Early trends showed the AINRC and Congress in a neck-and-neck race

While it lost elections in the ruling Assam and Kerala, Indian National Congress has received some form of relief as it has emerged as single largest party with 15 seats at Puducherry and could form government in the Union Territory.Together, the ...

Narayanasamy called on Puducherry Lieutenant Governor Kiran Bedi in this regard

Potomac Watch: Congress has found its own neat and plausible answer to the Covid-19 pandemic: spend, spend some more. Thankfully, a few elected leaders are starting to realize it’s wrong. Image: Win McNamee/Getty Images

Main Street: Decades after Hong Kong gave refuge to Martin Lee's father, a former Kuomintang general, his son, the founder of Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement, has just been arrested. Images: KeystoneSTF//AFP/Getty Composite: Mark Kelly

Main Street: Democrats learn the #MeToo standard is impossible to sustain without hypocrisy. Images: Bloomberg/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock/Zuma Press Composite: Mark Kelly

A US-based immigration agency has allowed non-immigrants to "unexpectedly remain" beyond their authorised period of stay due to COVID-19 outbreak.The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), an agency of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which administers the country's naturalisation and immigration system, said that amid such conditions, most non-immigrants can timely file an application for the extension of their stay or change in status.The agency stated that application forms and petitions are available on its online website."Where applicable, employment authorisation with the same employer, subject to the same terms and conditions of the prior approval, is automatically extended for up to 240 days after I-94 expiration when an extension of stay request is filed on time," the agency said.The USCIS has granted the flexibility to non-immigrant workers for filing late applications as the spread of the virus continues to keep daily lives at a standstill.The

North Korea on Tuesday morning fired a salvo of suspected cruise missiles towards the Sea of Japan, also known as the East Sea, according to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JSC).The "multiple projectiles" fired from Munchon in eastern Kangwon province were believed to be "surface-to-ship cruise missiles," the JCS said in a statement cited by Al Jazeera.The missiles flew for approximately 150 kilometres (93 miles) before splashing into the waters off the east coast.The launches come on the eve of the birthday of North Korea's founder Kim Il Sung and South Korea's general elections.The JCS said South Korea's military is monitoring possible additional launches by North Korea.In recent weeks, North Korea has carried out a series of short-range missile and other weapons tests amid stalled nuclear talks with the United States.Last month, it fired nine ballistic missiles in four rounds of tests, according to analysts.On Sunday, North Korean state media reported leader Kim Jong Un had ...

Leaders of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on Tuesday morning met via videoconference to deliberate on a strategy to combat and overcome the COVID-19 crisis, ensuring peaceful life of people and sustainable development of countries in the region.In his capacity as ASEAN Chair 2020, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc chaired the virtual summit, attended by the heads of state or government of the 10 ASEAN members- Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, and the ASEAN secretary-general, Xinhua news agency reported.The leaders are expected to focus their discussions on containing and preventing the spread of COVID-19, supporting people in the countries hit by the disease, including providing consular assistance to ASEAN citizens living, working and studying in other ASEAN nations or a third country, and minimizing socioeconomic impacts of the pandemic.They are also expected to adopt a ...

The Afghan Health Ministry said that 49 new COVID-19 cases have been registered in the country in the past 24 hours, which led the total cases surge to 714 on Tuesday.Kabul registered 18 new cases, maximum highest in the country, leaving behind Kandahar with 15 cases, Balkh 6 cases, Herat and Ghazni 4 new cases each, and Nangarhar 2 cases, according to the health ministry's data cited by Tolo News.At least 40 people have recovered from the virus in the country while 23 have succumbed to the highly contagious infection, the Health Ministry spokesman said.In the meantime, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) executive board approved immediate debt relief for 25 countries--including Afghanistan--in order to help these countries focus on COVID-19 response."Today, I am pleased to say that our Executive Board approved immediate debt service relief to 25 of the IMF's member countries under the IMF's revamped Catastrophe Containment and Relief Trust (CCRT) as part of the Fund's response to ..

