Bloomberg - Evening Briefing - Suspected poisonings

Russia’s continuing siege of the pulverized coastal city of Mariupol has killed almost 5,000 people, including 200 children, according to its mayor. While civilian casualties in Russia’s month-long war on Ukraine are widely believed to exceed the more than 1,100 confirmed by the United Nations, the actual number of lives lost has been difficult to verify. Despite reports that the Kremlin is moving to consolidate gains in the east, cities across Ukraine are still being pounded by Russian artillery.

A collapsed building in the Ukrainian city of Mariupol on March 26. Photographer: Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

In Turkey, Ukrainian and Russian negotiating teams plan to meet tomorrow, though it was revealed Monday that Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich and Ukrainian negotiators suffered a suspected poisoning following peace talks in Kyiv earlier this month. They experienced peeling skin, red eyes, loss of eyesight and headaches. —Natasha Solo-Lyons

Bloomberg is tracking the coronavirus pandemic and the progress of global vaccination efforts.

U.S. President Joe Biden unveiled a $5.8 trillion budget request on Monday designed to appease moderate and conservative Democrats, especially two senators who have repeatedly sided with Republicans to block his agenda. The proposal emphasizes deficit reduction, additional funding for police and veterans and flexibility to negotiate new social spending programs. Biden’s plan, if enacted, would mean tax hikes for billionaires and private equity. 

U.S. President Joe Biden= Photographer: Ting Shen/Bloomberg

In a major development for the Congressional investigation of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, a federal judge ruled Donald Trump “more likely than not” committed felonies including obstructing the work of Congress and conspiring to defraud the U.S. as part of an effort to prevent the peaceful transfer of power.

U.S. stocks closed up on Monday, led by gains in megacaps and tech shares. Oil tumbled as China’s worsening Covid-19 resurgence boosted concern about demand by the world’s biggest crude importer. Here’s your markets wrap. 

Treasuries slumped anew to send a widely-watched part of the U.S. yield curve to its first inversion in 16 years. The curve is flattening as investors bet the Federal Reserve will tighten policy rapidly enough to risk a sustained slowdown in growth.

Major manufacturers in Shanghai are still operating during the city’s Covid-19 lockdown under a system that has employees living at factory campuses in isolation. Production was paused at Tesla’s facility in the city until Thursday while its voluble CEO announced his own reinfection on social media. A surge of coronavirus cases from Hong Kong—which reported an additional 7,685 infections on Monday alone—preceded China’s worst outbreak since an earlier crisis in Wuhan. Here’s the latest on the pandemic. 

Disney is the latest casualty of culture war-crossfire, Adrian Wooldridge writes in Bloomberg Opinion. The fight between CEO Robert Chapek and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis points to growing tensions between business and Republicans.

Women under 30 earn the same or more than their male counterparts in New York City and Washington, according to new data. But nationally, women in that age range still earn only 93 cents for each dollar men the same age make. 

• JPMorgan behind moves to detain Russian billionaire’s superyacht.
• Fertilizer price surges 43% to fresh record as supplies tighten.
• Soaring prices are changing the way people eat.
• Los Angeles mayor blames high housing costs for urban exodus.
• Charlie Munger steps back as Daily Journal chairman, donates his stock.
• Bloomberg Opinion: American consumers are hitting a breaking point. 
• Bloomberg Opinion: America’s retirement crisis is a financial crisis too.

Some Indians are vacationing in high style, spending more on five-star hotels and booking business-class seats amid the current lull in the pandemic there. 

An Airspace cabin at the Wings India 2022 Air Show. Photographer: Dhiraj Singh/Bloomberg

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