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Here are today’s picks from our editors.
WHO announces 'landmark' int'l collaboration to speed up COVID-19 vaccines development
The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday launched a "landmark" international collaboration to accelerate the development of COVID-19 health technologies.
The new collaboration was launched at a virtual event co-hosted by WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, French President Emmanuel Macron, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
By launching the international cooperation, the WHO and its partners aim to "ensure all people have access to all the tools to defeat COVID-19," said the WHO chief.
Tedros revealed that his organization is currently "coordinating a global trial on the safety and efficacy of four therapeutics against COVID-19." (Xinhua)
US coronavirus toll exceeds 50,000
The US death toll from the coronavirus pandemic surpassed 50,000 on Friday, according to a running tally by Johns Hopkins University.
According to the tracker, 50,031 people have now died in the United States from COVID-19 since the start of the global health crisis, with more than 870,000 confirmed cases.
Despite the alarming figures, several US states such as Georgia and Texas were preparing to reopen some businesses as they started lifting lockdown measures. (AFP)
Trump signs $484 billion measure to aid employers, hospitals
US President Donald Trump signed a $484 billion bill Friday to aid employers and hospitals under stress from the coronavirus pandemic that has devastated broad swaths of the economy.
The bill is the latest effort by the federal government to help keep afloat businesses that have had to close or dramatically alter their operations as states try to slow the spread of the virus.
Trump said most of the funding in the bill would flow to small business through the Paycheck Protection Program, which provides money to small businesses to keep workers on their payroll. (AP)
S. Korea to provide all households with relief grants over COVID-19 outbreak
South Korea decided to provide all households with relief grants to help bolster consumer spending that was hit hard by the COVID-19 outbreak, the Ministry of Economy and Finance said Friday.
Every one-person household will be granted $320, two-person household $490, and three-person household $650 respectively.
The extra budget for the blanket handouts will be financed through the issuance of state bonds, the ministry noted. (Xinhua)
China's first Mars exploration mission named Tianwen-1
China's first Mars exploration mission has been named Tianwen-1, announced the China National Space Administration (CNSA) on Friday, China's Space Day.
The name comes from the long poem "Tianwen," meaning Questions to Heaven, written by Qu Yuan (about 340-278 BC), one of the greatest poets of ancient China.
CNSA said all of China's planetary exploration missions in the future will be named the Tianwen series, signifying the Chinese nation's perseverance in pursuing truth and science and exploring nature and the universe. (Xinhua)
Canada mass shooting started with assault on girlfriend
Canada’s worst mass shooting erupted from an argument between the gunman and his girlfriend, who survived the attack, police confirmed Friday.
Royal Canadian Mounted Police Supt. Darren Campbell said the weekend shooting rampage started with an assault by the suspect on his girlfriend and ended with 22 people dead in communities across central and northern Nova Scotia.
The suspect, identified as 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, was shot to death on Sunday, about 13 hours after the attacks began. (AP)
First sports car by iconic Chinese automaker to be co-produced by US firm
The first luxury sports car for the iconic Chinese brand Hongqi will be jointly produced by China FAW Group Corporation and American automotive engineering and design company Silk EV after they signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Thursday.
According to the MoU, the two firms will set up a joint venture to manufacture the sports car, as well as pushing forward the construction of production lines and an experience center.
New York-based Silk EV is expected to invest 10 billion yuan to build the Hongqi S series into a world leading luxury sports car brand, says the media report. (China Plus)
Thanks for listening, and be sure to catch us tomorrow.
And now for the Question of the Day:
In which royal palace would you find the Hall of Mirrors?
(Answer: The Palace of Versailles.)
Today’s quote is from English novelist Charles Dickens (1812-1870).
"The pain of parting is nothing to the joy of meeting again."
(Produced by Nancy Yan Xu, Ryan Yaoran Yu, Brian Lowe, and Elaine Yue Lin. Music by Eugene Loner.)