A US-based research company has found that China limited the flow of the Mekong River following the construction of a number of its sprawling dams in its territory in the backdrop of a severe drought in the region last year.The report comes at a time when the entire world is grappling with the coronavirus pandemic since late last year, when the virus first made its appearance in Wuhan, the capital of central China's Hubei province."The satellite data does not lie and there was plenty of water in the Tibetan Plateau, even as countries like Cambodia and Thailand were under extreme duress," said Alan Basist, who co-wrote the report, which was released on Monday, for Eyes on Earth, a water resources monitor."There was just a huge volume of water that was being held back in China," Basist was quoted by New York Times as saying.Farmers and fishermen across the Mekong region were devastated as the water level in portions of the river dwindled due to dams commissioned by China which has been .

Two out of three members of a family, residing in Kathmandu, have tested positive for COVID-19 a month after they returned from the UK.The family underwent a Rapid Diagnostic Test on Monday when they showed traces of infection. They were then rushed to Patan Hospital and kept in isolation where they underwent PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) method for further confirmation.The Ministry of Health and Population said in a statement, "A family of three residing at Sun City Apartment of Pepsi Cola Town Planning were tested for COVID-19 on April 13 where two persons, a 58-year male, and an 81-year female were tested positive while undertaking RDT procedure and were further tested under the PCR procedure which also confirmed that they were positive for the virus,""Other people who are residing in that apartment also would be tested for the virus and the tracing also has been started for those who came in contact with them," the statement added.The apartment has been sealed off since Monday ..

Nepal has decided to extend its nation-wide lockdown imposed in view of surging coronavirus cases for 12 more days till April 27.The decision taken during a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday comes after a sudden rise in coronavirus cases in the Himalayan country. This would be the third extension to the lockdown that was first imposed on March 24.The Council of Ministers' meeting chaired by Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli decided to extend the lockdown till April 27. Earlier meeting of the Cabinet had extended the lockdown till April 15, which was set to end on Wednesday mid-night.The Nepali government has also decided to ban all commercial international flights till April 30.Two more people have tested positive for the coronavirus in the national capital. They had a travel history to the United Kingdom.Ministry of Health and Population said in a statement: "A family of three residing in Sun City Apartment of Pepsi Cola Town Planning were tested for COVID-19 on April 13 where two persons, a ...

The Indian Consulate General in Dubai has issued an advisory on partially resuming the passport services for Indian applicants through BLS Sharjah Centre from April 15 onwards.The advisory from the consulate general says that the applications for renewal of passports that have expired or would expire on or before April 30, 2020 will be processed initially.The Consulate General in Dubai also listed the ways people can apply for the renewal of passports.Those people who want to apply for renewal can send an email to the consulate at the email address- passport.dubai@mea.gov.in with an explanation of the emergency for the renewal.The Consulate would then give an appointment at the BLS International Exclusive Centre for Indian Passport and Visa Services at Sharjah.As per the advisory, the applicant will have to prepare the application online and attach all required documents before visiting the centre at the appointed time.The passport services were suspended in the wake of the COVID-19 ..

People in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) are facing discrimination at the time of COVID-19 outbreak as they are being denied benefits under the Ehsaas Emergency Cash Programme launched by Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan.Pakistan government launched the Ehsaas Emergency Cash programme under which Rs. 12,000 grant is to be provided to around 12 million families across the country including those from PoK.But like all other schemes announced by Pakistan in the past, this too has excluded an already discriminated and deprived PoK populace of the benefits, as the residents have received nothing but despair after standing in long queues for hours outside the designated banks.A local woman said, "Our house caught fire and everything got burnt. Even our daughter faced severe injuries. Today we have nothing with us, not even food and we are getting no help. Our daughter got treated in Rawalpindi but now we don't have money to continue with her treatment. We came to know that we will be ...

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has projected the growth of Indian economy in 2020 at the rate of 1.9 per cent, while the world economy is likely to contract sharply by "minus 3 per cent" due to the coronavirus pandemic, which is proving worse than the 2008-09 financial crisis.The IMF on Tuesday its yearly World Economic Outlook, providing a grim picture of the world economy amid global lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic, which has jolted the world by claiming over one lakh lives globally.The IMF has, however, given a bullish projection about India's economic growth in 2021, pegging the growth rate at 7.4 per cent.Gita Gopinath, Chief Economist and Director of the research department at IMF said in her opening remarks, "The COVID-19 pandemic is inflicting high and rising human costs worldwide. Protecting lives and allowing health care systems to cope have required isolation, lockdowns, and widespread closures to slow the spread of the virus.""The health crisis is, ...

