CATEGORIES

GLOBAL LUXURY GOODS SALES TO SLIDE UP TO 35% - STUDY

The global luxury goods sector is heading for a stunning collapse of up to 35% this year due to coronavirus lockdowns, according to a new study by the Bain consultancy published Thursday.

STAR WARS: TAIKA WAITITI TO DIRECT NEW FILM

Taika Waititi, the New Zealand filmmaker of “Jojo Rabbit” and “Thor: Ragnarok,” will direct a new “Star Wars” film.

TESLA HITS TARGET TO QUALIFY CEO ELON MUSK FOR BIG PAYDAY

Tesla CEO Elon Musk appears to have hit all the milestones he needed to receive a stock award now worth about $730 million, a payday that will further pad the eccentric billionaire’s vast fortune.

EU FORECASTS ‘RECESSION OF HISTORIC PROPORTIONS' THIS YEAR

The European Union predicted “a recession of historic proportions this year” due to the impact of the coronavirus as it released its first official estimates of the damage the pandemic is inflicting on the bloc’s economy.

Conspiracy Theorists Burn 5G Towers Claiming Link To Virus

The CCTV footage from a Dutch business park shows a man in a black cap pouring the contents of a white container at the base of a cellular radio tower. Flames burst out as the man jogs back to his Toyota to flee into the evening.

26 Million Have Sought US Jobless Aid Since Virus Hit

More than 4.4 million laid-off workers applied for U.S. unemployment benefits last week as job cuts escalated across an economy that remains all but shut down, the government said Thursday.

Belgian Port to Test Virus Bracelets Amid Tech Tracing Fears

As the spread of the coronavirus eases and people gradually return to work pondering the impact it might have on their jobs, Europe’s second-biggest port is getting ready to test a device aimed at helping thousands of people employed there to respect social distancing.

‘Beastie Boys Story' Isn't A Sure Shot, But It'll Do

Little was predictable about the Beastie Boys in their three-plus decades of making music. They were spontaneous, always evolving, off-the-cuff pranksters who turned pro without ever losing the punchline.

LEGAL BATTLES LOOM AS BUSINESSES HIT BY VIRUS SUE INSURERS

A once-bustling bar and grill tucked below a Michigan Avenue overpass famously inspired a “Saturday Night Live” skit starring John Belushi and Bill Murray. But the money the Billy Goat Tavern is losing during the coronavirus outbreak is no joke.

VENTILATOR FROM OLD CAR PARTS? AFGHAN GIRLS PURSUE PROTOTYPE

On most mornings, Somaya Farooqi and four other teenage girls pile into her dad’s car and head to a mechanic’s workshop. They use back roads to skirt police checkpoints set up to enforce a lockdown in their city of Herat, one of Afghanistan’s hot spots of the coronavirus pandemic.

EU LEADERS WEIGH MASSIVE VIRUS ECONOMIC RECOVERY MEASURES

The new coronavirus is devastating lives, health care systems, and economies, and European Union leaders must work together, using every lever at their disposal, to rebuild and restore public faith in the EU project, the head of the bloc’s parliament warned.

AMID PANDEMIC, CHARITIES AND NONPROFITS FACE HUGE CHALLENGES

While celebrities and billionaires have announced huge gifts to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, many charities and nonprofits are still struggling. Donations to some churches have plummeted, and many charities have had to cancel crucial fundraising events such as galas, bike races, and walkathons.

THINK THINGS ARE BAD FOR AIRLINES? IT'S ABOUT TO GET WORSE

The biggest and most profitable U.S. airline just posted its first quarterly loss in more than five years. Now things are going to get really bad.

TYSON FOODS IDLES LARGEST PORK PLANT AS VIRUS SLAMS INDUSTRY

Tyson Foods suspended operations at an Iowa plant that is critical to the nation’s pork supply but was blamed for fueling a massive coronavirus outbreak in the region.

Richest Countries Agree To Freeza Poorer Nations' Debt

The world’s richest countries agreed to freeze poor nations’ debt obligations, shortly after nearly 20 European and African leaders made a joint appeal for a massive international effort to boost Africa’s coronavirus response, saying that “only a global victory that fully includes Africa can bring this pandemic to an end.”

Broadcast Crews Struggling After Sports Go Dark

Greg Calvin believed his job as an audio technician could survive most economic downturns because people will keep watching sports while the networks that air the games still receive advertising revenue.

Can You Fix Ventilators? A Fuel Cell Engineer Figures It Out

It was late when engineer Joe Tavi’s boss called with an odd question: Could their company, which makes fuel cells, learn how to fix a ventilator?

TIRED OF ‘FROZEN?' STREAM THESE LESS OBVIOUS KIDS MOVIES

Weeks of quarantine with kids have a way of burning through a movie collection.

PENTAGON: $10B CLOUD CONTRACT THAT SNUBBED AMAZON WAS LEGAL

The Pentagon’s process for awarding a highly lucrative cloud computing contract to Microsoft instead of Amazon was in line with legal and government purchasing standards, a government watchdog agency said Wednesday.

WOULD YOU GIVE UP HEALTH OR LOCATION DATA TO RETURN TO WORK?

Cameron Karosis usually strives to protect his personal information. But a scary bout of COVID-19 that began last month with headaches and fevers, progressed to breathing problems and led to a hospital visit has now left him eager to disclose as much as possible to help halt the virus’ spread.

FACEBOOK TO WARN USERS WHO “LIKED” CORONAVIRUS HOAXES

Have you liked or commented on a Facebook post about the COVID-19 pandemic?

EVIDENCE OF VIRUS' EFFECT ON US ECONOMY GROWS MORE OMINOUS

Evidence of the coronavirus’ devastating impact on the U.S. economy has been steadily emerging, and the signs have grown ominous.

ISRAELI POLICE USE DRONES TO CHECK IN ON VIRUS PATIENTS

The drone glides up toward a high-rise until it reaches an apartment window where a woman waves from inside, proving to police that she is self-isolating after testing positive for the coronavirus.

MAJOR AIRLINES INE UP TO SPLIT $25 BILLION IN PAYROLL AID

The Treasury Department said this week that the nation’s major airlines have tentatively agreed to terms for $25 billion in federal aid to pay workers and keep them employed through September.

CHINA TRIES TO REVIVE ECONOMY BUT CONSUMER ENGINE SPUTTERS

China, where the coronavirus pandemic started in December, is cautiously trying to get back to business, but it’s not easy when many millions of workers are wary of spending much or even going out.

US Economy Unlikely to Recover as Rapidly as It Collapsed

President Donald Trump has been telling voters that the U.S. economy will leap back to life “like a rocket,” stronger than ever after its bout with the coronavirus.

Lockdowns Mean Millions of Women Can't Reach Birth Control

The callers were in tears. One by one, women in homes across rural Zimbabwe had a pleading question: When would family planning services return?

Pandemic Has Set The Number of Air Travelers Back Decades

The number of Americans getting on airplanes has sunk to a level not seen in more than 60 years as people shelter in their homes to avoid catching or spreading the new coronavirus.

VIRUS OUTBREAK DELIVERS TECH DARLINGS A HARSH REALITY CHECK

Just as the coronavirus outbreak has boxed in society, it’s also squeezed high-flying tech companies reliant on people’s freedom to move around and get together.

SXSW PARTNERS WITH AMAZON TO PUT ITS FILM FESTIVAL ONLINE

The popcorn will be bring your own and the barbecue won’t be as good, but the Austin, Texas, SXSW Film Festival is moving online after having its 27th edition canceled by the coronavirus pandemic.