recently added to, best in breed retailers. [closing bell rings] they will do reasonably well in the recession but on other side they will do very well. liz: great to have you. hank smith of haverford. there is the closing bell. what do we get? a gain. markets rally into the close, up 470 points even as the labor market shows it is in freefall. that will do it for "the claman countdown." melissa: stocks surging higher in the final minutes of trading despite the worst jobless claims numbers in american history. i'm melissa francis. connell: i'm connell mcshane. welcome to "after the bell," everybody. oil a big story today with president trump saying saudi arabia and russia will cut production. fox business team coverage set up with our reporters standing by. blake burman is in washington with the latest from the white house.

lauren simonetti watching the markets. edward lawrence also in d.c., and jackie deangelis in new york, but on the markets, lauren, we start with you. lauren: what a day, right? oil saw the biggest gain one day ever, up 25%. closing just over $25 a barrel. energy stocks rising in a big way. what happened? the president said russia and saudi arabia appeared close to a supply cut, taking oil off the market. we don't know if that will happen, if they actually agree to it or how much they will take off the market and where exactly they will put all of that crude because think about it, we're not using very much right now. so supply is certainly out there. anyway, great day for the price of oil. and with that, some of the big energy stocks as well. the oil news helped investors brush aside the news we got an hour before the market opened this morning. that showed last week 6.6 million americans filed for first time unemployment insurance. 6.6 million.

if you add that to the week before, we're talking 10 million americans two weeks time filing for unemployment. that is a horrifying number. that is the reality we're in. it tees up for the jobs report we get tomorrow for the government for the month of march. it is expected to show 100,000 jobs lost, that's it but it will not scratch the surface because since the numbers, the data calculated for that report, we've seen florida, georgia, nevada, pennsylvania, issue stay-at-home orders. the numbers will not scratch the surface for real damage done to the job market. i was talking to an economist, he says unemployment rate rises one percentage for every 1.5 million claims. we're talking about a future 10% unemployment rate. that is what we're talking about here. i want to leave you with good news. what are we doing when we stay at home? we're on zoom. they have 200 million daily

active users. video chat is where it is at. ring central is coming out with their own version of video chat. facebook, starting today on your desktop you can use messenger. the reason zoom is down 10% on the g news today, they have competition and there are security and privacy concerns for them. back to you guys. connell: thank you very much, lauren simonetti on the markets. next stop is the take from the white house. live to blake burman from washington with that. blake? reporter: we did not hear directly from president trump reacting to the jobless claims numbers but the white house put out a statement that is why the president signed and pushed for the $2.2 trillion phase three package that the president signed into law last week. a spokesperson saying the following of the president, quote, his signature insures access to incentives for businesses to retain workers and continue paying them as well as enhanced unemployment benefits. now within last hour labor

secretary eugene scalia was asked, if unemployment is in double digits, you heard lauren talking about that possibility as well, and the labor secretary did not shoot down that possibility. watch here. >> i don't want to speculate where we are. we'll put out an economic report tomorrow actually but that will show really just the first part of march. so we won't really have a feel for impact of the stay-at-home orders but we were at 3.5. we know we're going significantly above that number with the pace we're seeing now with these new claims being filed. reporter: back to the president. he did reveal on twitter today, quote, just spoke to my friend mbs, crown prince of saudi arabia who spoke with president putin of russia and i expect and hope that they will be cutting back approximately 10 million barrels and maybe substantially more, which if it happens, will be great for the oil and gas industry. the president then increased that number in a follow-up tweet, adding quote, could be as

high as 15 million barrels. good, great news for everyone. the president will be meeting or expected to be meeting with oil executives at the white house. there is a couple of components here. of course the russia, saudi arabia angle the president tweeted about today that moved market as well but also domestic demand back here in the u.s., that has cratered as well over the last few weeks. back to you. connell: yes it has. blake burman live in washington for us. melissa. melissa: all right. let's bring in bill mcgurn. he is a columnist at "the wall street journal" and a fox news contributor. you know when you're looking at these jobs numbers today to some people it was a surprise the market went up. do you think that maybe, i mean one way to look at it i heard people saying it shows that we're at least doing what we're supposed to. that everybody has shuttered and sort of gone home. maybe we get through this horrible illness and to the other side if everybody is following direction, what do you think? >> yeah, i think that is a reach

