US Economy Meltdown: Dow plunges over 2,000 points, oil collapses amid price war and coronavirus - by Jonathan Garber

U.S. equity markets tumbled Monday after an oil price war broke out between Saudi Arabia and Russia and amid new cases of coronavirus, especially in America.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
I:DJI	DOW JONES AVERAGES	23851.02	-2,013.76	-7.79%
SP500	S&P 500	2758.65	-213.72	-7.19%
I:COMP	NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX	7985.59538	-590.02	-6.88%

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed over 2,000 points lower, coming back from a point drop of more than 2,150 points, or 8.2 percent, at session lows while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite were lower by 7.9 percent and 7.2 percent, respectively.

Monday's sharp selloff, which caused the major averages to be temporarily halted due to volatility, caused the New York Federal Reserve to increase its daily cash injections into the banking system to $150 billion from $100 billion.

The stock-market's steep slide comes after a production dispute between OPEC members, led by Saudi Arabia, and Russia sent West Texas Intermediate crude oil, the U.S. benchmark, plunging by as much as 33.8 percent, the most since the outbreak of the 1991 Persian Gulf War, to a low of $27.34 a barrel in overnight trading. The energy component finished the day down 24.59 percent at $31.13 a barrel.

Note EU-Digest: This is what happens when the US elects a President who is a complete "ignoramas", lies like there is no tomorrow, says he knows more about the Corona Virus than the medical profession, brags he is the best deal maker in the world, wants only "yes men" in his cabinet, and unfortunately, that is "only the top of the Trump iceberg drama".

Read more at: Dow plunges over 2,000 points, oil collapses amid price war and coronavirus | Fox Business

The Netherlands: Two more die of coronavirus in Netherlands, total stands at 265

Two more patients in the Netherlands have died as a result of contracting coronavirus, according to latest figures from the public health institute RIVM. In its latest update on Sunday the RIVM said the number of confirmed infections stands at 265, a rise of 77 since Saturday.

The figure is the biggest increase for a single day, although in percentage terms it is smaller than Saturday’s rise (41.0% compared to 46.9%).

The latest casualties are an 86-year-old man who was admitted to the Bernhoven Hospital in Uden, Noord-Brabant, and an 82-year-old man who was being treated in the Zuyderland Medical Centre in Sittard-Geleen, Limburg. The source of both infections is being investigated.

The RIVM said 144 of the 265 patients who had tested positive for coronavirus had travelled abroad, 131 of them to northern Italy. In 47 cases the source of the infection is not yet known.

 Read more at: Two more die of coronavirus in Netherlands, total stands at 265 - DutchNews.nl

Spain-Coronavirus: Spain confirms almost 400 cases as death toll jumps to eight

There have now been eight deaths connected to the coronavirus in Spain, authorities confirmed late on Friday, as the number of confirmed cases continues to rise. Here's the latest news.

Read more at:
https://www.thelocal.es/20200307/spain-reports-first-coronavirus-death

Construction starts in Netherlands on longest cycling bridge in Europe

Construction has started in the Netherlands on what will be Europe’s longest bridge for cyclists and pedestrians –stretching over a lake, canal, motorway and nature reserve – to connect a new village to its closest town.

he so-called “Blue carpet bridge”, or Blauwe Loper, will be 800 metres long, but there are plans to ultimately extend it to 1km in length. The first phase is scheduled for completion by next Christmas.

The €6.5m ($7.00 m) bridge, which rises at a comfortable 2.5% gradient at its steepest, will connect Winschoten, in Groningen province, with Blauwestad, a new village being built on reclaimed land.

The bridge will only be accessible to cyclists and pedestrians – and bats. Its LED lighting has been designed to assist the creatures in finding their way from the nearby nature reserve to the Oldambtmeer lake. The bridge will also be painted in “bat-friendly” green.

Read more Construction starts in Netherlands on longest cycling bridge in Europe | World news | The Guardian

Coronavirus panic buying in Japan, France, Netherlands, and Poland

As the coronavirus spreads, Business Insider sent some of its international editors to take photos inside local stores where items are low in stock.

Read more at:
https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-panic-buying-france-japan-netherlands-poland-2020-3

Climate Control: Europe Looks To Pass 2050 Net Zero Carbon Goal Into Law

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The European Commission proposed on Wednesday enshrining the European Green Deal’s commitment for carbon neutrality by 2050 into legislation, as part of the European Union’s heightened focus on climate action and policy.

Under a European Climate Law, the 2050 carbon neutrality target would become legally binding, and all EU institutions and member states will be collectively bound to take the necessary measures at EU and national level to meet that target.

The Climate Law would enshrine into law the EU’s political pledge to become climate neutral by 2050, the Commission said, noting that the proposed law is a crucial part of the European Green Deal, which the EU’s executive arm proposed at the end of last year.

“We are acting today to make the EU the world’s first climate neutral continent by 2050,” the European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a statement on Wednesday.

“The Climate Law is the legal translation of our political commitment, and sets us irreversibly on the path to a more sustainable future. It is the heart of the European Green Deal. It offers predictability and transparency for European industry and investors. And it gives direction to our green growth strategy and guarantees that the transition will be gradual and fair,” von der Leyen noted.

Note EU-Digest: In the meantime yesterday, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed to expand the scope of its already dangerous plan to limit the science the agency can consider when developing critical public health and environmental safeguards.

EPA’s original “Censored Science” proposal, released in April 2018 by former EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, would effectively bar the agency from considering critical research when making decisions around protecting human health and the environment. The newly-released supplemental proposal would apply these restrictions to an even wider array of scientific studies, further imperiling EPA’s ability to protect our health and ecosystems from environmental harms including climate change, air pollution, water pollution and other toxic chemical exposures.

Read more at: Europe Looks To Pass 2050 Net Zero Carbon Goal Into Law | OilPrice.com

Netherlands: coronavirus total rises to 24 with new Covid-19 cases confirmed

 Public health institute RIVM confirmed six new coronavirus diagnoses in the Netherlands. These patients were reported to the RIVM on Monday and are all currently quarantined at home, the health service said.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also updated its travel advice for Japan due to the virus.

According to the RIVM, a total of 24 people have now been diagnosed with Covid-19 in the Netherlands. "Almost all persons diagnosed with the coronavirus are travelers from northern Italy or are family contacts of a previous patient," the health service said. "The source of the infection is still unknown for a few patients. This is still under investigation."

Local departments of municipal health service GGD are currently investigating who the new patients were in contact with.

A spokesperson for the RIVM told NL Times that around 200 people have been tested for Covid-19 in the country so far. The service is working on an interactive map so that Netherlands residents can better track affected areas.

 Read more at: Netherlands coronavirus total rises to 24 with new Covid-19 cases confirmed | NL Times