Donald Trump and Narendra Modi

A Donald Trump press conference in India descended into a bitter row with CNN reporter Jim Acosta on Tuesday after the president criticised the journalist’s network and the latter replied: “I think our record on delivering the truth is a lot better than yours sometimes.”

Trump has meanwhile secured a lucrative arms deal with the fellow superpower’s prime minister Narendra Modi, a venture he risked putting in jeopardy by refusing to eat any of the vegetarian delicacies – notably broccoli samosas - laid out for him at the Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad on Monday afternoon.

On Twitter, the president has insisted that the global coronavirus epidemic is “under control” — and was soon after undermined by the CDC, which warned that an outbreak of the virus in the US is nearly inevitable. That announcement spurred further market losses, as the potential global death toll remains uncertain.

The final Democratic debate before the South Carolina primaries is set for Tuesday night, and will feature two billionaires on stage this time with the addition of Tom Steyer to the mix.

In South Carolina, Joe Biden is fighting for staying power int he race after several losses in early states. He is facing stiff competittion from Bernie Sanders, who has won the popular vote in all three states to have voted so far.

Mr Steyer is performing well in the state as well, though it does not seem as though a third place performance in South Carolina would do much to bolster his very narrow path to a Democratic nomination.