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FINANCIAL MARKETS
Asian shares gain on hopes for regional economies reopening
TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares are higher as moves to reopen regional economies from shutdowns to contain the coronavirus pandemic override concerns about unrest in the U.S.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 finished 1.2% higher today, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.8%. South Korea’s Kospi added 1.1%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose nearly 0.3%, while the Shanghai Composite edged up 0.1%.
On Wall Street Monday, the S&P 500 climbed 0.4% to 3,055.73 after wavering between small gains and losses. Banks, companies that depend on consumer spending and communications companies accounted for a big slice of the gains. Health care was the only sector to fall.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.4% to 25,475.02. The Nasdaq composite climbed 0.7% to 9,552.05 and the Russell 2000 index picked up 0.8% to 1,405.37.
AMERICA PROTESTS-NYC
Macy's hit as New York imposes curfew amid Floyd protests
NEW YORK (AP) — New York City has imposed a late-night curfew. But it has failed to prevent another night of widespread damage, including arrests after a break-in at the flagship Macy's store in Manhattan, following protests over George Floyd’s death.
The 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew announced Monday comes on top of existing coronavirus restrictions against public gatherings.
But enough mayhem happened before the curfew took effect that Mayor Bill de Blasio tweeted the curfew would move up to 8 p.m. Tuesday. The destruction began after big crowds rallied in Times Square and Brooklyn on Monday afternoon and marched peacefully through the streets for several hours.
AMERICA PROTESTS-BRANDS REACT
Brands weigh in on national protests over police brutality
UNDATED (AP) — As thousands of protesters take to the street in response to police killings of black people, companies are wading into the national conversation but taking care to get their messaging right.
Netflix’s normally lighthearted Twitter account took on a more somber tone on Saturday, saying, “To be silent is to be complicit. Black lives matter. We have a platform, and we have a duty to our Black members, employees, creators and talent to speak up.”
That got retweeted more than 216,000 times and “liked” more than a million times. The streaming service is just one of many corporate brands that have turned to social media to voice their concerns over racial injustice.
COPYRIGHT LAWSUIT
Publishers sue Internet Archive over scanning of books
NEW YORK (AP) — Four of the country's biggest publishers have sued a digital library for copyright infringement, alleging that the Internet Archive has illegally offered more than a million scanned works to the public, including such favorites as Toni Morrison's “Song of Solomon,” Malcolm Gladwell's “Blink” and Cormac McCarthy's “The Road."
In March, the Internet Archive announced it had established a “National Emergency Library" in response to the coronavirus outbreak that had shut down most of the country's schools and libraries. According to the Archive, the emergency library would support “remote teaching, research activities, independent scholarship, and intellectual stimulation" with free digital materials.
FACEBOOK EMPLOYEES-TRUMP
With rare candor, employees protest Facebook's Trump policy
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Facebook employees are using Twitter and Facebook's internal communications tools to register their frustration over CEO Mark Zuckerberg's decision to leave up posts by President Donald Trump that suggested protesters in Minneapolis could be shot.
Twitter flagged and demoted Trump's tweet about the protests when he used the phrase “when the looting starts the shooting starts.” Facebook has let it stand, and Zuckerberg explained his reasoning in a Facebook post Friday.
Angry demonstrations have spread across the U.S. over the past week, creating some of the most widespread racial unrest since the 1960s. The protests, which have been met by violent police action in many cities, were spurred by the death of George Floyd, a black man who died after he was pinned to the pavement by an officer who put his knee on the handcuffed man's neck until he stopped breathing.
Trump's comment evoked the civil-rights era by borrowing a phrase used in 1967 by Miami’s police chief to warn of an aggressive police response to unrest in black neighborhoods.
SOUTH KOREA-JAPAN
South Korea to reopen WTO complaint over Japan trade curbs
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea says it will reopen a complaint to the World Trade Organization over Japan’s tightened controls on technology exports to its companies.
Seoul says Tokyo hasn't committed to resolving mutual grievances in the bitter row between key U.S. allies.
South Korea had halted its WTO action in November when it decided to keep a military intelligence-sharing agreement with Japan after months of U.S. pressure. Japan in return agreed to resume talks on settling a bilateral trade dispute. But a South Korean trade official says no progress has been made in six months of dialogue.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-BRITAIN
UK eases lockdown restrictions but many flout guidelines
LONDON (AP) — The U.K. eased more lockdown restrictions Monday despite warnings from some health officials of another spike in coronavirus infections, especially if Britons persisted in flouting the new guidelines.
Most of the changes were in England, where schools reopened to some — but not all — younger children for the first time since they closed in mid-March.
The easing of the lockdown, especially in England, has raised concerns that it is taking place too soon for economic rather than health reasons, given a still-high level of coronavirus infections and a lack of evidence showing that the recently rolled out track and trace system is working properly.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-NURSING HOMES
Nearly 26,000 nursing home COVID-19 deaths reported to feds
WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal health authorities have received reports of nearly 26,000 nursing home residents dying from COVID-19. That’s according to materials prepared for the nation's governors. That number is partial and likely to go higher.
A letter from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports more than 60,000 cases of coronavirus illness among nursing home residents. A copy of the letter and an accompanying chart were provided to The Associated Press.
The numbers, which had been promised by the end of May, are partial. The letter said the data are based on reports received from about 80% of the nation's 15,400 nursing homes.
CMS, which is responsible for nursing home quality standards, also told the governors it is increasing penalties for nursing homes failing to comply with longstanding infection control requirements.
A federal watchdog report last month found a “persistent” pattern of infection control problems in nursing homes even before the coronavirus. The Government Accountability Office said that about 40% of the nursing homes inspected in each of the past two years were cited for problems with infection control and prevention.
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