Name: NYSE halts trading as stocks plummet on travel ban from Europe
Uploaded: 2020-03-20T18:50:03.000Z
Duration: 7 min 55 s
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This is an ABC News Special report reporting George Stephanopoulos.

We're coming on the air now with breaking news in the Corona virus crisis.

The Dow opened at 9:30 a.m. and trading has been suspended.

About five minutes later, at 9 35 after the financial markets, the S and P 500 on the Dow Jones dropped more than 7%.

In the wake of new fears this Corona virus emergency want to go straight to Rebecca Jarvis?

The markets were looking for reassurance from President Trump last night.

And this is now the second time this week we've seen this happen, where the stock market has fallen more than 7% in these first few moments of trading and the circuit breakers have kicked in these air like trip wires for the market.

Once the market falls by a certain level, 7% the markets are halted for 15 minutes, so literally, right now, the markets are halted for the next 15 minutes, while wall Street gets back on its footing.

The idea here being George to keep the markets from heading into free fall.

And since last night's speech, what you have seen is a precipitous decline in the markets.

In fact, we saw it in the futures markets last night immediately during the president's speech.

So money here on Wall Street were hoping to hear firm.

Or that's the thing I keep hearing from investors and analysts.

They wanted to hear more and more certainty and clarity from the government.

George and Rebecca, in the wake of the president announcing this travel ban, seen the Europeans respond, European banks announcing it some more stimulus measures this morning.

The question is, what is Congress going to come up with?

Can they reach an agreement between Democrats and Republicans?

Will the Fed be required to do more lower interest rates again?

The last time they tried that last week, there was actually a counter reaction in the markets fell and and George you It is very, very likely that the Fed will lower interest rates again.

It is also very likely that we will continue to see stimulus coming out of other countries as well time is of the essence here, however, as people are staying home from work sick, knowing that they will not lose their paycheck knowing that there will be some compensation for that.

Staying home is a big part of it for the economy here in the United States, where consumers our spending drives the economy here.

But they're also so many other unknowns additional factors, for example, Princess Cruise Lines this morning saying that they are suspending all of their ships, all of their boats, from hitting the seas for the next two months.

You're going to see more of that as companies make choices about what to do.

In this context, George, given those choices, were seeing Rebecca.

When you see what's happening in Asia, when you see what's happening in Europe, Italy basically on a full locked on benning, almost all commercial activity, the tightening of economic activity here in the United States, it's looking more and more like a recession now here in the United States and around the world as possible.

It is, and more and more economists have said that they anticipate there will be a recession.

One thing that the banks have said in light of this crisis is that they believe it's very different from 2008.

The top CEOs from America's banks met with President Trump yesterday, and coming out of that meeting, they told the president that they were well capitalized, that they were in a much stronger situation.

The key is going to be that banks continue to lend to businesses.

For example, small businesses, which part of the president's address last night, said that small businesses would be able to get loans but small businesses.

If they see business plummet, they still need to make payments to their employees.

And that really becomes a question about jobs if they're not in a position to pay those employees and they need to get those loans from banks.

George thanks the chickens to see Vega at the White House for where the stimulus negotiations stand right now.

We saw the president last night call for aid to small businesses.

He repeated his call for a payroll tax cut.

We know Democrats are pushing first in four months an extension of unemployment insurance and paid family leave.

The question is, can they find common ground with the White House?

The president is not on speaking terms with Nancy Pelosi right now, and it really things Aaron A.

Many of them have vocally said that they're opposed to a payroll taxes well, and the president came out in the Oval Office address.

This event we rarely see in this country only at times of great emergency, to address the nation, to try to alleviate fears not just on the health front as it relates to Corona virus, but on the financial.

On the economic front, he talked about this potential for a payroll tax reduction.

He talked about the small business loans, potentially a tax deadline deferment.

But he offered very few details, and many of those issues need congressional approval, and we're at a stalemate in this city right now.

There was a huge shift in tone from President Trump overnight.

He had been talking about minimizing, really the impacts of the Corona virus.

He is now encouraging the nation to take this very seriously saying We have to come together, toe work on this.

But I think the question George this morning and when it comes particularly to the financial side of this, is whether this message is too little, too late.

Did it should he have have delivered this weeks and days ago?

And we will see what happens in the Congress in the White House today.

Meantime, the Corona virus, of course, continues to spread around the globe.

Right now, 114 countries at least, have been affected.

116 countries now more than 127,000 cases.

Almost 5000 deaths here in the United States, 44 states plus Washington D.

Jan Ashton is here for more on this right now.

And one of things we heard yesterday from America's leading expert on infectious disease, Dr Tony Fauci.

It is George, but I really think people need to remember be reminded that on the local level on the city level, big hospital, small hospitals, they know how to triage.

We trained for this in medicine we practices.

We've seen other cases recently, whether it's for natural disasters or mass shootings.

Hospitals can step up, ramp up and scale up very, very quickly.

And I think right now, especially yesterday, given not only what President Trump said, but what we heard out of the World Health Organization, you are starting to see that I can guarantee you that hospitals are if they haven't already meeting today and they're putting their their surge plans into place.

And I think it's also important to understand that in medicine and science, uncertainty, just like in politics and the markets is not something that most doctors and scientists like to deal with.

However, we are trained to think and respond to what is in front of us.

Um, and in that way it's not as much as what happens that matters, but what you do with what happens.

And it's about being proactive and not really.

We're seeing this cascade of cancellations just last night, the MBA basically suspending their season right on top of university's closing schools closings.

We're gonna need to see more of that in order to prevent the spread.

We are and I think people need to start to get comfortable with the fact that it's not just about the steps that we, as individuals, can take for our own help.

We know those things are important, and people absolutely should be proactive with taking those steps.

But it's about what other steps, more aggressive steps, social distancing steps can be taken to protect communities and the more vulnerable people and slow that curve.

That is critically important because it buys us time toe to respond to it.

Okay, we're gonna return now to our regular programming.

Also continuing coverage of this on ABC News Live Many of you are watching Good Morning, America.