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday held a telephonic conversation with President of Palestine Mahmoud Abbas and the two leaders discussed challenges posed by the COVID-19.As per an official release, "the two leaders discussed the challenges posed by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, and apprised each other of the steps being taken in their respective countries to control the situation."Prime Minister Modi also appreciated the measures taken by Abbas' authorities to protect their population from the virus and assured all possible support from India for these efforts.The two leaders will stay in touch over various issues regarding the global pandemic. Palestine has so far reported 308 confirmed cases of coronavirus and two deaths so far.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) in its Global Financial Stability Overview released on Tuesday has noted that early in 2020, global financial markets remained afloat as there was a sense of optimism on the back of supportive monetary policy, reduced trade tension and tentative signs of stabilisation in the global economy. However, the spread of COVID-19 has posed a risk that has seen the prices of risk assets and commodities fall at unprecedented speed.The document released by the IMF says that the equity markets experienced the fastest drop in history with the S and P 500 falling 20 per cent from its peak in just 16 trading sessions.The asset price declines reached about half the magnitude seen in 2008-09 at the worst point of the sell-off, and implied volatility spiked across asset classes, in some cases to levels last seen during the global financial crisis.Financial Counsellor and Director of the Monetary and Capital Markets Department, IMF, Tobias Adrian while releasing the

Former US President Barack Obama in a video message on Tuesday formally endorsed his former Vice President Joe Biden, who is gunning for the White House in the elections later this year.Obama while endorsing said: "The kind of leadership that's guided by knowledge and experience, honesty and humility, empathy and grace -- which kind of leadership doesn't just belong to our state capitols and mayors' offices. It belongs in the White House. And that's why I'm so proud to endorse Joe Biden for President of the United States."Biden has now become the presumptive nominee for the Democrats after fellow contestant Bernie Sanders withdrew and endorsed him. Biden will go up against the presumptive Republican nominee and incumbent President Donald Trump.Obama further said: "If there's one thing we've learned as a country from moments of great crisis, it's that the spirit of looking out for one another can't be restricted to our homes, or our workplaces, or our neighbourhoods, or our houses of ..

The Indian Rapid Response Team imparted training and shared its experience with the Kuwaiti personnel at Jaber Al Ahmed Hospital as part of capacity building in the fight against COVID-19.The team had reached Kuwait on Monday.A release issued by External Affairs Ministry on Monday said that the rapid response team is expected to stay in Kuwait for the next two weeks to help the Kuwait government with medical assistance in testing and treatment of the people infected by the novel coronavirus.The team went to Kuwait following a phone call between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Saba. Both the leaders had agreed for a coordinated approach towards the deadly disease.

The number of coronavirus cases reported in France has passed 100,000, top French health official said on Tuesday."As of this evening, we have passed the 100,000 mark in terms of test-confirmed coronavirus cases," Jerome Salomon told reporters.France now has 103,573 confirmed cases, with 5,497 new infections recorded in the past 24 hours.The death toll is 15,729. Of them, 10,129 were hospital patients. The number of people who died in hospitals in the past day is 559.On Monday, President Emmanuel Macron extended the nationwide lockdown until May 11. Restrictions on public life went into effect on March 17 in a bid to limit the spread of the deadly coronavirus.

The US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) on Tuesday (local time) welcomed the decision of India's Supreme Court to relax conditions for the release of individuals detained as "foreigners" in Assam's detention centres due to concerns with the spread of COVID-19."We welcome this decision as a first step," a statement by USCIRF quoted its Chair Tony Perkins as saying."We urge the Indian Supreme Court to continue on this promising path and order the release of all those detained in the detention centres on humanitarian grounds. Even two years as a minimum time for release is unreasonable given the threat of detention centres becoming a breeding ground for the spread of COVID-19," he added.In response to an application submitted by the Justice for Liberty Initiative, the Supreme Court on Monday ordered the release of detainees held for at least two years and lowered the personal bond amount necessary to secure release from Rs 100,000 to 5,000.Coronavirus has impacted ..

