Covid-19 woes: Some US producers, states reopening as pressure mounts

Boeing and at least one other US heavy-equipment manufacturer resumed production and some states rolled out aggressive reopening plans Monday, despite nationwide concerns regarding number of testing to detect coronavirus infections.

In one of the most forceful moves yet, Georgia Governor Brian Kemp announced plans to restart the state's economy before the end of the week. Kemp said gyms, hair salons, bowling alleys and tattoo parlors could reopen Friday, as long as owners followed strict social distancing and hygiene requirements.

Boeing said it was putting about 27,000 people back to work this week building passenger jets at its Seattle-area plants, with virus-slowing precautions in place, including face masks and staggered shifts.

Doosan Bobcat, a farm equipment maker and North Dakota's largest manufacturer, announced the return of about 2,200 workers at three factories around the state.

The reopenings came amid economic gloom, as oil futures plunged below zero on Monday and stocks and Treasury yields also dropped on Wall Street. The cost to have a barrel of US crude delivered in May plummeted to negative $37.63. It was at roughly $60 at the start of the year.

Elsewhere around the world, step-by-step reopenings were underway in Europe, where the crisis has begun to ebb in places such as Italy, Spain and Germany.

Parts of the continent are perhaps weeks ahead of the U.S. on the infection curve of the virus, which has killed about 170,000 people worldwide, according to a tally kept by Johns Hopkins University.

Businesses that start operating again in the US are likely to engender good will with the Trump administration at a time when it is doling out billions in relief to companies.

But the reopenings being announced are a drop in the bucket compared with the more than 22 million Americans thrown out of work by the crisis.

Fauci urges caution for US states to reopen

Anthony Fauci, the top infectious disease expert in the US, has urged caution American states to reopen, as anti-quarantine protests were taking place across the country.

"Clearly this is something that is hurting from the standpoint of economics and the standpoint of things that have nothing to do with the virus, but unless we get the virus under control, the real recovery economically is not going to happen," Xinhua news agency quoted Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, as saying on ABC News on Monday.

"So what you do if you jump the gun and go into a situation where you have a big spike, you're going to set yourself back," the key member of the White House coronavirus task forces continued.

"So as painful as it is to go by the careful guidelines of gradually phasing into a reopening, it's going to backfire. That's the problem."

Facebook to remove posts promoting anti-stay-at-home protests in US

Protests against stay-at-home orders meant to curb the spread of Covid-19 are flaring up in some states, as attendees argued that restrictions were unnecessary or have gone on too long, despite warnings from health experts that relaxing them too soon could cause additional infections and even more economic harm.

Following a consultation with the officials in California, New Jersey and Nebraska, Facebook on Monday said it will remove posts promoting anti-quarantine protests amid coronavirus pandemic.

The anti-stay-at-home protests do not abide by the states' social distancing guidelines, CNN quoted Facebook spokesman Andy Stone.
 

New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, a Democrat, said on Monday that reopening the state, which has reported more than 85,000 confirmed cases and over 4,300 deaths, must be "careful" and "strategic".

"This is a two-part scenario - securing the public health situation so you can have confidence as you get back as we reopen our economy. Right now, that confidence does not exist," Murphy tweeted.

"Reopening our economy today would backfire on us two-fold - a large spike in #Covid19 cases, and no customers at our stores because people are still fearful for their health and that of their kids and families."

Mike DeWine, Ohio's Republican Governor, who has announced that the state will begin the process of reopening on May 1, said on Monday that they were "trying to let businesses open back up, while not putting us at risk of having the whole healthcare system overwhelmed and then have to shut them down again."

"We're trying to get it right, but we understand this is very difficult for everyone out there," DeWine acknowledged.

Protests broke out in various parts of the US after shutdown orders were extended.

Protesters rallied against policies that call for nonessential businesses and schools to be closed, restaurants limited to carryout service and people to stay largely in their homes except for emergencies.

The US has reported nearly 8 lakh coronavirus cases. The death toll in the country has surpassed 42 thousand.