Reuters Business News

As China reopens its economy after months of lockdown, Apple Inc's iPhone factories are largely up and running. But with the coronavirus pandemic spreading across the world, the urgent question for the company is how many buyers there will be both for current models and the new slate of phones expected in the fall.

Money managers rebalancing their portfolios to boost equity exposure into the end of the quarter may support the nascent stock rally that has followed the steep coronavirus-fueled market drop.

U.S. banking regulators told banks Friday they could ignore the capital implications of a new accounting standard for two years and adopt early a new, more sensitive way to measure risk in a bid to ensure banks continue lending through the pandemic.

Airbnb Inc has suspended all its marketing activities to save $800 million this year, and its founders will take no salary for the next six months while top executives will take a 50% cut, according to a person familiar with the matter.

General Motors Co has reached a $120 million settlement with drivers who claimed that their vehicles lost value because of defective ignition switches, which have been linked to 124 deaths.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said on Friday that taxpayers will "compensated" for providing up to $25 billion in direct grants to the airline industry.

Wall Street stocks tumbled on Friday, ending a massive three-day surge after doubts about the fate of the U.S. economy resurfaced and the number of coronavirus cases in the country climbed.

Airbnb plans to halt all of its marketing, pause most hiring, and likely withhold employee bonuses as it tries to conserve cash amid a slide in bookings, CEO Brian Chesky told employees in a video conference call, The Information reported on Friday.

A bipartisan majority of Americans appear to reject an idea floated by President Donald Trump to reopen businesses by Easter, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll, which also showed that nearly one in four have been laid off or furloughed during the coronavirus outbreak.

United Airlines Holdings Inc and Delta Air Lines welcomed on Friday a $50 billion relief package they said would protect jobs through September but warned that the continued challenges facing the industry will require more action.

European airlines waiting in line for coronavirus bailouts want to tap another source of interest-free loans: their customers.

U.S. airlines expect to learn the terms of federal aid meant to protect workers' payrolls in the midst of a sharp downturn from the coronavirus in the next five to 10 days, senior executives at United Airlines Holdings Inc said on Friday.

Nearly one in four U.S. adults said they have been laid off or furloughed during the coronavirus outbreak, yet a bipartisan majority of Americans wants businesses to remain closed to slow the spread of the deadly virus despite its impact on the economy, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll.

BlackRock Inc will earn less than $8 million a year in fees for its role assisting the Federal Reserve with its purchases of commercial mortgage-backed securities, one of the new programs the central bank is rolling out to backstop an economy under threat from the coronavirus outbreak, according to details of the arrangement released on Friday.

Stocks across the globe fell on Friday after a historic three-day run-up, as skittish investors kept indices on track for their worst monthly and quarterly performances since 2008, while the dollar fell by the most in any week since 2009.

Wall Street stocks tumbled on Friday, ending a massive three-day surge after doubts about the fate of the U.S. economy resurfaced and the number of coronavirus cases in the country climbed.

United Airlines Holdings Inc and Delta Air Lines pledged to maintain staff until Sept. 30 thanks to a government relief package passed on Friday, but warned of continued challenges and depressed demand facing the industry.

Oil prices plunged 5% on Friday and posted a fifth straight weekly loss as demand destruction caused by the coronavirus outweighed stimulus efforts by policymakers around the world.

U.S. consumer sentiment dropped to near a 3-1/2-year low in March as the coronavirus epidemic upended life for Americans, and consumer spending was sluggish in February, strengthening economists' expectations of a deep recession.

The European Central Bank told euro zone banks on Friday to skip dividend payments and share buybacks until October at the earliest and use their profits to support the economy as it is hit by the coronavirus pandemic.