By the Associated Press:
President Donald Trump has announced that he is declaring the coronavirus pandemic a national emergency. He spoke to the American people from the Rose Garden on Friday as Washington struggles with providing Americans with relief and officials race to slow the spread of outbreak.
Trump also waived interest on federally held student loans and moved to prop up energy markets, by directing the Department of Energy to buy oil to fill the strategic petroleum reserve “’right up to the top.”
Negotiations continue between the White House and Congress on an aid package, but Trump said they have yet to agree. House Democrats were preparing to vote on their own measure Friday.
Stocks surged on Wall Street, recouping much of a historic plunge, after President Donald Trump announced new measures to fight the coronavirus.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 1,985 points, or 9.4%, its best gain since October 2008. Stocks doubled their gains in the last half-hour as Trump made his remarks.
The rally came at the end of a week of turbulent trading fueled by heightened fears that the fallout from the coronavirus could bring on a global recession. Thursday’s drop was the worst since the Black Monday crash of 1987. Investors have been clamoring for strong action from the U.S. government to combat the virus.
