National Business

LONDON — The Bank of England slashed its main interest rate to 0.1%, the lowest level since its founding in 1694, and reactivated a bond-buying stimulus program to cushion against the economic shock of the coronavirus pandemic.

TORONTO — While scores of Canadian employers have been laying off workers across the country amid an outbreak of novel coronavirus, Cherif Habib has been doing the exact opposite.

Retailers that have remained open as concerns around the spread of the novel coronavirus increase are either succumbing to pressure to shut their doors or explaining why they should be considered an essential service.

DETROIT — Ford is suspending its dividend to preserve cash as vehicles sales fade due to the coronavirus outbreak. The company said it's drawing on two credit lines to put another $15.4 billion in cash on its balance sheet.

TORONTO — The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre has updated its list of known COVID-19-related scams.

TORONTO — Thomson Reuters says it has acquired Pondera Solutions, a technology company focused on detecting improper payments in health plans and government programs. Financial terms of the agreement were not immediately available.

WASHINGTON — By a sweeping bipartisan tally, the Senate on Wednesday approved a $100 billion-plus bill to boost testing for the coronavirus and guarantee paid sick leave for millions of workers hit by it — and President Donald Trump quickly signed it

MONTREAL — Porter Airlines has joined Transat AT Inc. in moving to suspend all flights while Air Canada is suspending most of its international and U.S. transborder flights in response to governments closing the border.

MINNEAPOLIS — President Donald Trump on Wednesday invoked emergency authority to marshal industry to fight the coronavirus, as the economic fallout from the crisis mounted with word that nearly the entire U.S.

FRANKFURT — The European Central Bank is launching a new, expanded program to buy financial assets in a bid to calm markets as monetary authorities struggle to counter the devastation the virus outbreak is wreaking on the global economy.