As coronavirus pandemic deepens, over 117 million children in 37 countries are expected to miss out on receiving live-saving measles vaccine, the United Nations said on Tuesday.Measles immunisation campaigns in 24 countries have already been delayed and more will be postponed, the World Health Organization and the UN children's fund UNICEF said."Together, more than 117 million children in 37 countries, many of whom live in regions with ongoing measles outbreaks, could be impacted by the suspension of scheduled immunisation activities," Measles and Rubella Initiative (M & RI) said in a statement.New WHO guidelines endorsed by the Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunisation aim to help countries to sustain immunisation activities during the COVID-19 pandemic."The @MeaslesRubella Initiative supports recommendations to: temporarily pause preventive immunisation campaigns where there's no active outbreak of a vaccine-preventable disease continue routine immunisation services, ..

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he has instructed his administration to halt World Health Organisation's funding while a review is being conducted in the WHO's "role in severely mismanaging and covering up" the spread of coronavirus after it emerged in China."Today I'm instructing my administration to halt funding of the World Health Organization. We will redirect global health and directly work with others. All of the aid that we send will be discussed at very, very powerful letters," Trump said during a press conference.The US President has been critical of the world health body stating that the organisation was aware of the dangers of the coronavirus months before it took action.The United States has been the worst-hit country from the coronavirus. The virus has killed over 25,000 people in the country since the outbreak. There are at least 594,207 cases of coronavirus in the US.The US President also said the funding would be suspended while officials conduct a review "to

The number of people infected with the new coronavirus worldwide has surpassed 1.8 million with 71,779 cases verified over the past 24 hours, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday.According to the update, the global count of confirmed COVID-19 cases has reached 1,844,863, with the majority of them concentrated in Europe (943,272) and the Americas (644,986).The death toll has grown by 5,369 cases over the past day to a total of 117,021 fatalities, the report read.

Egyptian security forces have killed seven terrorists who were planning an attack on the country's Coptic Orthodox Christian population during their upcoming Easter celebrations, the country's Ministry of Internal Affairs said.According to the ministry, security forces raided an apartment in a densely-populated region of the capital. Mohammed Fawzy Al Hofi, a lieutenant officer, was killed during the attack, and one other police officer suffered injuries, the statement read.Security forces found six machine guns and ammunition in the apartment after the raid, according to the statement.On Tuesday evening, the national media reported on the security operation, which took place in a multistorey building in the Al Amireya region of the Egyptian capital.The country's Coptic Orthodox Christians are set to celebrate Easter Sunday on April 19.In April 2017, Egypt's Coptic Christians were targeted by bomb blasts during services to celebrate Palm Sunday. Two blasts in the cities of Tanta and ..

Michigan [USA], April 15 (ANI): Indian automaker Mahindra is joining the "Arsenal of Health" efforts spearheaded by General Motors Co. and Ford Motor Co. in Michigan to make medical Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) for healthcare workers fighting COVID-19.More than 20 Mahindra employees of the Michigan plant are making medical shields from windshields. This innovative ease-of-use box-shaped design will be used by doctors, nurses, local frontline healthcare workers and first responders."MANA's Michigan employees have taken an all-hands-on-deck approach to the COVID-19 fight," said Rick Haas, President and CEO, Mahindra Automotive North America (MANA)."We have a company full of people who love to design and make things and they are not people who like to stand on the sidelines. We have ideas coming in from across the company and we are looking hard at all of them." Haas added.MANA is working with the state, Michigan's congressional delegation, trade organisations, Oakland County and .

Wearing masks and gloves, South Korean voters cast their ballots on Wednesday to elect 300 parliamentary lawmakers amid the coronavirus outbreak.Voting kicked off at 6 am (local time) and was to run until 6 pm (local time) at 14,330 polling stations across the country, according to the National Election Commission (NEC). The number of eligible voters is 44 million, according to Yonhap news agency.The once-in-four-years legislative election is widely seen as a referendum on President Moon Jae-in, whose five-year term will end in mid-2022, as well as a test of the country's fight against COVID-19 under the leadership of Moon, The Strait Times reported.South Korea has received international praise for its massive testing capability and other innovative measures, such as drive-through testing and high-tech contact tracing.Experts, therefore, expect the ruling Democratic Party (DP) to extend its lead in Parliament, given that the government's handling of the virus outbreak is viewed ...

