For business travelers: President Donald Trump says he would consider curtailing travel within the U.S. if an area suffers a major coronavirus outbreak, Bloomberg reports. However, at this point, the Trump administration hasn’t actively discussed domestic restrictions—a measure that some of the worst affected countries, including China and Italy, have taken. Read the full story.
Homebuyers: U.S. long-term mortgage rates were mixed this week after hitting all-time lows last week amid anxiety over risks to the economy. The average rate on the benchmark 30-year loan rose to 3.36% from 3.29% last week—which was the lowest level since mortgage buyer Freddie Mac started tracking it in 1971. The average rate on the 15-year fixed-rate mortgage slipped to 2.77% from 2.79% last week. Read the full story.
Wider look: Seven weeks after the first case of COVID-19 was confirmed in the U.S. it’s doing widespread damage to critical economic sectors of the global economy. Airlines are dropping routes because people are not flying, workers are staying home, public events that raise millions of dollars for local communities have been canceled and oil prices have sunk to near $30 a barrel. Click here for a look at some of the hardest-hit sectors in the S&P 500, and how far they’ve fallen in the past 30 days.
