A week after catastrophic earthquake, focus turns to a growing humanitarian crisis in Myanmar

BANGKOK (AP) — Search teams in Myanmar recovered more bodies from the ruins of buildings on Friday, a week after a massive earthquake killed more than 3,300 people, as the focus turns toward the urgent humanitarian needs in a country already devastated by a continuing civil war.

United Nations humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher, who is also the emergency relief coordinator, arrived Friday in Myanmar in an effort to spur action following the March 28 quake.

Ahead of the visit, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appealed to the international community to immediately step up funding for quake victims “to match the scale of this crisis,” and he urged unimpeded access to reach those in need.

“The earthquake has supercharged the suffering with the monsoon season just around the corner,” he said.

Myanmar's military and several key armed resistance groups have all declared ceasefires in the wake of the earthquake to facilitate the flow of humanitarian aid.

But the U.N.'s Human Rights Office on Friday accused the military of continuing attacks, claiming there were more than 60 attacks after the earthquake, including 16 since the military announced a temporary ceasefire on Wednesday.

“I urge a halt to all military operations, and for the focus to be on assisting those impacted by the quake, as well as ensuring unhindered access to humanitarian organizations that are ready to support,” said U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said. “I hope this terrible tragedy can be a turning point for the country towards an inclusive political solution.”

Announcing its ceasefire, the military also said it would still take “necessary” measures against resistance groups, if they use the ceasefire to regroup, train or launch attacks, and the groups have said they reserved the right to defend themselves.

Myanmar’s military seized power in 2021 from the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, sparking what has turned into a civil war.

The quake worsened an already dire humanitarian crisis, with more than 3 million people displaced from their homes and nearly 20 million in need even before it hit, according to the United Nations.

Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, head of the military government, said the quake's death toll has reached 3,301, with 4,792 injured and about 221 missing, according to a report on state television MRTV. He is in Bangkok attending a summit meeting of leaders from the Bay of Bengal region.

It is a rare visit for the general, who usually restricts his few foreign trips to allies Russia and China. He and his government are shunned and sanctioned by Western nations for usurping power and their alleged human rights violations in repressing opposition and carrying out a brutal war.

Britain, which had already given $13 million to purchase emergency items like food, water and shelter, pledged an additional $6.5 million in funds to match an appeal from Myanmar's Disasters Emergency Committee, according to the U.K. Embassy in Yangon.

The World Food Program said so far it has reached 24,000 survivors, but was scaling up its efforts to assist 850,000 with food and cash assistance for one month.

Many international search and rescue teams are now on the scene, and eight medical crews from China, Thailand, Japan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Philippines, Indonesia and Russia were operating in Naypyitaw, according to Myanmar's military-run government. Another five teams from India, Russia, Laos and Nepal and Singapore were helping in the Mandalay region, while teams from Russia, Malaysia and the ASEAN bloc of nations were assisting in the Sagaing region.

The Trump administration has pledged $2 million in emergency aid and sent a three-person team to assess how best to respond given drastic cuts to U.S. foreign assistance.

On Friday, five bodies were recovered from the rubble in the capital Naypyitaw and the second-largest city of Mandalay, near the epicenter of the 7.7 magnitude earthquake March 28, authorities said. The last reported rescue came Wednesday, some 125 hours after the quake struck, when a man was saved from the wreckage of a hotel in Mandalay.

The quake also shook neighboring Thailand, bringing down a high-rise under construction in Bangkok, where recovery work continued Friday. Overall, 22 people have been found dead and 35 injured in Bangkok, primarily from the construction site.

Associated Press Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations and Jamey Keaten in Geneva contributed to this report.

