Bloomberg Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-Ocha said a state of emergency will be declared for a month from March 26 as the government steps up efforts to fight the novel coronavirus outbreak. The premier made the announcement on Tuesday after a Cabinet meeting in Bangkok. The decree will give him broad powers to impose further curbs on every-day life, under ...

Bloomberg India will have enough grain stockpiles to feed its poor for at least a year-and-a-half as reserves are likely to further balloon after record harvests in the South Asian nation that has been locked down to check the spread of the coronavirus. There will be no food shortage in the second-most populous country, DV Prasad, chairman of state-run Food ...

Bloomberg China’s Hubei province said it will allow transportation to resume for the city of Wuhan on April 8, effectively lifting a mass quarantine over the city where the coronavirus first emerged last December. People in Wuhan will be allowed to leave the city and Hubei province, according to a statement on the provincial government’s website on Tuesday. The easing ...

Bloomberg About a 40-minute drive to the east of China’s capital, Beijing Aeonmed Co has been working around the clock since January 20. After meeting the country’s needs two weeks ago, its factory lines have been working flat out on orders from overseas for its lifesaving ventilators. With three shifts and even research and development staff working the production line, ...

Bloomberg PG&E Corp agreed to plead guilty to involuntary manslaughter in connection to the deadliest wildfire in California history. The bankrupt utility will pay $4 million in fines for its role in the 2018 Camp Fire, which was sparked by PG&E power lines, according to a statement Monday. The blaze killed 85 people in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada ...

Bloomberg The world’s biggest carbon market is joining the long list of victims of the economic fallout from the coronavirus. The price of certificates allowing companies to emit carbon dioxide in the European Union (EU) has crashed by 40% so far this year, including two drops of more than 10% in the past week. That has erased two years of ...

Bloomberg The leading US solar-trade group warns fallout from the coronavirus could slash the industry’s workforce in half. The Solar Energy Industries Association made the projection on March 23 as part of a campaign to convince Congress to make the federal tax credit for the sector refundable or payable directly to businesses and customers. “As the stock market tanks, tax-equity ...

Bloomberg Household electricity bills are set to soar, thanks to the millions of people now working at home to avoid catching the coronavirus. Running laptops and other home appliances will cost consumers an extra 52 million pounds ($60 million) each week in the UK, according to a study from Uswitch, a website that helps consumers compare the energy prices that ...

Bloomberg The novel coronavirus pandemic is testing the residential-solar sector, which had forecast strong growth this year but hasn’t faced a recession since it reached the American mainstream. Its key challenges are similar to those facing many other industries: how to close sales, complete installations, and convince homeowners to add solar panels during a period of unexpected and mounting economic ...

Bloomberg US regulators are willing to let nuclear power plants defer some maintenance and inspections as the coronavirus threatens availability of workers. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) expects to issue guidelines for operators to request permission for employees to work longer than allowed under current regulations. The agency expects to add additional sections covering maintenance as soon as possible, a ...