【常速英语广播5分钟】 2020-5-1

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VOA NEWS

May 1, 2020

This is VOA news. Reporting by remote, I'm David Byrd.

The U.S. Labor Department reported Thursday that 3.8 million Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week, bringing the total to more than 30 million. But as AP's Sagar Meghani reports from the White House, President Trump says he believes the economy will come rolling back.

Hours after the government reported some 30 million Americans filed for jobless benefits in just six weeks, the president predicting overturn to a strong pre-pandemic economy and beyond, "and I think we can actually surpass where we were

The president says he is relying on his gut. Economists like Bankrate.com's Mark Hamrick are looking at the numbers like low consumer confidence. Even with some businesses reopening, it looks to be a slow comeback, with virus fears dominating. "... consumers are gonna be quite cautious."

Sagar Meghani, Washington.

The European Central Bank on Thursday said it was stepping up its efforts to cushion the economy against a record downturn due to the coronavirus pandemic. The bank's president, Christine Lagarde, said the downturn was "of a magnitude and speed that were unprecedented in peacetime."

"The extent of the contraction and the recovery will depend crucially on the duration and the success of the containment measures, how far supply capacity and domestic demand are permanently affected, and the success of policies in mitigating the adverse impact on incomes and employment."

The monetary authority for the 19 countries that use the euro currency lowered the interest rate on the cheap, long-term loans it provides to banks. The idea is to support banks so they can keep lending to businesses, thereby helping the economy.

For more on these stories, visit voanews.com. This is VOA news.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson says his country is "past the peak" of its coronavirus outbreak and has promised to set out a lockdown exit strategy next week. Reuters Adam Reed reports.

Holding his first news conference Thursday since recovering from COVID-19, and a day after his fiancée gave birth, Johnson urged Britons to stick with restrictions designed to slow the spread.

"... and so I can confirm today that for the first time, we are past the peak of this disease. We're past the peak and we're on the downward slope, and we have so many reasons to be hopeful for the long term."

He said there will be a "menu of options" on how the lockdown could be relaxed, but didn't give further details on a timeframe.

Britain now has the second-highest official COVID-19 death toll in Europe with more than 26,000 deaths.

That's Reuters Adam Reed.

Flight booking surged up by 15 times after BJ relaxed quarantine rules, raising hopes that a release of pent-up demand ahead of a major holiday will breathe life into CN's battered tourism industry. Reuters Emer McCarthy reports.

BJ had until Wednesday lived under some of the toughest restrictions in the country, including a mandatory 14-day quarantine for anyone arriving. That requirement was scrapped from Thursday for travelers from low-risk areas of CN, and comes just ahead of a five-day May Day holiday, beginning on Friday.

Fliggy, the travel booking platform of the Alibaba Group , said it saw orders for air tickets, in and out of BJ, jump more than 500 percent in the hour after the announcement.

The Ministry of Transport said it expected 117 million people to travel by road, rail or air during the holiday, or 23.36 million per day, which is about one third of the daily volume of last year.

That's Reuters Emer McCarthy.

Broadway Star Brian Stokes Mitchell has been singing "The Impossible Dream" from his window every night as New Yorkers applaud health care workers. AP entertainment correspondent Margie Szaroleta reports.

Brian Stokes Mitchell came down with COVID-19 and could not sing without coughing. The night he realized his lungs were clear was the night he started singing "The Impossible Dream" out of his window from his fifth floor apartment on Broadway a few miles up from the theater district.

Mitchell says he thought it would be a one-time thing but now a crowd gathers and even police cars and ambulances stop outside his window.

There's a reason why he chose "The Impossible Dream." "It's a song about trying and that's what we're all, we're all doing right now, is trying."

I'm Margie Szaroleta.

Reporting by remote, I'm David Byrd, VOA news.

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