for a silver lining here. i'm staying at home. i get in contact with people that are delivery people, call restaurants and so many people are really hurting. i don't think that is much of a comfort. you know one thing, we have two-tiered system because people like me can work from home, right? i can do everything in this offices but a lot of people can't. they either can't do it, they have been laid off for whatever reason. you know about 2/3 of the public cannot do that. so they're really, really stuck. i don't necessarily see a sign this is the peak. like the virus itself. i think this could go up. melissa: well, i mean the flipside of that there is no one this hasn't touched. even though you say you can work from home i bet your savings have been hammered? we all have a family member who is either out of work or whose job is precarious or facing really terrible things. i don't know anyone this hasn't

touched. it sort of brings about the idea, some are wondering is there a way we paws maybe, everyone owing everyone over the next month or something? bill, it is such a chain reaction as you know, you're hoarding cash as a company. you're not paying suppliers. you're trying to decide who not to pay. at the same time, you're not getting paid whether by a customer. so it is mutually assured destruction if everyone defaults on everyone else. is there a way to press pause rather than the entire cycle everyone, every country going bankrupt? >> i think that was, i think that was the big part of at least half of the two trillion dollar bill, to give people money, especially give businesses money for, for their cash flow. a lot of them are just in a crunch, not through any fault of their own, that they were badly mismanaged, they were facing exactly kind of thing. they couldn't pay the employees

or pay their rent for their businesses, all sorts of things. that is what we've tried to do. i personally don't think we're going to come out of, on the good side economically until there is some big news medically that we found a vaccine, that numbers have been going down. we hit our peak and they have been down for say two weeks. i just have a hard time seeing people looking at this and i think that is one of the really upsetting things other frustrating things for people, because we seem to be taking more and more drastic steps. even the governors that were reluctant have now put in stay-at-home orders and people don't see good results yet. i mean, i think some of them are coming but we haven't seen it yet. so all feels very futile. meanwhile as you say, you watch your pension diminishing, your brother is out of work, your neighbor can't get employees, as you say, it is a chain reaction.

melissa: well it is. you look at story like cheesecake factory, keep bringing that up. that is the perfect example. they said they are not paying their workers. they said they are not paying their rent. that goes to the property owner not getting paid, they won't pay the bank. we can't end up with a world where the bank owns everything and there are no customers or workers anywhere. that doesn't work. we need a solution to the giant chain reaction. quick answer, bill. >> i add a big colossal problem on top of that. a lot of people lost their health insurance. some on the left say that is why we need for "medicare for all." we need to move from employee based health system that leaves you very vulnerable. >> a lot of problems, not a lot of solutions. bill mcgurn, love you. connell. connell: we'll talk now about luckin coffee which is a chinese

coffee company, essentially the starbucks of china and a big rival of starbucks in china. that stock is absolutely plunging as the company launched an investigation into $300 million of potential fraud committed by its own chief operating officer. live to jackie deangelis with more on that. reporter: good afternoon, to you, connell, that's right. that chief operating officer that you mentioned of the company pending investigation -- [inaudible] 80%. part of the allegation here is that possibly they have fabricated transactions and investors, the company is saying cannot rely on recent financials and guidance as well. so -- in this, really interesting. it is coming up at this time amid this kind of a crisis when so many people are pointing fingers at china and wonder if

they're completely up front about all the data, for example, with covid-19. you have a company like this being accused of lying. it is a big issue. meantime i want to pivot to happier story, focus on good companies are doing for others in this crisis right now. and one example is the patriot -- [inaudible]. melissa: all right. connell: i think we're having a little trouble. >> we have gremlins in the system because everybody is using -- yeah, everyone is using internet at the same time, so it becomes difficult. millions of u.s. workers filing for unemployment benefits. what exactly can americans expect? let's go to edward lawrence with more on this. edward? reporter: we're social distancing with different cameras in different states. the unemployment benefits will be robust. unemployment issues they're starting to have processing. there are some hiccups here. you're talking about 10 million people filing new unemployment claims in the past two weeks