Bhutanese medical volunteers look at the chest scan of a patient at a make-shift tent after last week's earthquake in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo)

A Bhutan medical volunteer attends to a patient at their make-shift tent after last week's earthquake in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo)

Military medical volunteers give treatments to a patient at their make-shift tent after last week's earthquake in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo)

Temporary shelters for patient are seen after last week's earthquake in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo)

Visitors walk near entrance of Maha Aungmye Bonzan Monastery, commonly known as the Me Nu Brick Monastery, in the aftermath of Friday's earthquake in Innwa, Tada-U township, Mandalay, Myanmar, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo)

Damaged Maha Aungmye Bonzan Monastery, commonly known as the Me Nu Brick Monastery, is seen in the aftermath of Friday's earthquake in Innwa, Tada-U township, Mandalay, Myanmar, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo)

Visitors walk near damaged Maha Aungmye Bonzan Monastery, commonly known as the Me Nu Brick Monastery, in the aftermath of Friday's earthquake in Innwa, Tada-U township, Mandalay, Myanmar, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo)

Damaged buildings are seen in the aftermath of last week's earthquake in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo)

Medical volunteers attend to patients at a make-shift tent opened for medical care after last week's earthquake in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo)

A soldier works on temporary shelters opened for medical care after last week's earthquake in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo)

Patients are seen at a make-shift tent opened for medical care after last week's earthquake in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo)

Bhutan medical volunteers give treatments to a patient at their make-shift tent after last week's earthquake in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo)

A Bhutan medical volunteer attends to a patient at their make-shift tent after last week's earthquake in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo)

Patient are seen at a make-shift tent opened for medical care after last week's earthquake in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo)

People work at temporary shelters for people displaced due to the earthquake, in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo)

Bhutanese medical volunteers attend to a patient at a make-shift tent after last week's earthquake in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo)

Russian medical volunteers give treatment to a patient in their make-shift tent opened as a medical center in the aftermath of Friday's earthquake in Mandalay, Myanmar, Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo)

Thai army soldiers lined up for their duty at site of an under construction high-rise building that collapsed after an earthquake in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, April, 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

Morning joggers look at the at site of an under construction high-rise building that collapsed after an earthquake, as Thai army soldiers lined up for their duty in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, April, 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

A rescue office Amman Sutthirat talks to media at site of an under construction high-rise building that collapsed after an earthquake in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, April, 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

A notice board in Thai language shows , center top, number of victims (103) Deceased (15), Injured (9) and Under Tracking (79) at site of an under construction high-rise building that collapsed after an earthquake in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, April, 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

Russian medical volunteers gather near their make-shift tent opened as a medical center in the aftermath of Friday's earthquake in Mandalay, Myanmar, Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo)

A person watches at site of an under construction high-rise building that collapsed after an earthquake in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, April, 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks careened through a manic Monday after President Donald Trump threatened to crank his tariffs higher, despite a stunning display showing how dearly Wall Street wants him to do the opposite.

The S&P 500 slipped 0.2% at the end of a day full of heart-racing reversals as battered financial markets try to figure out what Trump’s ultimate goal is for his trade war. If it’s to get other countries to agree to trade deals, he could lower his tariffs and avoid a possible recession. But if it’s to remake the economy and stick with tariffs for the long haul, stock prices may need to fall further.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 349 points, or 0.9%, and the Nasdaq composite edged up by 0.1%.

All three indexes started the day sharply lower, and the Dow plunged as many as 1,700 points following even worse losses elsewhere in the world. But it suddenly surged to a gain of nearly 900 points in the late morning. The S&P 500, meanwhile, went from a loss of 4.7% to a leap of 3.4%, which would have been its biggest jump in years.

The sudden rise followed a false rumor that Trump was considering a 90-day pause on his tariffs, one that a White House account on X quickly labeled as “fake news.” That a rumor could move trillions of dollars’ worth of investments shows how much investors are hoping to see signs that Trump may let up on tariffs.

Stocks quickly turned back down, and shortly afterward, Trump dug in further and said he may raise tariffs more against China after the world’s second-largest economy retaliated last week with its own set of tariffs on U.S. products.

It’s a slap in the face to Wall Street because it suggests Trump may not care how much pain he inflicts on the market. Many professional investors had long thought that a president who used to crow about records reached under his watch would pull back on policies if they sent the Dow reeling.

On Sunday Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he wasn’t concerned about a sell-off and that “sometimes you have to take medicine to fix something.”

Trump has given several reasons for his stiff tariffs, including to bring manufacturing jobs back to the United States, which is a process that could take years. Trump on Sunday said he wanted to bring down the numbers for how much more the United States imports from other countries versus how much it sends to them.

