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Harley-Davidson Inc Chief Executive Officer Matthew Levatich stepped down on Friday after failing to boost U.S. sales of its iconic motorcycles.

The S&P 500 fell for the seventh straight day on Friday and the benchmark index suffered its biggest weekly drop since the 2008 global financial crisis on growing fears the fast-spreading coronavirus could push the economy into recession, although stocks regained some ground right at the end of a volatile session.

Big U.S. banks have been rolling out contingency plans to respond to the global coronavirus outbreak - requiring some staff to work from home, implementing travel restrictions, and talking to regulators about potential stresses.

United Airlines Holdings Inc said on Friday it was sharply cutting flights to Japan and South Korea, as travelers worried about the coronavirus outbreak slash ticket purchases for those destinations.

Intesa Sanpaolo said on Friday it had hired JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley, UBS and local broker Equita SIM to complete a team of advisers led by Mediobanca supporting Italy's biggest retail bank in its takeover offer of rival UBI Banca.

Coronavirus panic sent world stock markets tumbling again on Friday, with an index of global stocks setting its largest weekly fall since the 2008 global financial crisis, and over $5 trillion wiped from global market value this week.

Portfolio managers at Goldman Sachs Asset Management have used the recent selloff in global stocks caused by the coronavirus as an opportunity to take positions in a range of companies focusing on everything from concerts to cosmetics.

The Trump administration on Friday said it would focus on concluding new trade agreements with Britain, the European Union and Kenya over the coming year, while strictly enforcing trade laws and pushing for reforms of the World Trade Organization.

Trump administration officials have rescheduled for March 11 a critical meeting to discuss potential new U.S. restrictions on sales of technology to Huawei and China, people familiar with the matter said.

The steep market drop triggered by the global coronavirus outbreak has led many companies to hit the 'pause' button on mergers and acquisitions (M&A), sabotaging the hopes of corporate advisers who expected a dealmaking bonanza this year.

The airline industry could run into turbulence on Capitol Hill next week as a U.S. Congressional panel tackles passenger complaints about unpleasant airline experiences, holding a hearing that will include budget airline Spirit Airlines Inc and passenger advocates.

Harley-Davidson Inc said on Friday Matthew Levatich has stepped down as chief executive officer and the motorcycle maker named Jochen Zeitz as the interim CEO.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc's asset management unit has added to positions in travel stocks, including hotels and cruise lines, as well as Live Nation Entertainment Inc and Japanese cosmetics company Shiseido Co Ltd, executives said Friday.

This week's sharp stock sell-off helped activist short-seller Andrew Left profitably close a long-held bet against online retailer Wayfair on Friday.

Cratering markets are pushing global central banks to the point they all warned against and worried about, of an evolving global economic shock hitting at a time when their capacity to respond in force is in doubt even as investors hound them for action.

With the rapid global spread of the new coronavirus and the U.S. stock market suffering its worst week since the Great Recession, central bankers around the world are under rising pressure to reduce borrowing costs to create a cushion against economic harm. So far they have largely resisted. Following are some of their recent remarks:

Corona beer maker Constellation Brands Inc said on Friday sales of its Corona Extra beer remained strong in the United States in the four weeks to Feb. 16, amid the rapid global spread of the coronavirus.

Sanofi SA has agreed to pay nearly $11.9 million to resolve allegations that it used a charity that helps Medicare patients cover out-of-pocket drug costs as a way to pay kickbacks aimed at encouraging the use of a high-priced multiple sclerosis drug.

The S&P 500 fell for the seventh straight day on Friday and the benchmark index suffered its biggest weekly drop since the 2008 global financial crisis on growing fears the fast-spreading coronavirus could lead to a recession, although stocks cut losses at the end of the day's session.

Oil prices slumped for a sixth day in a row on Friday to their lowest in more than a year, causing futures to drop by the most in a week since 2016, as the spread of coronavirus stoked fears that a slowing global economy would hit energy demand.