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President Donald Trump told Americans today they should avoid gathering in groups and stop eating out. If this advice sounds familiar, it’s because many states and cities have already ordered such sacrifices, citing a lack of direction from the White House as Covid-19 landed on the U.S. with deadly force. Governors have since escalated their response, following the lead of Europe, which is now the epicenter of the crisis. Nations there have closed borders and ordered citizens to stay home. But the damage is done: the losses suffered by China may soon be matched on the Italian peninsula, where more than 2,000 are dead. —Josh Petri 

Bloomberg is mapping the spread of the coronavirus globally and in the U.S. For the latest news on the outbreak, sign up for our daily newsletter.

Here are today’s top stories

The Fed’s shock rate cut did little to stop the market tsunami. Instead, investors saw it as evidence the central bank is almost out of bullets.

Last year, the S&P 500 rose almost 29%. It took less than four weeks for those gains to vanish. On Monday, the index experienced its steepest drop since 1987, and could soon be lower than when Trump took office.

Is it time to close the markets? Data and psychology say maybe, John Authers argues in Bloomberg Opinion.

With a possible recession on the horizon, cash handouts to all American households are gaining support in Congress—on both sides of the aisle.

The airline industry, ravaged by plummeting bookings, is asking for $58 billion in grants and loans. One consultant estimated the virus could bankrupt most airlines by the end of May. The biggest U.S. carriers spent 96% of free cash flow last decade on buying back their own shares.

As if things weren’t bad enough for America, the Health and Human Services Department suffered a cyber-attack that may have been intended to slow its response to the coronavirus. The agency says it suspects a foreign state, but didn’t say which one. 

Bloomberg Businessweek Special Report, The Lost Year: The Trump administration must decide which companies and sectors merit help as Covid-19 wreaks havoc on the economy. But Trump owes his presidency in part to public anger over Wall Street bailouts 12 years ago.

What you’ll need to know tomorrow

What you’ll want to read in Bloomberg Green

Airline Carbon Offsets Rise While Carriers Sink 

In the rapid push by business to go green, airlines don’t have any real options. Aircraft burn massive amounts of fossil fuel and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. So they are buying carbon credits instead, under a new program being implemented by the International Civil Aviation Organization. It was a major step forward in the future of greener flight.

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