A political activist from Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) has alleged that Pakistan has been regularly violating ceasefire at the Line of Control these days to infiltrate terrorists into Kashmir valley amid COVID-19 spread.Amjad Ayub Mirza, a political activist and author based in Glasgow told ANI, "It is Pakistan, which is responsible for ceasefire violation. We, the people of PoK are aware of this fact that always Pakistan initiates a ceasefire violation to which India retaliates."The activist said that like always, time too, the ceasefire violation was started by Pakistan which created problems for locals, even in the areas of Jammu that do not even come in the jurisdiction of the ceasefire line.Divulging further on the heinous activities conducted by Pakistan, the activist said, "There can be three reasons for them to do so. Firstly due to the coronavirus outbreak, the establishment has been exposed over the mishandling of the pandemic. The country does not even have proper ...

Defying all orders from the state to refrain from religious congregations to curb the spread of COVID-19, prominent ulemas and religious scholars from across Pakistan on Tuesday stated that the five daily prayers and the Friday prayers would be held in mosques. They, however, mentioned that all precautionary measures advised by the government will be implemented.The statement from the ulemas, cited by Dawn, comes as the government announced it would continue the lockdown imposed in light of the coronavirus outbreak, easing restrictions for some industries which it said were 'low-risk'.Authorities in all provinces had officially restricted congregations in mosques, including for Friday prayers, to five people or less for the past two weeks. However, several instances of violation of government orders, and confrontation with police trying to enforce these orders, have been reported since then.Speaking at a press conference after the meeting between representatives from the ...

The US Department of Justice on Tuesday (local time) said it has repatriated approximately USD 300 million (RM 1.292 billion) to Malaysia in additional funds misappropriated from 1Malaysia Development Berhad (MDB), the Asian country's investment development fund.The government of former Prime Minister Najib Razak set up the 1MDB fund in 2009 to promote economic development in Malaysia through global partnerships and foreign direct investment.The Justice Department estimated that some USD 4.5 billion was siphoned out of Malaysia by high-level fund officials and their associates between 2009 and 2014 in a scandal that called for Razak's resignation -- including Mahathir Mohamad, one of the former's predecessors.The funds were laundered through financial institutions in several jurisdictions, including the United States, Switzerland, Singapore and Luxembourg."We are pleased to make this latest repatriation of an additional USD 300 million in stolen 1MDB funds," Assistant Attorney General

The assertion came in response to a question by five MPs of the European Parliament, namely Petras Austrevicius, Ausra Maldeikiene, Hannes Heide, Francisco Guerreiro and Petra De Sutter who had submitted a question to EU Foreign Affairs chief, Josep Borrell, asking about the position of EU on the succession of Dalai Lama and what measures the Union intends to take.The EU parliamentarians said that they expect Beijing to respect the spiritual leader's succession according to the traditional standards of Tibetan Buddhism, according to an independent analyst.In January this year, the US House of Representatives had unanimously passed the Tibetan Policy and Support Act (TPSA) to strengthen policy in support of Tibet, a move that was hailed as "encouraging and empowering" by the representatives of Tibet.The Act intended to, among other things, sanction Chinese officials for interfering in the Dalai Lama's succession.The Dalai Lama institution has existed for more than 600 years, during ...

Risk sentiment deteriorated after a news report, citing inadvertently released results, said the closely watched antiviral drug remdesivir had had no effect on patients in its first randomised clinical test.

Total 32 issues of 33 industry category of Topix index were in positive territory, with Marine Transportation, Iron & Steel, Nonferrous Metals, Air Transportation, Electric Appliances, Real Estate, and Glass & Ceramics Products issues being notable gainers.

Industrial stocks performed strongly with Transurban gaining 3.7% and Brambles up 4.2%. Healthcare out-performed with a gain of 6% in Sonic, 3.7% in Ramsay Healthcare, and 2.6% in CSL. Info tech and real estate sectors were up more than 3%.

Total 17 issues of 33 industry category of Topix index were in positive territory, with Rubber Products, Air Transportation, Services, Electric Appliances, Precision Instruments, Securities & Commodities Futures, and Information & Communication issues being notable gainers, while Iron & Steel, Mining, Chemicals, Nonferrous Metals, and Land Transportation issues were notable losers.

