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Ford Motor Co said on Thursday it was aiming to restart production at some plants in North America as early as April 6.

Drivers around the world want more roomy and powerful cars. Rules made under the administration of President Barack Obama make it easier for U.S. automakers to give customers what they want and to keep expanding the size of their vehicles.

Ford Motor Co and General Motors Co , the top two U.S. automakers, have more than two dozen new battery electric vehicles (EVs) in the pipeline, according to their executives and suppliers familiar with the companies' plans.

General Motors Co and Ford Motor Co have widely touted their commitment to emission-free electric cars, but their production plans show a growing reliance on ever-larger gas-powered vehicles.

Oil prices fell on Thursday, ending three sessions of gains, as movement restrictions worldwide to contain the coronavirus destroyed demand and overshadowed expectations that a U.S. $2 trillion emergency stimulus will bolster economic activity.

Norway's sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest, has lost 1.33 trillion Norwegian crowns ($124 billion) so far this year as stock markets have plunged due to the coronavirus pandemic, it said on Thursday.

The new chief executive for Norway's $930 billion sovereign wealth fund is Nicolai Tangen, until now chief executive of investment firm AKO Capital, which he established in 2005.

Credit Suisse on Thursday moved to a "small overweight" on global equities, especially developed markets, saying the risk of a "very bad" economic outcome had come down significantly after the massive $2 trillion U.S. stimulus package.

U.S. stock index futures slipped on Thursday after a two-day rally as investors braced for what is expected to be one of the worst domestic jobless claims reports in history, underscoring the wide-ranging economic damage from the coronavirus pandemic.

A group of Danish entrepreneurs have started a charity network that stands ready to make up to 20,000 protective visors a day using 3D printers, in an attempt to meet rising demand from doctors and nurses combating the coronavirus outbreak.

HSBC has said it is delaying the "vast majority" of its planned redundancies to deal with the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, a memo sent to staff seen by Reuters said.

Ford Motor Co said on Thursday it planned to restart production at some plants in North America as early as April 6, bringing back its most profitable vehicles at a time when U.S. demand has slumped and the No. 2 U.S. automaker is conserving cash to survive the coronavirus pandemic.

Wall Street jumped at the open on Thursday, building on a two-day rally, as investors bet on more stimulus measures after the U.S. jobless claims surged past 3 million last week, underscoring the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

The number of Americans filing claims for unemployment benefits shot to record of more than 3 million last week as strict measures to contain the coronavirus pandemic ground the country to a sudden halt, unleashing a wave of layoffs that likely brought an end to the longest employment boom in U.S. history.[]

The number of Americans filing claims for unemployment benefits surged to a record of more than 3 million last week as strict measures to contain the coronavirus pandemic ground the country to a sudden halt, unleashing a wave of layoffs that likely brought an end to the longest employment boom in U.S. history.