Indexes nevertheless did keep swinging between losses and gains Monday after Trump’s latest tariff threat, in part because hope still remains in markets that negotiations may still come.

“We’re not calling the all-clear at all, but when you have this type of volatility in the market, of course you’re going to have back and forth” in markets not just day to day but also hour to hour, said Nate Thooft, a senior portfolio manager at Manulife Investment Management.

“We’re all waiting for the next bit of information,” he said. “Literally a Truth Social tweet or an announcement of some sort about real negotiations could dramatically move this market. This is the world we live in right now.”

All that seemed certain Monday was the financial pain hammering investments around the world for a third day after Trump announced tariffs in his “Liberation Day.”

Stocks in Hong Kong plunged 13.2% for their worst day since 1997. A barrel of benchmark U.S. crude oil dipped below $60 during the morning for the first time since 2021, hurt by worries that a global economy weakened by trade barriers will burn less fuel. Bitcoin sank below $79,000, down from its record above $100,000 set in January, after holding steadier than other markets last week.

Trump’s tariffs are an attack on the globalization that’s remade the world’s economy, which helped bring down prices for products on the shelves of U.S. stores but also caused production jobs to leave for other countries.

It also adds pressure on the Federal Reserve. Investors have become nearly conditioned to expect the central bank to swoop in as a hero by slashing interest rates to protect the economy during every downturn. But the Fed may have less freedom to act this time around because inflation remains higher than the Fed would like. And while lower interest rates can goose the economy, they can also put upward pressure on inflation.

“The recent tariffs will likely increase inflation and are causing many to consider a greater probability of a recession,” JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, one of the most influential executives on Wall Street, wrote in his annual letter to shareholders Monday. “Whether or not the menu of tariffs causes a recession remains in question, but it will slow down growth.”

In the bond market, Treasury yields rallied to recover some of their sharp drops from earlier weeks. Some of the big move may have been because of reduced expectations for cuts to interest rates by the Fed. Some analysts also said it could be due to investors outside of the United States wanting to pare their U.S. investments.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury jumped to 4.20% from 4.01% late Friday.

Earlier in the day, the S&P 500 briefly fell more than 20% below its record set less than two months ago. If it finishes a day below that bar, it would be a big enough drop that Wall Street has a name for it. A “bear market” signifies a downturn that’s moved beyond a run-of-the-mill 10% drop, which happens every year or so, and has graduated into something more vicious.

The S&P 500, which sits at the heart of many investors’ 401(k) accounts, is coming off its worst week since COVID began crashing the global economy in March 2020.

All told, the index fell 11.83 points Monday to 5,062.25. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 349.26 to 37,965.60, and the Nasdaq composite added 15.48 to 15,603.26.

Kurtenbach reported from Bangkok. McHugh reported from Frankfurt, Germany. Associated Press writers Ayaka McGill, Paul Harloff, Matt Ott and Jiang Junzhe also contributed.

An electronic display shows financial information on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Federico DeMarco works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Chris Lagana works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Traders work on the options floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

While a stock exchange trader sits in front of his monitors on the trading floor of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, Germany, the display board with the Dax curve shows a value of less than 20,000 points. (Arne Dedert/dpa via AP)

While a stock exchange trader sits in front of his monitors on the trading floor of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, Germany, the display board with the Dax curve shows a value of less than 20,000 points. (Arne Dedert/dpa via AP)

Currency traders work near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), top left, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won, top center, at the foreign exchange dealing room of the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

An electronic stock board shows that Nikkei stock average dropped over 2,900 Japanese yen in Tokyo Monday, April 7, 2025. (Kyodo News via AP)

Currency traders work near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won, top right, at the foreign exchange dealing room of the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

A person walks past an electronic stock board in Tokyo Monday, April 7, 2025. (Kyodo News via AP)

Currency traders watch monitors near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), top left, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won, top center, at the foreign exchange dealing room of the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

US President Donald Trump appears on a television screen at the stock market in Frankfurt, Germany, Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

A screen displays financial news as traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)