Written by Econintersect
Early Bird Headlines 20 February 2020.
Econintersect: Here are some of the headlines we found to help you start your day. For more headlines see our afternoon feature for GEI members, What We Read Today, published Monday, Wednesday and Friday, which has many more headlines and a number of article discussions to keep you abreast of what we have found interesting.
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Key Articles
Global
- Chinese stocks surge as the country cuts its loan prime rate (CNBC) Mainland Chinese stocks surged by the market close on Thursday, with the country cutting its loan prime rate. Elsewher stocks were mixed. The U.S. dollar index was higher at 99.835. Oil prices were higher in the afternoon of Asian trading hours, with international benchmark Brent crude futures up 0.32% to $59.31 per barrel. U.S. crude futures gained 0.75% to $53.69 per barrel. Spot gold was down 0.1% at $1,609.59 per ounce, as of 0253 GMT. Treasuries (bonds, gilts, and bunds) saw yields fall.
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U.S.
- Trump holds campaign rally in Phoenix (PBS News Hour) President Trump ran a campaign rally head-to-head with the Democratic debate. Here is the full video:
- The Nevada Democratic debate in less than 4 minutes (The Washington Post, You Tube)
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- Winners and losers from the Nevada Democratic debate (The Washington Post) Here is The WaPo opinion:
Winners:
- Bernie Sanders
- Warren’s takedowns of Bloomberg
- The moderators
Losers:
- Bloomberg
- Joe Biden
- Amy Klobuchar
- Sanders’s claim about his supporters
- John Oliver: Medicare for All (YouTube) Reposted from Barry Ritholtz, The Big Picture. As presidential candidates continue to discuss Medicare for All, John Oliver explores how much it might cost, what it will change, and who it will help. All this is accomplished,of course, with a generous dose of sarcasm and facetious comment for which John Oliver is famous.
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- The real story of Rudy Giuliani’s mission for Trump in Ukraine (The Washington Post) “The President’s Shadow” is a feature documentary from The Washington Post that traces Giuliani’s evolution from one of America’s most beloved figures to one of its most controversial, and it shows how his work in Ukraine almost brought down the president. Compare with next item, below.
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- Pam Bondi argues Biden corruption concerns are legitimate (PBS News, YouTube) This is repeated from What We Read Today’ 19 February. Pam Bondi made the presentation below during the Trump impeachment trial:
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Japan
China
- China posts sharp drop in new coronavirus cases after criteria change (Reuters) Mainland China reported on Thursday the lowest number of confirmed cases of a new coronavirus since late January, partly because of a change in diagnostic criteria for patients in Hubei province, the epicenter of the outbreak.
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Other important articles
U.S.
- Exclusive: Ahead of 2020 election, a ‘Blue Wave’ is rising in the cities, polling analysis shows (Reuters)
- Several Biden fundraisers abandon his struggling campaign to support Bloomberg (CNBC)
- Fact-Checking the Las Vegas Democratic Debate (The New York Times)
- 5 takeaways from the Democratic debate in Las Vegas (Los Angeles Times)
- Trump signs order diverting water to California farmers against state wishes (The Hill)
- White House report takes aim at Obama while boasting about Trump’s economic record (CNBC)
- Chris Cuomo argues Donald Trump isn’t normalizing corruption; the GOP is (CNN, YouTube) After President Donald Trump issued a pardon for former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, CNN‘s Chris Cuomo argues the President only sees corruption as wrong if the perpetrator is caught.
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Iran
China
- Coronavirus: China’s east coast provinces offer chartered transport, rewards to get rural migrants back to work (South China Morning Post) The streets in China’s cities remain empty.
- Sweeping measures to contain the coronavirus outbreak have exacerbated labour shortages in China as the country struggles to restart the economy
- Authorities on China’s east coast are arranging chartered transport and offering allowances to lure migrant workers back to their jobs
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Canada
- 2 killed in massive pileup involving more than 200 cars near Montreal (CNN) Two people were killed Wednesday in a massive car pileup that shut down a major highway just outside Montreal, according to Quebec police. The accident involved more than 200 cars. About 100 people were taken to three local hospitals. At least nine people were seriously injured.
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Mexico
- US judge in Arizona rules Border Patrol must provide mats, blankets for detained migrants (Fox News)
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