*Italy infections jump to 220, 7 dead. BEIJING/ SEOUL, Feb 24- The coronavirus death toll climbed to seven in Italy on Monday and several Middle East countries were dealing with their first infections, sending markets into a tailspin over fears of a global pandemic even as China eased curbs with no new cases reported in Beijing and other cities.
DAMMAM, Saudi Arabia, Feb 24- Saudi Aramco is launching the biggest shale gas development outside of the United States to boost domestic gas supply and end the burning of oil at its power generation plants, Chief Executive Officer Amin Nasser told Reuters on Monday. Saudi Arabia fought a price war aimed at putting the U.S. shale industry out of business just six...
*Italy infections jump to 150, 6 dead. BEIJING/ SEOUL, Feb 24- With coronavirus cases rising in Italy and several Middle East countries dealing with their first infections, fears of a global pandemic sent markets into a tailspin, even as China eased curbs with no new cases reported Beijing and other cities. But China's actions, especially in Wuhan, had probably...
*China may have saved hundreds of thousands of cases-WHO. BEIJING/ SEOUL, Feb 24- Italy, South Korea and Iran reported sharp rises in coronavirus cases on Monday, but China eased curbs as the rate of infection there slowed and a visiting World Health Organization team said a turning point had been reached in the epicenter, Wuhan. But China's actions, especially in...
*China actions probably saved hundreds of thousands of cases-WHO. BEIJING/ SEOUL, Feb 24- Italy, South Korea and Iran reported sharp rises in coronavirus infections on Monday, but China relaxed curbs on movement as the rate of new infections there eased and a visiting World Health Organization team reported steep declines in visits to clinics.
*Investors flee to safety as virus spreads outside China. BEIJING/ SEOUL, Feb 24- Italy, South Korea and Iran reported sharp rises in coronavirus infections on Monday, triggering concern from the World Health Organization, but China relaxed some curbs on movement, including in Beijing, as the rate of new infections there eased. The surge of cases outside mainland...
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told Reuters he does not expect the coronavirus outbreak to have a material impact on the Phase 1 U.S.- China trade deal, although that could change as more data becomes available in coming weeks. Fears of a coronavirus pandemic mounted even as they met in the Saudi capital of Riyadh, with sharp rises in new cases reported in...
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Sunday welcomed Argentina's talks with the International Monetary Fund after the heavily indebted Latin American country said it would launch consultations that could lead to a new funding program. IMF officials also briefed G20 finance ministers and central bankers about the situation in Argentina, whose debt...
RIYADH, Feb 23- Finance officials from the world's 20 biggest economies on Sunday referenced climate change in their final communique for the first time in U.S. The United States blocked including climate change on a list of downside risks to global growth that had won agreement by nearly all other G20 delegates, but ultimately agreed to permit a reference to...
RIYADH, Feb 23- Failure to reach a global deal on where and how much to tax digital giants such as Google, Amazon or Facebook would result in many digital tax regimes emerging all over the world, France's Finance Minister said on Sunday. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told reporters, underscoring Washington's determination to thwart tax rules planned by...
*Third patient dies from virus in Italy. *WHO most concerned about cases with no China link. SEOUL/ SHANGHAI Feb 23- International concern about the spread of coronavirus outside China grew on Sunday with sharp rises in infections in South Korea, Italy and Iran.
"We want to see a reform plan that is viable and doable and then we will take action," Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed al Jadaan said of Lebanon.
RIYADH, Feb 23- Japanese finance minister Taro Aso criticised on Sunday a U.S. tax reform proposal that he said could undermine global efforts to agree new rules on taxing big tech companies. "I told my counterparts that Japan is very concerned about the' safe harbour' proposal," Aso told reporters after attending the G20 gathering. It is rare for Japan to openly...
RIYADH, Feb 23- Japanese finance minister Taro Aso criticized on Sunday a U.S. tax reform proposal that he said could undermine global efforts to agree new rules on taxing big tech companies. "I told my counterparts that Japan is very concerned about the' safe harbor' proposal," Aso told reporters after attending the G20 gathering. It is rare for Japan to openly...
RIYADH, Feb 23- Failure to reach a global deal on where and how much to tax digital giants like Google, Amazon or Facebook would result in many digital tax regimes emerging all over the world, France's Finance Minister said on Sunday. "For the first tine there is wide consensus among the G20 members on the necessity of having a new international taxation system," Le...
*WHO most concerned about cases with no China link. SEOUL/ SHANGHAI Feb 23- International concern about the spread of coronavirus outside China grew on Sunday with sharp rises in infections in three countries- South Korea, Italy and Iran. In China, which has seen the vast majority of cases, authorities reported 648 new infections- higher than a day earlier- but only 18...
*South Korea sees 169 new infections, 2 new deaths. *WHO most concerned about cases with no China link. SEOUL/ SHANGHAI Feb 23- South Korea raised its disease alert to the highest level on Sunday after a surge in coronavirus infections and two more deaths, while China state media warned the outbreak there had yet to reach a turning point despite some signs of easing.
RIYADH, Feb 23- Finance officials from the world's 20 biggest economies meeting in Riyadh on Sunday reached agreement on the wording of a final communique that includes a reference to climate change for the first time, G20 diplomatic sources said. Overcoming U.S. objections, the compromise language retained a reference to work by the Financial Stability Board...
Bruno Le Maire, France's finance minister, said the drop off in tourist numbers is an "important impact" on the country's economy.
*WHO most concerned about cases with no China link. SHANGHAI/ SEOUL, Feb 23- China reported another fall in new coronavirus infections outside of its epicenter on Sunday, but world health officials warned it was too early to make predictions about the outbreak as new cases and fears of contagion increased elsewhere. But new infections outside of China continued...
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