U.S. and China Talk Economy, Public Health; One in 5 Americans File Jobless Claims Since Mid-March; U.K. Government to Announce Lockdown Plans Sunday
HOLMES: Welcome back. The United Kingdom on track for its worst economic crash in more than 300 years. Yes, that's right, 300 years. That's according to a new forecast by the Bank of England. It has Britain's GDP making a 14 percent decline this year, due to the coronavirus. Based on the bank's own historical data, that weight of contraction has not been seen since 1706. And amazingly, the bank warns the reality is likely to be even worse than they have forecast. Meanwhile, the U.S. and China are working to put phase one of their trade deal into place. The Chinese vice premier spoke with top U.S. trade officials in just the last few hours. CNN's Steven Jiang is in Beijing for us. Steven, it's almost odd to see trade reps talking about, you know, working together to carry out phase one while, on a political level, the two countries are trading accusations on coronavirus. What do you take from what we're hearing?</s>STEVEN JIANG, CNN SENIOR PRODUCER: Well, Michael, the takeaway is, at this stage, both governments are not ready for a complete breakdown in this very important but increasingly complex relationship between the world's two biggest economies. Now, for all the talk about a new cold war between the two countries, these two economies are so much more intertwined than that of the U.S. and the former Soviet Union ever were. So that's why, despite these increasingly vitriolic rhetorics [SIC] we have been hearing on both sides on the coronavirus issue, this implementation process of this phase one trade deal has never really stopped. That's what I have been hearing from both Chinese, as well as U.S. officials. Now, U.S. diplomats recently told me, actually, even during the peak of the outbreak here in China, back in February, when this virus was ravaging through China, they actually got calls from Chinese officials, unprompted, to reassure them about a Chinese commitment to this trade deal, to these purchasing commitments they have made. So this is really the kind of behind the scenes, flying under the radar process we are talking about. That's why this phone call between the two countries' trade negotiators is not entirely surprising. Some may have seen this as a result of Mr. Trump's recent threat to slap new tariffs on Chinese imports again, but this is actually not the case, according to officials here. Now, this kind of commitment by the Chinese government is reflected in these numbers released by the authorities here. During the first quarter, total trade volume between the two countries was down, not surprisingly. But the decrease in Chinese imports of American goods was much smaller than that of the Chinese exports to the U.S. So as a result, the Chinese surplus over the U.S. actually shrank by more than 20 percent. Now, the Chinese, of course, have also been highlighting their purchasing of American agricultural products, especially soybeans and pork. These have grew [SIC] significantly during the first quarter, as well. And Michael, as you know, these agricultural products are very important to Mr. Trump, because many, if not most, American farmers have been his staunch supporters. So he really needs to keep this base as we move closer to the November election -- Michael.</s>HOLMES: Absolutely. Good to see you, Steven. Thank you. Steven Jian there in Beijing. Now, in the United States, one in five Americans have filed for unemployment since mid-March, think about that. That is when coronavirus lockdown measures began. Now, with a total of 3.2 million jobless claims just last week, April will likely paint the grimmest picture for U.S. employment since the Great Depression. CNN's emerging markets editor John Defterios joining me now, live from Abu Dhabi, on that. I mean, these economic numbers out Friday, boy, the signs are not good.</s>JOHN DEFTERIOS, CNN EMERGING MARKETS EDITOR: Not good at all, Michael. In fact, we'll see numbers today we probably won't see again in our lifetime, post-COVID-19. There is a question, though. Is this the worst? Because companies are just starting their restructuring. So let's take a look at what's expected here. An unemployment rate probably around 16 percent. That was 3 and a half percent at a 50-year low back in February. Extraordinary. Our economy usually creates about a 100, to 150,000 jobs a month during normal times. Incredibly abnormal, we're looking at a drop of nearly 22 million. That's why I said that number, we'll probably never see that level again. And finally, you talked about the unemployment benefits that were filed for yesterday, 3.2 million. It takes the lost jobs, those asking for benefits, to 33 million in seven weeks. And that's why many think the month of May report will be worse, because those unemployment benefits that were filed yesterday are current, and active, and the number is, indeed, still extremely high. Again, for a little bit of context here, Michael, in the two-month starting here from COVID-19, we've wiped out more jobs than the two and a half years of the global financial crisis, 2008, '09 and going into 2010. It is extraordinary. Flexible labor laws, of course, allow Americans to lay off workers. These are faces behind these numbers here right now. But if you get a snapback, they can get rehired. It's just not clear at this stage whether that's going to happen.</s>HOLMES: Yes. And meantime, John, you know, you've got both digital, and bricks and mortar, some big names, too, getting absolutely slammed. Bankruptcies going on.</s>DEFTERIOS: Yes. This is extraordinary, because it's decimating all levels of the economy. The old economy and the new economy. Nieman Marcus, founded in 1907 in Dallas, Texas, filing for bankruptcy, the fabled retailer. There are 15 other names being floated around that could tumble into bankruptcy at the same time in 2020, Michael. Uber, founded in 2009 in San Francisco, first quarter results, a loss of nearly $3 billion. It's laid off 14 percent of its workforce this week. But after those results in the first quarter, the company is suggesting they may not be finished with it. If you're looking for some kind of light at the end of the tunnel, if you will, Uber is suggesting that they're starting to see ridership pick up again, so the stock actually rose. That's -- that's kind of crazy, in a world like we're living today, if you can lose nearly $3 billion and your stock rise is coming after hours in market trade.