By NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures collapsed below $0 on Monday for the first time in history, amid a coronavirus-induced supply glut, ending the day at a stunning minus $37.63 a barrel as desperate traders paid to get rid of oil.Brent crude, the international benchmark, also slumped, but that contract was nowhere near as weak because more storage is available worldwide.While U.S. oil prices are trading in negative territory for the first time ever, it is unclear whether that will trickle down to consumers, who typically see lower oil prices translate into cheaper gasoline at...…By NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures collapsed below $0 on Monday for the first time in history, amid a coronavirus-induced supply glut, ending the day at a stunning minus $37.63 a barrel as desperate traders paid to get rid of oil.Brent crude, the international benchmark, also slumped, but that contract was nowhere near as weak because more storage is available worldwide.While U.S. oil prices are trading in negative territory for the first time ever, it is unclear whether that will trickle down to consumers, who typically see lower oil prices translate into cheaper gasoline at...WW…

By (Reuters) - Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Friday ordered the closure of all bars that get 51 percent of their gross receipts from alcohol, except for take-out, and the curbing of other business activity due to surging cases of the novel coronavirus in the state.“As I said from the start, if the positivity rate rose above 10%, the State of Texas would take further action to mitigate the spread of COVID-19,” Abbott said in a press release, explaining an executive order. “At this time, it is clear that the rise in cases is largely driven by certain types of activities, including Texans...…By (Reuters) - Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Friday ordered the closure of all bars that get 51 percent of their gross receipts from alcohol, except for take-out, and the curbing of other business activity due to surging cases of the novel coronavirus in the state.“As I said from the start, if the positivity rate rose above 10%, the State of Texas would take further action to mitigate the spread of COVID-19,” Abbott said in a press release, explaining an executive order. “At this time, it is clear that the rise in cases is largely driven by certain types of activities, including Texans...WW…

By Major League Baseball is considering a radical realignment plan that would scrap traditional leagues and place teams in six divisions based on spring training locations for the 2020 season, USA Today reported on Friday.Having Grapefruit and Cactus Leagues with three divisions apiece are among the options MLB officials are discussing, according to the report.The plan would have all 30 teams return to their spring training sites in either Florida or Arizona. Teams would play games in only those two states and without fans in attendance in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.Teams would...…By Major League Baseball is considering a radical realignment plan that would scrap traditional leagues and place teams in six divisions based on spring training locations for the 2020 season, USA Today reported on Friday.Having Grapefruit and Cactus Leagues with three divisions apiece are among the options MLB officials are discussing, according to the report.The plan would have all 30 teams return to their spring training sites in either Florida or Arizona. Teams would play games in only those two states and without fans in attendance in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.Teams would...WW…

By , (Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc has started to use thermal cameras at its warehouses to speed up screening for feverish workers who could be infected with the coronavirus, employees told Reuters.The cameras in effect measure how much heat people emit relative to their surroundings. They require less time and contact than forehead thermometers, earlier adopted by Amazon, the workers said.Cases of the virus have been reported among staff at more than 50 of Amazon’s U.S. warehouses. That has prompted some workers to worry for their safety and walk off the job. Unions and elected officials have...…By , (Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc has started to use thermal cameras at its warehouses to speed up screening for feverish workers who could be infected with the coronavirus, employees told Reuters.The cameras in effect measure how much heat people emit relative to their surroundings. They require less time and contact than forehead thermometers, earlier adopted by Amazon, the workers said.Cases of the virus have been reported among staff at more than 50 of Amazon’s U.S. warehouses. That has prompted some workers to worry for their safety and walk off the job. Unions and elected officials have...WW…

By BEIJING/SEOUL (Reuters) - China has dispatched a team to North Korea including medical experts to advise on North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, according to three people familiar with the situation.The trip by the Chinese doctors and officials comes amid conflicting reports about the health of the North Korean leader. Reuters was unable to immediately determine what the trip by the Chinese team signaled in terms of Kim’s health.A delegation led by a senior member of the Chinese Communist Party’s International Liaison Department left Beijing for North Korea on Thursday, two of the people...…By BEIJING/SEOUL (Reuters) - China has dispatched a team to North Korea including medical experts to advise on North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, according to three people familiar with the situation.The trip by the Chinese doctors and officials comes amid conflicting reports about the health of the North Korean leader. Reuters was unable to immediately determine what the trip by the Chinese team signaled in terms of Kim’s health.A delegation led by a senior member of the Chinese Communist Party’s International Liaison Department left Beijing for North Korea on Thursday, two of the people...WW…

