Bhinneka News Online: Thursday Morning Briefing: China virus toll rises to 170 as fear grows over global economic hit

Thursday 30 January 2020

Thursday Morning Briefing: China virus toll rises to 170 as fear grows over global economic hit

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Countries began isolating hundreds of citizens evacuated from the Chinese city of Wuhan on Thursday to stop the spread of an epidemic that has killed 170 people as worry about the impact on the world’s second-biggest economy rattled markets. One American-born college student has been trying and failing to find a way out of Wuhan. Nicholas Schneider says 'I'm in an apocalypse'.

A Democratic push to force Republicans to accept witnesses at President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial in the U.S. Senate appeared to be flagging on Wednesday, raising the possibility he could be acquitted as early as Friday. Meanwhile The White House has informed former national security adviser John Bolton that his book manuscript appeared to contain “significant amounts of classified information” and could not be published in its current form.

The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady on Wednesday at its first policy meeting of the year, with the head of the U.S. central bank pointing to continued moderate economic growth and a “strong” job market, and giving no sign of any imminent changes in borrowing costs. The Commerce Department's snapshot of gross domestic product on Thursday will likely show the Federal Reserve’s three interest rate cuts in 2019 helped to keep the longest expansion in history, now in its 11th year, on track and avert a downturn.

Three days after Los Angeles basketball great Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter and seven others perished in a helicopter crash, his wife, Vanessa, broke her silence with an Instagram message saying she was “completely devastated” by their loss. “My girls and I want to thank the millions of people who’ve shown support and love during this horrific time,” Vanessa Bryant wrote.

World

At the stroke of midnight in Brussels on Friday, Britain will leave the European Union and Prime Minister Boris Johnson will deliver on his election promise to “Get Brexit Done”. But he won’t have long to savor the triumph. February 1 will mark the beginning of a new phase of negotiations between London and Brussels to agree on the shape of their future relationship. On the eve of Brexit, some industries such as pharmaceuticals, fear the worst.

White House senior adviser Jared Kushner said Washington wants Israel to wait until after its March 2 election before making any moves towards settlement annexation in the West Bank following the announcement of a U.S. peace plan.

Japanese authorities on Thursday issued arrest warrants for a former U.S. special forces soldier and two other men on suspicion of smuggling former Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn out of Japan. Warrants were issued for former U.S. Green Beret Michael Taylor and two other men, George-Antoine Zayek and Peter Taylor, prosecutors said in a statement.

Swathes of southeast Australia were bracing on Thursday for a days-long heatwave that threatens to stoke bushfires that have been burning for months. As firefighters and residents prepared for the heightened danger, the New South Wales state government launched a six-month inquiry to examine both the causes of and response to this season’s deadly wildfires.