Monday Morning Briefing: Coronavirus cases outside China may be 'tip of the iceberg' - WHO

World

People across China trickled back work after an extended Lunar New Year holiday as the government eased restrictions imposed to counter the coronavirus, but the World Health Organization said the number of cases outside China could be just “the tip of the iceberg”. More than 300 Chinese firms including Meituan Dianping, China’s largest food delivery company, and smartphone maker Xiaomi are seeking billions in bank loans to soften the impact of the coronavirus, two banking sources said. Global shares fell as the death toll from a coronavirus outbreak exceeded the SARS epidemic of two decades ago, though Chinese shares rose as authorities lifted some work and travel curbs, helping businesses to resume operations. Here are the latest developments around the new coronavirus outbreak.

Sinn Fein’s first priority is to form a government with fellow left-wing parties, but the Irish nationalist party will also talk to the country’s dominant center-right parties Fianna Fail and Fine Gael, leader Mary Lou McDonald said. On Sunday the former political wing of the IRA, a party with the ultimate aim of reuniting Ireland and Northern Ireland, looked near to completing its long journey to the top table of Irish politics. Early results indicated it had stunned the political establishment by securing the most votes in the national election.

A four-day downpour across Australia’s east coast has brought relief after months of devastating bushfires and years of drought, but also widespread storm damage and forecasts of more wild weather to come. The weekend drenching represented the biggest sustained run of rainfall in Sydney and surrounding areas for 30 years, dousing some bushfires and replenishing depleted dams across New South Wales, the country’s most populous state.

NATO’s public image in the United States and France worsened sharply last year, according to a Pew Research Center study, after Donald Trump and Emmanuel Macron questioned the value of the Western alliance. Positive views of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, which relies on the commitment of its allies to collective defense, fell to 52% in the United States last year, from 64% in 2018, the study released on Monday said.

U.S.

On the trail: Democratic presidential contenders including Pete Buttigieg and Bernie Sanders, who topped the field in the Iowa caucuses, enter their last full day of campaigning in New Hampshire as they fight for the chance to seek the White House. For the past year, Democratic voters have been anxious to settle on a savior capable of defeating President Donald Trump. Tuesday’s New Hampshire primary may do little to dispel the collective unease or help bridge the deep ideological split between the party’s liberal and moderate wings.

Texas Democrats are pulling out a new playbook in this year’s Congressional races, loudly backing gun control in a bet a strategy that paid off in Virginia can also win elections in a conservative-leaning state long associated with gun rights. Their fears of facing a political backlash for supporting gun regulations have evaporated after years of mass shootings, with candidates, party officials and gun-control advocates arguing that making the case for strengthening gun laws will win them more votes.

President Donald Trump’s $4.8 trillion budget proposal for fiscal year 2021 is likely to get a chilly reception from lawmakers over its proposals to slash spending on foreign aid and social safety net programs. The White House plans to unveil the budget blueprint for the fiscal year starting on October 1 at 12:30 p.m. eastern time, but administration officials confirmed key figures from the document over the weekend.

In the #MeToo era, women who make sexual misconduct allegations against powerful men can count on public support, but the rape trial in New York of former movie producer Harvey Weinstein has shown that accusers should brace for far less friendly treatment in a court of law.

“Parasite,” a dark social satire from South Korea, won the Oscar for best picture, making history as the first film in a language other than English to claim the movie industry’s highest honor. Here is a list of winners in key categories.

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