alone. some state systems are overwhelmed but once they get this worked out you may see a number of things. more people will see more money. in addition benefits will cover contract workers and freelancers and giving extra $600 a week. it revives the emergency unemployment compensation. that extends 13 weeks from when your state benefits run out. some states are giving out automatic rejections for qualified people under the act. those states say reapply because they're trying to work out, get up to speed with the new rules. jeff with new lighting.com says the cares act goes a long way to help a growing part of the workforce which is usually forgotten for benefits. >> freelancers, independent contractors, independent workers can apply for loans available through the act. there was paid leave which is something that has never been available to 1099. again you come back to it, what is the fundamental difference, 1099 workers have been discriminated and not given the

same level of social security, social safety net. reporter: these are some of the things that the states will be looking for when unemployed workers are going for the benefits, specifically contractors and freelancers here, paycheck stubs, bank statements, workorders. some of the information they will look for to verify income. melissa, as you know the income, depends on or will directly affect the amount of benefit you get through the states. back to you. melissa: everyone waiting for that money, edward. thank you. connell? connell: we have a "fox business alert." melissa, from the company instacart which you heard a lot about actually this week. it just announced plans to distribute free health and safety kits to instacart full service shoppers with everybody dealing with covid-19. remember this company had issues with its workers the other day. now this announcement from instacart. one of the things we're trying to do throughout the week keep you updated on latest numbers as they come in. we have now topped one million

confirmed cases of covid-19 around the world, one million plus. 234,000 of them right here in the united states. as we continue we'll look at the states with stay at home orders. that number at least up to 39. it has been climbing in recent days to try to help cut down on the spread. we'll have the latest on the pandemic as we continue through the hour and look at some of the states at risk of becoming the next hot spot. we know new york's a hot spot. the state continues to be under pressure. in fact it has accounted for almost half of all the coronavirus cases in the u.s. as we worked our way through this. more facilities meantime are transforming their spaces to help with the overflow of patients. that is something we continue to watch. in fact we'll have a live update on that next. curbing the pandemic, we'll talk to a microbiologist about his efforts to find a covid-19 cure. all that coming up. stick around.

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♪. melissa: new york city grappling with the coronavirus pandemic as more hospitals are getting overwhelmed by the surge in cases. fox news's david lee miller is live in manhattan with more. david lee. reporter: melissa, there are now more coronavirus cases in new york state than in all of china and the majority of those cases are right here in new york city. the latest status ticks, 52 plus thousand people in new york city have tested positive and nearly 1400 have died. in the daily briefing new york governor andrew cuomo said on current burn rate, the state has only six-day supply for ventilate torts. he put out urgent call for new york business to manufacturer gloves, and other personal protective equipment. >> i don't have a new york

defense production act, right? a governor can't say to a company, we need you to manufacture this but i asked businesses just to think about the situation we're in and a possible opportunity. reporter: with the health care system overwhelmed new york city ambulance crews have been told not to bring people suffering cardiac arrest to the hospital if the patient's heart can't be restarted on scene. memo to cms professionals to umbrella group that coordinates emergency servicese quote, emergency departments are overcrowded, transporting patients on to the scene, increases ed, emergency department workload and exposes emergency department staff and patients to covid-19. in mount sinai hospital they're creating negative pressure rooms. window vents were installed to create lower air pressure where covid-19 patients are treated over the corridors.

likely to reduce air flow to stop the spread of the virus. much is said about the vulnerability of seniors. we're hearing no one is immune that has been said before. we're getting confirmation of that from the state of connecticut. a seven-week old infant that died has tested positive for the virus. officials have not released the cause of death. melissa. melissa: wow, that is so sad. david lee, thank you. connell. connell: there are a lot of different efforts to ease up on the hospital demand. not very far from where david is reporting from, samaritan purse field hospital set up in central park, officially treating patients as a record number of new yorkers have been hit by the virus. ken isaacs joins us, samaritan purse vice president of perhaps and government relations. ken, i think you started treating patients if i have it right in the park yesterday? tell us how things have been going so far?

