Jim Zarroli

As some states move to reopen their economies, business owners remain uncertain what conditions will be like a few months from now and when customers will be willing to spend again.

With New York having the largest coronavirus outbreak among U.S. states, activists and community organizers are putting together strikes, refusing to pay rent on May 1.

The $3.7 billion NBA franchise and a handful of businesses are returning money they received from a federal program that was intended to help small companies hurt by the coronavirus pandemic.

The number of people forced out of work during the coronavirus lockdown keeps soaring. Last week, 4.4 million people filed for jobless benefits, boosting the total since last month to 26 million.

Many governments, especially in European countries, are handling unemployment differently, paying companies to keep their workers on the payroll until the pandemic is over.

NPR economics, science and politics correspondents relay the latest in the response to the coronavirus epidemic in the United States.

The government's $349 billion Paycheck Protection Program had to be thrown together quickly, and the criteria for which companies can receive benefits were kept loose.

The coronavirus pandemic — and the resulting shutdown — have now eliminated at least 22 million American jobs. NPR correspondents relay the latest on the United States response.

The number of people filing for unemployment climbed by another 5.2 million, as the toll of the nation's economic dive continues to mount. In the past four weeks, 22 million have filed claims.

The coronavirus strikes both rich and poor people, but waiting out the pandemic is a lot easier if you've got a yacht. Ellen DeGeneres and other stars have been called insensitive about COVID-19.

JPMorgan Chase set aside the largest amount of money since 2010 to prepare for defaults, as its profit fell 69%. Wells Fargo's earnings sank 89%.

A Smithfield Foods plant in South Dakota that produces 4% to 5% of the nation's pork supply has become the latest meat processing facility to shut down as COVID-19 sickens plant workers.

The cruise industry is reeling from the effects of the coronavirus. Most ships are now docked and the industry has gotten no relief in the bills passed by Congress.

Unemployment claims show another dramatic rise. Some 10 million Americans had already filed for unemploymen in the two weeks prior to this one.

The number of people seeking jobless benefits shot up again last week, as 6.6 million more of the unemployed filed first-time claims. Much of the economy has shut down, leaving millions out of work.

In a letter to shareholders, the JPMorgan Chase CEO applauds the government and the Fed for quick work, but says the pandemic will have devastating consequences for the global economy.

With millions suddenly out of work, U.S. lawmakers are drafting for another coronavirus relief bill. NPR's Lulu Garcia-Navarro talks with Rep. Nita Lowey, head of the House Appropriations committee.

An NPR economics reporter answers listener questions about the enormous new unemployment numbers released Tuesday by the U.S. Department of Labor.

Jobless claims hit 6.6 million in today's report, doubling the grim milestone reached last week. The numbers are released weekly by the U.S. Department of Labor.

The economic rescue package just passed by Congress will push this year's budget deficit above $3 trillion. Such huge levels of deficit spending used to set off alarm bells in Washington, but no more.