Coronavirus hits 'heart and soul' as New York, LA bars and theaters forced to close

NEW YORK — Bars, restaurants, theaters and movie houses in New York and Los Angeles were ordered to shut down to combat the spread of the coronavirus pandemic as central banks around the world took aggressive steps to cushion the economic impact of the disease. The U.S. Federal Reserve slashed interest rates, for the second time in less than two weeks, to near zero and other central banks followed suit but stock markets and the dollar continued to tumble. Europe’s main stocks markets plunged more than 6% in brutal opening trading while Wall Street futures for the S&P 500 index had hit their downlimit in the first quarter-hour of Asian trade as investors rushed for safety. At...