>> that is correct. we have 13 patients right now. i think they're bringing 10 or 12 more tonight. things are going well. we're spooling up. we have 68 capacity and 10 icu units. we expect to receive patients in the next day or two are intubated or need to be intubated. they bring them to us from brooklyn, the emergency room there. connell: 68 bed capacity and every bed helps the way things are going in new york city. i know your organization, you personally have been all around the world dealing with situations in iraq and bahamas, you name it. what if anything is unique about this challenge for you? >> we have the same hospital right now in cromona, italy. i've been doing this kind of work for 30 years. i never imagined we would bring a hospital into the u.s., much less into new york city and much less into central park, sort of the sacred land at the heart of the city. we've been welcome very much here but when i listen to the

earlier reports of government pleas for help from businesses what is in my heart, i feel like everybody needs to do their part, whatever it is. we'll not get through this in an easy way. this will be a very difficult in. unfortunately there will be a lot of suffering both physically and economically. we all need to do our part. none of us want to be here. so that is what we're here for. we're helping people ins. >> just' --s. >> just's -- jesus name. we have volunteers working here. they're bringing in truckloads of materials and supplies uninvited. they're coming and helping and doing their part. especially every evening at 7:00 p.m. we hear the applause all around us up and down fifth avenue. it touches us all that are here working. connell: that is tradition last few days or week maybe in new york city.

it is spreading out into the surrounding suburbs. people going outside of their houses starting to cheer at 7:00 p.m. eastern time. real quick before we let you go. we look at models. we know the surge is here, coming over say the next week or so. you've seen a lot of this as you said in many areas. can new york city's hospital system, even with help from people like you, can we handle what is here and what is coming? >> i want to be careful how i answer that, i think more capacity is needed. i think more beds are needed. i think more supplies are needed. definitely more ventilators are needed. i think people might be surprised how overwhelmed the hospital health care delivery system can be here. connell: what i was afraid you would say. it is honest answer from an experienced person. you're doing terrific work. we thank you for taking a few minutes out from the work to join us. ken isaacss samaritan's purse, live in central park.

melissa. >> "fox business alert," tesla missing estimates for the first quarter vehicle deliveries due to production disruptions and shutdowns they say caused by the coronavirus but the company still is saying it was their best first quarter performance ever and you can see the stock there, trading up after-hours by better than 9%. calling it a moral responsibility, lawmakers demanding that u.s. airlines issue full cash refunds to travelers after massive cancellations. yeah, definitely. we've all been the victim of that. plus the mayor of los angeles issuing a new warning to millions of residents to stop the spread. that's next. you wouldn't accept an incomplete job

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♪. melissa: racing to find a treatment, one scientist is working with live coronavirus cells in an effort to find a remedy. here now is robert davie, a microbial gift at boston university. i understand what you're looking at is a treatment. can you explain it to us? >> melissa, right now we're at the point of testing many treatments all at once. so we developed a system to rapidly evaluate drugs that are already on the market. that's our first set of priorities, to try to find something that will stop the virus from infecting cells. melissa: so what is it exactly? it is a pill you're looking at?

we heard about the plasma treatment, one thing we heard about, vaccines. i know this is totally different but you know we don't know much about science and medicine so explain to us a little bit, what does the pill do? >> all right. so what we're trying to do we're trying to find a drug that is already on the market, that people already take for other things, so those drugs you know, if they're controlling your blood pressure, doing something to your body. the virus may need whatever that that is going on inside of the body to infect you, right? so if you were to take that, it might be that if you take that pill it would stop the virus infection as well. we're trying to find, we're trying to fish through that haystack to find those one or two needles in the haystack that might do that. and, if you were infected with -- melissa: have you had any luck so far? >> so we're starting screening right now. so we've got 6800 candidates

from the broad institute drug library. viewers can go on to their website to see what we're looking at. we're just starting right now. hot off the press. i should have some progress by next week. melissa: so, oh, by next week, that is really soon. this remind me of the idea saying malaria drug obviously wasn't intended for this use but having impact. sounds like you're looking at something really similar. what are some of the leads? if you're going to have progress next week what kind of, what's the mechanism you're looking at? is it that storm they talk about in people's body who respond and have really terrible reaction to this virus, is that what you're looking to sort of quiet down? >> that is very difficult to control and very complicated obviously and there are people testing drugs out there because the virus has this interesting

