Final Negotiations, U.S. Last Spender, $3 Trillion Blow: Eco Day

(Bloomberg) -- Welcome to Wednesday, Asia. Here’s the latest news and analysis from Bloomberg Economics to help you start the day:

• U.S. Senators are negotiating the final sticking points in a roughly $2 trillion stimulus bill to help the U.S. economy get through the coronavirus pandemic
• The scariest words in the English language, President Ronald Reagan once said, are: “I’m from the government and I’m here to help.” The opposite fear is stalking America right now
• The global economy is taking a battering not seen in decades from the severe restrictions on businesses and households. Bloomberg Economics forecasts a more than $3 trillion blow from the outbreak
• The 2020 Tokyo Olympics will be delayed by up to a year in the first postponement since the modern games began in the 19th century
• New Zealand’s central bank said it was necessary to respond to the economic crisis with a sizable bond-purchase program and it doesn’t believe the scale of its intervention will disrupt market functioning
• India deferred deadlines for filing tax returns, extended a tax amnesty program and unveiled other procedural relief steps, while promising more measures to support the economy. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has imposed a three-week long nationwide lockdown
• The global economy hasn’t looked this fragile since the Great Depression of the 1930s, Harvard University economist Carmen Reinhart says
• Nearly one million Canadians applied for jobless claims last week, representing almost 5% of the labor force
• The amount of cash circulating in the euro area increased last week by the most since October 2008. The virus has dealt the global economy its most devastating blow since the financial crisis, according to ECB researchers
• The U.K. has pledged more fiscal stimulus to fight the economic fallout from the coronavirus than during the global financial crisis
• President Donald Trump spoke to several billionaire hedge fund and private equity managers about reopening the U.S. economy
• Canada’s Paul McDonagh owns a hotel, tavern and lounge in the town at the heart of a late 19th century gold rush. With tourists keeping away, revenue is down more than 50% and administrations are stumbling in the rollout of support measures

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