</s>HOLMES: Three billion-dollar loss, and not real profitable anyway so far. John, good to see. Thanks for that. John Defterios there in Abu Dhabi.</s>DEFTERIOS: Thanks, Michael.</s>HOLMES: All right. Well, questions are being raised about coronavirus protocols inside the White House after one of the president's staffers tested positive for the virus. CNN's Jim Acosta reports to us from the White House.</s>JIM ACOSTA, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For President Trump, the pandemic just hit home, as in the White House, as one of his military valets has tested positive for the coronavirus. But the president is insisting it's no big deal that a personal aide was infected.</s>DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Know who he is, good person, but I've had very little contact. Mike is -- had very little contact with him. But Mike was tested, and I was tested. We were both tested. Yes, it's a little bit strange, but it's one of those things. But the potential for the virus to spread around the White House does exist. White House officials tell CNN few aides to the president actually wear masks around the West Wing, just as the president decided to forego putting on one earlier this week during a factory tour in Arizona.</s>TRUMP: Well, I just wouldn't wear one myself. I think wearing a face mask as our great presidents, prime ministers, dictators, kings, queens, I don't know. Somehow, I don't see it for myself. I just -- I just don't.</s>ACOSTA: One White House official said of the president, "He's a unique individual. He can't be seen walking around wearing a mask." Another close advisor pointing fingers at the press.</s>KELLYANNE CONWAY, COUNSELOR TO DONALD TRUMP: I think if anybody should start wearing masks, and showing more respect, it should be the media.</s>ACOSTA: White House officials have said it's not necessary for the president to wear a mask because he and aides around him are routinely tested for the virus. But the director of the National Institutes of Health said one of the test often used by the White House has a notable false negative rate.</s>DR. FRANCIS COLLINS, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH: I think the other concern has been that it does have about a 15 percent false negative rate. If you're in a circumstance where you really, really don't want to miss a diagnosis of somebody who's already carrying the virus, you'd like to have something that has a higher sensitivity than that. And I know they're working on how to make that happen. As for restarting the economy, the White House is rejecting proposed guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control, offering recommendations on just how to reopen restaurants, schools, and other public spaces. A coronavirus task force official told CNN, "Issuing overly specific instructions -- that CDC leadership never cleared -- for how various types of businesses open up would be overly perspective and broad. Guidance in rural Tennessee shouldn't be the same guidance for urban New York City."</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I find it very concerning. You don't want to get into a situation where public health, and public health science, is set up as the enemy of restarting the economy.</s>ACOSTA: The economy could use a shot in the arm after 3.2 million people filed unemployment claims last week, making for a stunning 33 and a half million since mid-March.</s>TRUMP: He was an innocent man.</s>ACOSTA: But the president is welcoming a development away from the pandemic, after the Justice Department dropped charges against former national security advisor Michael Flynn, who had pleaded guilty to lying to federal investigators. After once firing Flynn for lying to Vice President Mike Pence about the Russia investigation, the president now views Flynn as an innocent man. Mr. Trump appeared to signal what was coming last week.</s>TRUMP: I'll tell you, for sure, when I looked at what they did to him, they tormented him, dirty cops, tormented General Flynn. Because he's in the process of being exonerated.</s>ACOSTA (on camera): As for taking precautions here at the White House, the president said he'll be receiving a coronavirus test on a daily basis. Same goes for the vice president, other aides who work closely with the president. That is a major change in protocols here at the White House and provides a stark contrast with what many Americans have experienced across the country, that it is sometimes difficult to get tested. Jim Acosta, CNN, the White House.</s>HOLMES: And former U.S. Vice President Al Gore says the Trump administration has utterly failed in its handling of the pandemic. He told our Anderson Cooper and Dr. Sanjay Gupta he's worried about what's to come as states begin to reopen.</s>AL GORE, FORMER U.S. VICE PRESIDENT: He has failed as president, particularly on this challenge. The warnings were ignored. Then, after the warnings were met, he has failed to mobilize the resources of the federal government to straighten out this testing catastrophe, to get the swabs and the so- called reagents they need to do the tests; and the gowns and masks and all of the other stuff. He has not done that. And now, I think we're in grave danger. I have to tell you both. I think that we are seeing the start of a botched reopening.</s>HOLMES: And you can hear more from Mr. Gore, along with White House coronavirus response coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx, filmmaker Spike Lee, and author of "The Coming Plague," Laurie Garrett. That will be coming up next hour on CNN's global town hall, "CORONAVIRUS FACTS AND FEARS." We're going to take a short break again. When we come back, businesses forming plans to bring employees back to work, and ahead, we'll tell you why you shouldn't expect it to be the same place you left. We'll be right back.