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Global markets suffered record falls on Thursday as alarm over the coronavirus intensified, and governments from Ireland to Fiji unveiled new measures to try to slow the spread of a disease that has infected more than 127,000 people worldwide.

The entry of commercial lab companies Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings and Quest Diagnostics Inc to help identify cases of the new coronavirus does not seem to be easing the burden of testing in the United States.

Governments and central banks readied more emergency measures to tackle the economic impacts of the coronavirus on Friday as Asian markets suffered their worst weekly crashes since the 2008 financial crisis.

Mainland China had eight new confirmed cases of coronavirus infections on Thursday, the country's National Health Commission said on Friday, down from 15 cases a day earlier.

Concerns over the spread of the coronavirus pandemic in the United States forced cancellations, closings and postponements throughout sports, entertainment and education on Thursday.

A dog held in quarantine in Hong Kong on suspicion of having the coronavirus has tested negative, the government said late on Thursday, easing fears over the possibility of human-to-animal transmission.

Bitcoin plummeted on Thursday amid wild volatility in cryptocurrency markets, with traders citing a sell-off across assets as fears of the economic damage from the coronavirus pandemic take hold.

Pacific islands are imposing strict lock-down measures to combat the coronavirus, denying access to supply vessels and prohibiting human-to-human contact during aircraft refueling, amid fears their small healthcare systems could be over-run.

U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi told reporters on Thursday that lawmakers and the White House have neared agreement on a legislative response to the coronavirus outbreak and said she hopes to make an announcement on Friday.

U.S. lawmakers and the White House neared agreement on a coronavirus economic aid package, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Thursday, adding she hoped to announce a deal on Friday.

U.S. hospitals, bracing for a surge in demand as more Americans are infected with the novel coronavirus, plan to use tents, conference rooms and cafeterias to house overflow patients.

In Texas, a photographer worries about paying his bills. In Pennsylvania, an aspiring dancer struggles with a canceled audition. In suburban Los Angeles, a mother wonders whether anyone will show up for her son's bar mitzvah.

New York State will ban gatherings of more than 500 people beginning on Friday at 5 p.m. (2100 GMT) , to slow the spread of the new coronavirus, Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Thursday.

SoftBank Group Corp on Friday said it will buy back up to 7 percent of its own shares for as much as 500 billion yen ($4.77 billion).

Saudi Arabia detected 17 new cases of coronavirus, 11 of whom were Egyptians, state news agency (SPA) said on Friday.

Airlines on Thursday appealed for urgent government financial support as U.S. carriers rushed to cut flights to Europe in the wake of new U.S. travel restrictions aimed at combating the coronavirus outbreak, while United Airlines warned of U.S. travel disruption as the virus spreads domestically.

A spokesman for China's Foreign Ministry suggested on Thursday the U.S. military might have brought the coronavirus to the Chinese city of Wuhan, which has been hardest hit by the outbreak, doubling down on a war of words with Washington.

Facebook Inc and Twitter Inc said on Thursday they had taken down a network of Russian-linked fake accounts operated out of Ghana and Nigeria which targeted the United States.

France will close from Monday all nurseries, schools and universities to try to slow the spread of the coronavirus, President Emmanuel Macron said in a televised address, calling the outbreak the nation's worst public health crisis in a century.

Chinese ride-hailing company Didi Chuxing told Reuters on Thursday that it had created a $10 million fund to support drivers and couriers diagnosed with the coronavirus as companies worldwide grapple with how to respond to the pandemic.