By Slideshow (Reuters) - The death toll in a landslide at a jade mine in northern Myanmar has risen above 160, with more feared dead, authorities said on Friday, as search efforts continued for a second day.A heap of mining waste collapsed into a lake on Thursday and buried many workers under mud and water.By late evening on Thursday, rescue workers had recovered 162 bodies, the fire service department said.But Thar Lin Maung, a local official from the information ministry, said on Friday the number dead was 161, with 43 hospitalized. The search was ongoing, he said.Half of the victims are...…By Slideshow (Reuters) - The death toll in a landslide at a jade mine in northern Myanmar has risen above 160, with more feared dead, authorities said on Friday, as search efforts continued for a second day.A heap of mining waste collapsed into a lake on Thursday and buried many workers under mud and water.By late evening on Thursday, rescue workers had recovered 162 bodies, the fire service department said.But Thar Lin Maung, a local official from the information ministry, said on Friday the number dead was 161, with 43 hospitalized. The search was ongoing, he said.Half of the victims are...WW…

By , LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Reuters) - A second night of anti-racism protests got off to a tense but mostly peaceful start in Louisville, Kentucky, on Thursday, a day after a grand jury decided not to bring homicide charges against police officers involved in the fatal shooting of Breonna Taylor.As a curfew went into effect after dark and police declared an unlawful assembly, a group of 200 to 300 protesters who had marched through the city for hours retreated to the grounds of the First Unitarian Church, set aside by organizers as a sanctuary near the Ohio River waterfront.Some of the marchers...…By , LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Reuters) - A second night of anti-racism protests got off to a tense but mostly peaceful start in Louisville, Kentucky, on Thursday, a day after a grand jury decided not to bring homicide charges against police officers involved in the fatal shooting of Breonna Taylor.As a curfew went into effect after dark and police declared an unlawful assembly, a group of 200 to 300 protesters who had marched through the city for hours retreated to the grounds of the First Unitarian Church, set aside by organizers as a sanctuary near the Ohio River waterfront.Some of the marchers...WW…

By , MOSCOW (Reuters) - At least 100,000 Belarusian protesters took to the streets of Minsk on Sunday in one of the biggest demonstrations yet against President Alexander Lukashenko after he claimed a landslide victory in an election his opponents say was rigged.As public anger continued to build against Lukashenko, who has ruled the former Soviet nation for 26 years, Moscow offered him support by saying it would send paratroopers to Belarus for “Slavic Brotherhood” joint drills.A wave of protests has swept Belarus since the Aug. 9 presidential election, which demonstrators say was actually...…By , MOSCOW (Reuters) - At least 100,000 Belarusian protesters took to the streets of Minsk on Sunday in one of the biggest demonstrations yet against President Alexander Lukashenko after he claimed a landslide victory in an election his opponents say was rigged.As public anger continued to build against Lukashenko, who has ruled the former Soviet nation for 26 years, Moscow offered him support by saying it would send paratroopers to Belarus for “Slavic Brotherhood” joint drills.A wave of protests has swept Belarus since the Aug. 9 presidential election, which demonstrators say was actually...WW…

By (Reuters) - Michigan will prohibit the open carrying of firearms at polling stations, clerk’s offices and other places where absentee ballots are tabulated to prevent voter intimidation, state officials said on Friday.The order, from Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, applies to Election Day, on Nov. 3, and prohibits a firearm within 100 feet (30 meters) of any voting or counting location.“Prohibiting the open-carry of firearms in areas where citizens cast their ballots is necessary to ensure every voter is protected,” Benson said in a statement.In Michigan, the secretary of...…By (Reuters) - Michigan will prohibit the open carrying of firearms at polling stations, clerk’s offices and other places where absentee ballots are tabulated to prevent voter intimidation, state officials said on Friday.The order, from Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, applies to Election Day, on Nov. 3, and prohibits a firearm within 100 feet (30 meters) of any voting or counting location.“Prohibiting the open-carry of firearms in areas where citizens cast their ballots is necessary to ensure every voter is protected,” Benson said in a statement.In Michigan, the secretary of...WW…

By NEW YORK (Reuters) - Manhattan’s district attorney said on Monday he might have grounds to investigate President Donald Trump and his businesses for tax fraud, as he seeks to persuade a federal appeals court to let him obtain Trump’s tax returns.Slideshow Lawyers for District Attorney Cyrus Vance made the assertion in a filing with the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan, four days before it considers Trump’s request to block Vance’s August 2019 subpoena for the tax returns.The lawyers said the “mountainous” public allegations of misconduct, including misstatements about...…By NEW YORK (Reuters) - Manhattan’s district attorney said on Monday he might have grounds to investigate President Donald Trump and his businesses for tax fraud, as he seeks to persuade a federal appeals court to let him obtain Trump’s tax returns.Slideshow Lawyers for District Attorney Cyrus Vance made the assertion in a filing with the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan, four days before it considers Trump’s request to block Vance’s August 2019 subpoena for the tax returns.The lawyers said the “mountainous” public allegations of misconduct, including misstatements about...WW…