Investors continue to struggle against positive news of lifting restrictions and re-opening the economy against what is expected to be the sharpest and most severe downturn since the great depression.

Among blue chips, index heavyweight Tencent (700 HK) rose 1% to HK$417.20, while Alibaba (9988 HK) slid 0.8% to HK$199. China Overseas Land & Investment (688 HK) jumped 3.5% to HK$27.90; Citic Pacific (267 HK) rose 2.7% to HK$7.98; and Mengniu Dairy (2319 HK), went up 2.5% to HK$28.70.

Investor confidence has been lifted as major countries and several US states reopen for business and central banks seem poised to inject more stimulus to offset the economic hit from the pandemic.

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Wall Street stocks opened higher amid reaction to developments regarding the use of Gilead Sciences' antiviral drug remdesivir as a potential new treatment for Covid-19 patients. Gilead Sciences said on Wednesday that preliminary results of a coronavirus drug trial showed at least 50% of patients treated with a five-day dosage of remdesivir improved and more than half were discharged from the hospital within two weeks. Later Wednesday, White House health advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said NIAID's remdesivir drug trial, which enrolled about 800 patients, showed quite good news and that the drug would set a new standard of care for Covid-19 patients.

Asian market advanced on Thursday, 30 April 2020, on following U.S. shares advancing overnight on reports the antiviral drug remdesivir is showing promise as an effective COVID-19 treatment.

Total 23 issues of 33 industry category of Topix index were in positive territory, with Mining, Securities & Commodities Futures, Iron & Steel, Real Estate, Nonferrous Metals, and Glass & Ceramics Products issues being notable gainers, while Electric Power & Gas, Other Products, Air Transportation, Information & Communication, and Foods issues were notable losers.

Investor sentiment around the world was brightened by Gilead Sciences Inc.'s announcement that preliminary results of a coronavirus drug trial showed at least 50% of patients treated with a five-day dosage of remdesivir improved and more than half were discharged from the hospital within two weeks. Later Wednesday, White House health advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said NIAID's remdesivir drug trial, which enrolled about 800 patients, showed quite good news and that the drug would set a new standard of care for Covid-19 patients. Globally, the coronavirus pandemic has infected more than 3.1 million and taken at least 226,771 lives, according to data compiled by John Hopkins University.

Investor sentiment around the world was brightened by Gilead Sciences Inc.'s announcement that preliminary results of a coronavirus drug trial showed at least 50% of patients treated with a five-day dosage of remdesivir improved and more than half were discharged from the hospital within two weeks. Later Wednesday, White House health advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said NIAID's remdesivir drug trial, which enrolled about 800 patients, showed quite good news and that the drug would set a new standard of care for Covid-19 patients. Globally, the coronavirus pandemic has infected more than 3.1 million and taken at least 226,771 lives, according to data compiled by John Hopkins University.

U.S. officials are beginning to explore proposals for punishing or demanding financial compensation from China for its handling of the coronavirus pandemic. The move could splinter already strained relations between the two superpowers at a perilous moment for the global economy. Senior officials across multiple government agencies are expected to meet Thursday to begin mapping out a strategy for seeking retaliatory measures against China, as per reports. Officials in American intelligence agencies are also involved in the effort. President Trump has fumed to aides and others in recent days about China, blaming the country for withholding information about the virus, and has discussed enacting dramatic measures that would probably lead to retaliation by Beijing.

Asian stock markets fell sharply on Monday, 04 May 2020, as risk sentiment turned sour on reigniting tensions between the world's top two economies after U.S. officials tried to pin blame for the coronavirus pandemic on China.

Local shares fell in early trade on reigniting tensions between the world's top two economies after U.S. officials tried to pin blame for the coronavirus pandemic on China.

Asian stock markets fell sharply on Monday, 04 May 2020, as risk sentiment turned sour on reigniting tensions between the world's top two economies after U.S. officials tried to pin blame for the coronavirus pandemic on China.

A ramping up of tensions between the White House and China over the origins and handling of the coronavirus pandemic weighed on markets around the world. The U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday that he believed that a mistake in China was the cause of the spreading coronavirus pandemic, though he did not present any evidence for the claim.