relationship with some proteins that control your blood pressure and things. there are people doing that, but we're more interested in finding a drug that would stop the virus from infecting your cells at the start. so you know, it is better to, well, it is better to prevent something before it takes hold. so we're just trying to stop it at just as it is touching the cells or as it is moving into the cells or as it is trying to set up shop and start its replication cycle. we're looking at each one of those steps, trying to find something that will break, break the cycle and prevent the virus from infecting other cells in your body. melissa: would that be considered a cure? >> yes. it would be. or, at least, it would control the virus enough such that your immune system could take over and then defeat it. off then a lot of viruses, you know what they're doing,

overwhelming your body's immune system and they have a lot of sneaky tricks up their sleeves to control your immune response. so if we can just tilt the balance in the favor of the patient, then, we're good. you don't have to do a lot to upset a virus. it is just matter of figuring out what can do that. we're poised to make a lot of progress on that. like i said, the system is very efficient and can move through these tests very quickly. melissa: one thing that it is so hard for the rest of us to understand is, you know there are some people who get this virus and barely has an impact on them and i know a lot of people on that who contracted it and barely got sick and other people that drop dead. >> yeah. melissa: it doesn't, there doesn't seem to necessarily be a rhyme or reason. every time we think it business age or preexisting conditions someone doesn't fit into that category or gets very sick or doesn't. real quick, your thoughts on that before we go?

>> this is the beauty of the people, right? we're all different to each other. so just like you can't give a kidney to, you can't give a kidney to anybody if you're an organ donor, there are subtle differences between each one ever us and those subtle differences control your immune response to a virus in this case. that is why we're getting such differences. most of the people people who are getting a lot of symptoms, the immune system is overreacting. you have to calm that down but that is very difficult. but we're all different and we all react differently. melissa: well, robert davie, good look to you, god bless you in your work. we need a solution. thank you, sir. >> appreciate it. connell: fascinating to listen to all of that. we're seeing a big spike of cases reported in the state of illinois. in fact that has emerged as a potential new hot spot for the

virus. we'll take you live to chicago for a report from there. we're waiting a briefing from the white house, the coronavirus task force will be out to bring us the latest this evening. we'll bring you any breaking headlines that come from the white house this hour. then this, country music superstar, dolly parton announced plans for a weekly web series. she will read bedtime stories for the next 10 weeks. she hopes to provide kids with a welcome distraction during a time of unrest. ♪ ♪ ♪

♪. melissa: america's second largest city out with new recommendation for its residents to try to stop the spread of covid-19. fox news's william la jeunesse is on the ground in los angeles with more. william? reporter: for your health and for the sake much others since you could be a carrier, mayor garcetti said everyone should

wear a mask. >> we are now recommending that an angelinos use homemade face coverings when they're in public or interacting with each other. reporter: about a dozen countries in europe and asia require or recommend them in public. taiwan, adjacent to china, had about 300 corona cases, the u.s., 200,000 and counting. studies show infected person even with 25% show no symptoms they can spread the virus from a sneeze or cough, droplets, smaller than a human hair remain suspended in the air more than 30 minutes. nih study show how germs spread from unprotected cough. they stretch several feet. less he so with a surgical mask or n95 rest per rate tore. the study concluded, wearing a surgical mask blocks 2/3 of flu

particles and well fitted n95 about 99%. you can't get those now. a heavy dishtowel or t-shirt is better than a thin clot. mayor garcetti said any covering can reduce the amount of virus you breathe in or exhale. >> research shows, even a bandanna tucked in can have effect in slowing down droplet spread. reporter: some say masks give people false sense of security but exerts at yale, columbia, cambridge, even german medical association say homemade masks can reduce transmission. governor newsom said it is not a substitute for social distancing but adds protection if you're in a pharmacy or grocery close by. back to you. >> thank you, william. connell? connell: you know one of the things we've been following quite closely are the fears of what the next hot spot might be, right?

