Job cuts continue as financial aid lends support

The outbreak of the coronavirus has dealt a shock to the global economy with unprecedented speed. Following are developments Wednesday related to national and global response, the work place and the spread of the virus.

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CIAO BELLA! Italian airline Alitalia announced Wednesday that it is resuming direct flights from Rome to New York, Barcelona and Madrid on June as it increases flights by more than a third compared with May. Alitalia discontinued its Rome-New York flight on May 5 due to the ‘’worrying level’’ of coronavirus cases in New York, which in April had emptied flights to just 12% of capacity, or an average of 32 passengers each flight. The struggling airline said from June, it will fly 30 routes to 25 airports, of which 10 are abroad, including London, Brussels and Frankfurt. The number of passengers on each flight will be halved, in keeping with distancing rules imposed by Rome. Alitalia was again in a phase of relaunch when Italy became the first western country with a domestic outbreak of coronavirus in February.

— Low-cost carrier Norwegian Air Shuttle's restructuring plan has been completed. The government’s loan guarantees worth 3 billion kroner ($290 million) have also been approved. The airline converted 12.7 billion kroner ($1.3 billion) debt to equity, a move required to get state loan guarantees. Norwegian has temporarily laid off approximately 90% of its workforce and will continue to implement additional cost measures going forward.

— Aerospace engine maker Rolls-Royce plans to cut approximately 9,000 jobs globally as it grapples with the collapse of air travel due to the pandemic. The company employs 52,000 people overall, and it is not immediately clear where the cuts will occur. The move will result in about 700 million pounds ($856 million) in savings,...