindy Ord | Getty Images

7:14 am: Senate GOP bailout bill caps executive pay

Executives at companies that would receive bailout cash from the coronavirus-relief bill unveiled by Senate Republicans would see their annual compensation capped for two years. According to the language, no employee who makes more than $425,000 may get a raise in their salary for two years. —Lauren Hirsch

7:10 am: Two senators face questions over stock sales

Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC).

Getty Images

Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr, R-N.C., is facing questions about his decision to sell between $630,000 and $1.7 million worth of stock one week before global financial markets began a historic slide in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

A second Republican senator, Georgia’s Kelly Loeffler, also sold large amounts of stock in late January and early February, when U.S. markets were hitting all-time highs. Both Burr and Loeffler have received non-public information about the global spread of coronavirus from Executive Branch officials, who have been briefing senators regularly since at least January. —Christina Wilkie

7:06 am: Spain’s death toll surpasses 1,000

A tourist wearing a protective mask takes a selfie outside the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona on March 11, 2020 after Spain banned all air traffic from Italy, closed schools and blocked fans from football matches after being caught off-guard by a near tripling of coronavirus infections in less than 48 hours.

Lluis Gene | AFP | Getty Images

Spain’s death toll from the coronavirus epidemic soared to 1,002 on Friday from 767 on the previous day, the country’s health emergencies chief Fernando Simon said. The number of registered cases in the country rose to 19,980 on Friday from 17,147 on Thursday, Simon said. —Reuters

6:05 am: Deutsche Bank warns it may be ‘materially’ impacted

Deutsche Bank has warned COVID-19 might significantly impact its ability to meet its financial targets this year.

“While it is too early to predict the impacts on business or the bank’s financial targets that the expanding pandemic, and the governmental responses to it, may have, the bank may be materially adversely affected by a protracted downturn in local, regional or global economic conditions,” the bank said in a statement published Friday. “Given the uncertainty around extent, duration and market spillover of COVID 19, forward-looking assumptions do not currently consider any of its potential impacts,” it added. —Sam Meredith

4:16 am: Global death toll surpasses 10,000

The global death toll rose above 10,000, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The exact number stood at 10,031 on Friday morning with total confirmed cases at 244,523.

On Thursday, Italy overtook China to be the world’s deadliest hotspot with 3,405 deaths registered. —Matt Clinch

4:05 am: Norway’s central bank cuts interest rates again

Norges Bank cut its key policy rate to a record low of 0.25% from 1% and doesn’t rule out further reductions in interest rates, reported Reuters.

It was the Norwegian central bank’s second interest rate reduction due to COVID-19. The Norges Bank cut its policy rate by half a percentage point on March 13, when Governor Oeystein Olsen said the economy was in a state of emergency, according to the report. —Yen Nee Lee

Read CNBC’s coverage from CNBC’s Asia-Pacific and Europe teams overnight here: California issues stay home order, global death toll surpasses 10,000

—Reuters and CNBC’s Weizhen Tan, Matt Clinch, Sam Meredith, and Yen Nee Lee contributed to this report.

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