and officials in the midwest started to sound the alarm with cases spiking in states like illinois. let's go to matt finn in chicago with new reporting from there. matt? reporter: connell, the army corps of engineers tells us hundreds of sites in 50 different states have now been identified as potential facilities that could be transformed into makeshift hospitals and there this is one of em, mccormack place in chicago. the largest convention center in north america. right now the army corps of engineers is inside transforming the gigantic facility into a 3,000 bed medical unit. lieutenant-general todd semonite tells fox business that the army corps of engineers accomplished the task of containing some air pressure in the giant convention center. they sectioned off entries and exits, added showers, nurses stations and hundreds of private areas innovating as they go which is unprecedented task.

the site is nearing completion as chicago announces the first death after police officer. 21 year veteran, 50-year-old sergeant defranco. >> the moment the crisis arrived in the city, it has been our health care workers, first-responders, like this officer, who have been putting their lives own the line every day to fight this virus and keep chicagoance safe. tragically this officer gave his life to that fight. reporter: detroit, the downtown convention center in detroit is steps from the iconic gm headquarters. right now that facility is being transformed into a makeshift hospital with 900 beds. michigan has emerged as the fourth worst state in the u.s. behind california with at least 9300 cases and 335 deaths. the army corps of engineers tells us that mayors across the country are learning about the curve and potential apex in their region and they are

responding accordingly. you know, makeshift facilities like this are not a one-size-fits-all. connell, melissa? connell: all right, detroit, chicago. we'll watch those and other cities. thank you, matt finn. melissa. melissa: warning after devastating blow to the industry for years to come. why farmers are sounding the alarm despite a rush to grocery stores. task force set to give an update on the pandemic a few moments from now. we'll bring you the white house briefing just as soon as it begins. these days you need faster internet that does all you

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melissa: many americans concerned about the savings amid the recent stock market turmoil. companies are staling back on 401(k) contributions for workers. gerri willis is joining us with more on this. gerri? >> hey, melissa, that's right. so you know, forget about the stock market sell-off. we have also got this problem now of some employers are saying hey, we'll scale back, we're going to cut your 401(k) match. so that is a big issue for employees. among the companies doing that right now, marriott, macy's, amtrak, la-z-boy, mattress firm. a lot of companies are doing it. we're expecting more and more to do the same but we've seen this

before, this isn't something new. back in 2008 some 20% of companies with 1000 or more employees did the exact same thing. and i have some good news on that in a second but first, i want to talk to you about what should you do? a, number one, if you're working and you're drawing a regular paycheck, you absolutely want to continue contributing to that 401(k). why? , guess what? stocks are on sale. so big sale prices, 25 to 30% off, some of the major companies out there. listen to what doug flynn had to say about this with cfb. >> one of the things you have to look at is, that your retirement is still probably going to be on track for whenever it is. free money from the match, the 401(k) is very nice, but it shouldn't deter you for putting money away, presuming your job is still secure and you're getting a paycheck and you will continue working.

reporter: right, so keep on putting money away. that is a great time to buy stocks at low prices. if you max out the 401(k), considering opening a roth ira, that is another way to set aside money pretax. finally, think about savings. experts recommend that you have three to six months worth of savings set aside in a place you can get to easily, whether a bank savings, account. maybe a money market account, because, as you, as you probably reported, we had a report not too long ago that a third of americans are saying they couldn't make rent this month. so need some savings. you definitely need to keep investing if you're lucky enough to continue to have a job. finally, my good news. the people, of the companies that stopped their 401(k) matches or changed them in some way back in 2008, 75% of those, 3/4, actually reinstated it in 12 months. this is a short-term fix for a lot of companies out there.

probably happen the same way again. you have to look for the silver linings where you can find it. melissa, being back to you. melissa: gerri, thank you for that. connell? connell: all right. great to see gerri willis there. we have "fox business alert." a federal judge in the state of wisconsin declined to postpone that state's presidential primary set for april 7th amid widespread concerns about the virus. judge declining to postpone. wisconsin one of 11 states originally scheduled to hold contests in april have not postponed or altered some way their voting. that is the state of wisconsin. lawmakers are calling on airlines to reimburse travelers for canceled flights amid the pandemic. we'll talk about that. we're waiting for the update to come out from the coronavirus task force. we'll break down the latest numbers ahead of the briefing from the white house coming up next. ♪.

