Chinese industries hurt by coronavirus get promise of aid from Xi Jinping
The measures to combat the virus have disrupted travel and other industries
BEIJING (AP) — Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday promised tax cuts and other aid to industries hurt by a virus outbreak in a renewed effort to rein in the rising damage to the economy.
Xi's announcement comes as companies face increasing losses due to the closure of factories, offices, shops and other businesses in the most sweeping anti-disease measures ever imposed.
13 CORONAVIRUS CASES CONFIRMED IN US — WHERE THEY ARE AND WHAT TO KNOW
The measures have disrupted travel and other industries. Some businesses are beginning to reopen but many face heavy losses.
Beijing needs to "maintain stable economic operation and social harmony," Xi said in comments broadcast on state television.
In this Feb. 4, 2020, file photo, members of a Chinese honor guard wear face masks as they march in formation near the Great Hall of the People on Tiananmen Square in Beijing. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)
Postal operators in the United States, China and elsewhere say the suspension of flights to slow the spread of a deadly new virus is having a major impact on global flows of letters and parcels.
GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE
In a note seen by The Associated Press, the U.S. Postal Service informed its counterparts around the world on Tuesday that it is “experiencing significant difficulties” in dispatching letters, parcels and express mail to China, including Hong Kong and Macau, “because most of its supplier airlines have suspended their flights" to those destinations.
It said in the note that ”until sufficient transport capacity becomes available,”it would no longer accept mail from other countries that transits via USPS to China, Hong Kong and Macau. That would start immediately, the note said. The Postal Service told AP that hiatus only affected transit mail and not letters and parcels posted in the United States. It also said it could no longer guarantee timely delivery of priority mail to China and Hong Kong.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ON FOX BUSINESS