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Much news still smothered by corona virus stuff. These items caught my eye

Wuhan Virus -
Many of the various categories I’m following have now integrated effects from this pandemic, but I’m keeping them separate for clarity. We are entering uncharted waters as far as this pandemic goes. . . . . .

Anger over democrat scuttling of the latest economic package to support the economy is still reverberating around the country. More negotiations overnight. Stocks are responding positively to a potential agreement. But Americans have to wonder what “corporate board diversity”, postal service bail outs and 0bamaphones have to do with all of this. Five republican senators are still in self quarantine, giving Schumer room to run rampant.

Economic studies indicate that half of small businesses have less than 30 days cash buffer. Small business is the main driver of the economy and if current responses to the corona virus continue, they will be put past the point of no return. This is evident in President Trump’s comments about the ‘cure’ being more disastrous than the disease.

Meanwhile, China reportedly is lifting travel restrictions in the hardest hit areas. For Wuhan, it is reported that all restrictions will be lifted April 8th.

In New York, the medical system is on the verge of a breakdown. Those who claim the virus is a fake or hoax outright to check that out.

Middle East -
Carrier strike forces associated with the HARRY S TRUMAN and the DWIGHT D EISENHOWER have been conducting joint operations in the Arabian Sea over the past several days. No apparent threat in the gulf region, but a good wave of the big sticks in the event Iran gets too froggy.

Black Swans -
Multiple actions disrupting global economics in the midst of the corona virus pandemic. Of note:

Saudi Arabia appears to be tapping cash from its sovereign wealth fund to patch up government finances with oil prices three times lower than their break-even oil price. They are also reportedly cutting back various projects by about 5%. Russia OTOH, claims they have enough resources to cover budget shortfalls at $25-30 oil for six to ten years. That is questionable, but bottom line is this oil war is seriously damaging oil economies globally, even more so during the corona virus pandemic induced reduction in oil consumption.

CW2 -
Spillover from the democrat scuttling of the relief bill may be making its way into parts of the political left and right as rhetoric on both sides heats up. As noted in the past, there may be local breakouts of violence should the nation situation catch serious hits from other sources. Antifa is already chomping at the bit to stir things up, so to are some groups on the far right.

Senate democrats agreed to a stimulus package (they had an agreement last Sunday - until Pelosi showed up and threw a monkey wrench into things). Check FR threads for more details and analysis. We are about a week out from the end of the President’s 15 day period. Infection growth rates still climbing with no inflection seen.

Bloomberg is reporting that some countries have halted exports of foods due to fears surrounding the corona virus pandemic. Some countries, like China, are taking the opportunity to divert harvests into the national, strategic reserves (rice and wheat). These shipping bans are not widespread, but could indicate a potential follow-on scenario of localized hunger/famine if it spreads.

Reports are growing of EMS and law enforcement increasingly coming down with the virus. Hardest hit is NYC with New Orleans coming close behind. PAY ATTENTION: fewer law enforcement and MORE criminals released onto the streets will cause crime to skyrocket. Some in NYC are calling the current situation there a Mad Max scenario.

One of the economic tremors now coming into view is how lost income is going to effect the lending community. Mortgage companies are bracing for a severe cash crunch when Americans who lose jobs and income because of the corona virus pandemic stop making payments on their home loans. The companies, such as Quicken Loans Inc. and Mr. Cooper Group Inc., expect a wave of missed payments from borrowers as early as next month that will force them to come up with tens of billions of dollars on short notice.

Syria/Turkey -
There are hints that Turkey is working to come up with a plan to push the US out of the remaining parts of Syria, where Americans are guarding oil fields. During his meeting with Putin earlier in the month, Erdogan spoke about using the oil infrastructure and revenues to rebuild Syria. Not sure how this will pan out, monitoring.

China/Taiwan -
Anger is reportedly building in Taiwan over increased China encroachments. Though this is part of a larger effort by China to exert control of the China Sea, it is troubling to think that China may try something dumb while the rest of the world is focused on the corona virus.

CW2 -
A Department of Homeland Security intelligence bulletin to law enforcement is warning that violent extremists could strike the U.S. amid the corona virus crisis. “Violent extremists probably are seeking to exploit public fears associated with the spread of COVID-19 to incite violence, intimidate targets and promote their ideologies, and we assess these efforts will intensify in the coming months,” the bulletin states according to ABC News. The article fails to report the abundance of leftist/anarchists (antifa) activity that have been posted here in the past. Again, the current political/social environment is causing extremists on both sides to up gun and stir their supporters. If we get a big bump outside the virus response things could go kinetic on a local basis.

Yesterday LA Mayor Eric Garcetti lashed out at non-essential stores that refuse to close, making an ominous threat to shut off their utilities if they don’t voluntarily close. History shows that such authoritarian control becomes something the politicians will be unwilling to easily give up once the crisis blows through.

In a parallel note, LA County Sheriff’s Dept. Enforcement efforts to close non-essential businesses have been suspended. NOTE: LA County also released some 1700 prisoners into the community to ‘protect’ them from corona virus.