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>> we're back with a fox business alert, delta airlines is:collaborating to manufacture face shields, to deliver an initial order of 2000 of the face shields to aid workers in new york, they say they will be able to get them in new york by tomorrow. melissa: travel has nearly come to a stand still.

thousands of americans left in the lurch by airlines, hillary vaughn in dc with the story. reporter: i do want go over the latest coronavirus numbers, we did get new numbers this afternoon. total number worldwide topped 1 million. 234 thousand are here in u.s. new york remains hot spot, over. 92,000 cases. while the patient numbers rise there are people here in congress that are eyeing some relief money that has gone to airlines as part of relief package, 9 democratic u.s. senator want 11 major airlines to give travelers who had to change their travel plans, cashin steacash,instead of the s

writing: glur united, delta, southwest are looking at letter, american said they believe their flight voucher program adequately meets the needs of its customers, southwest steps'. saying they need some of 25 billion allocated made to them to help them he'll d with a droa lots of senators believe it should help people go to basic needs traveler who had to reschedule, there have been a lot of cancellations there will be more, southwest, saying they will reduce their flights by 40% between may and june. several airlines are reducing flights the have on the scheduly

60%. melissa: you did not mention jetblue, i have been shafted by them twice this coronavirus seen. connell: farmers, speaking have been and continue to be under pressure. it seems like everyone makes more trips to the grocery store. many farmers still seeing drops in sales with restaurants and schools closed, from national farmers union, vice presiden prt patty adelberg joining us right now. we have this how are you holding up? >> it has been an interesting couple weeks. dairy farmers are down from what was 18 dollar milk on under 13 right now. we're in a world of hurt when

the dairy, beef. agriculture in general. connell: what will the relief bill do. we have talked it from point of view of small businesses, loans and grants, what about for farmers? do you think it will help a lot? >> there are some things for farmers. in relief bill there and i think 14 billion going to replenish the ccc, and it will best use to help stabilize prices in the markets. and used to pay out farm bill programs like dairy market programs. crop programs. so we're struggling to find out what else we can do for farmers, hoping they will be able to open smalsmall business association s for farmers, it has never been usedded by farmers before.

we are looking to hope usda secretary will reopen the dairy program for the farmers. there was no reason for farmers at the time to sign up, prices, the markets looking forward looked really good then, and then coronavirus hit, we're back to prices we saw in 2008 and 09. amazing how quickly things have changed. to your point, your industry perhaps things look better, but now this happens. do you have -- business leaders have a tough time providing any outlook that goes beyond this month or next. do have you any idea in terms of second half of the year might look like? or just flying blind at this time? >> we're really flying blind, looking at future market, dairy and beef they are way down, we're looking at a dairy down about 25%, 30%. beef prices down 25%.

these are all prices that have dropped in lest 6 weeks -- last 6 weeks, right now farmers don't know where to turn. like they said earlier, dairy has been in a world of hurt for 5 years, this is just going to turn some farmers away faster. and it is not their choice, we have farmers that were barely able to survive for last 5 years looking forward they saw a light at the end of the tunnel, now this has taken the wind out of their sails, i don't know what will happen. hopefully we'll be able to see markets return. the prices -- market that we see, we lost a third of mark wet the schools, and restaurants and hospitahospitality industry. farmers took a hit, you can't shut the cow off, the markets are full and flush. connell: i am sorry patty, we

are coming on the top of the hour, we wish you the best. national farmers union. as we -- wrap it up on another day. melissa: we're waiting for the coronavirus task force, right now in meantime, lou dobbs. lou: good evening, tonight we will hear as has become our weekday evening custom from president trump and his coronavirus task force. he is working hard to protect the american people against the virus that is becoming every more deadly, more than a million people in the world have been infected with the wuhan virus. more than 51,000 killed. and in the united states at least 5600 of our fellow citizens have been killed by that virus, 236,000 more infected. americans are hit by both wuhan virus pandemic and an