Global fund manager sentiment collapses on coronavirus fears March 17, 2020 Sentiment among global fund managers has collapsed due to coronavirus and the oil shock as investors increasingly expect a global recession and fear the surging risk of debt defaults. The Bank of America (BoA) global fund manager survey showed sentiment crashing close to 2008/9’s “bear extremes”, with the biggest drop in global growth expectations on [...]
German investor morale collapses on coronavirus epidemic March 17, 2020 Morale among German investors has fallen through the floor amid the coronavirus outbreak, a survey showed today, as a global recession becomes increasingly likely. The closely-watched ZEW think tank sentiment survey crashed to minus 49.5 in March from 8.7 in February. This took it to levels not seen since the financial crisis of 2008 and [...]
UK markets to stay open despite coronavirus crash, says FCA March 17, 2020 The UK’s finance watchdog has said it wants to keep stock markets open despite the dramatic sell-offs of recent weeks and record volatility over the coronavirus outbreak. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said in a statement: “Our aim is to continue to maintain open and orderly markets notwithstanding current volatility.” Yesterday, the US’s watchdog said [...]
Coronavirus:Volkswagen to cease production at European plants March 17, 2020 Car giant VW will stop its European factory production. This move, due to the impact of coronavirus, comes despite the company posting strong results for 2019. Shares in the firm are up slightly, hovering at €97.65. VW boss Herbert Diess, said: “the coronavirus pandemic presents us with unknown operational and financial challenges. He added 2020 [...]
UK unemployment rises ahead of coronavirus hit March 17, 2020 UK unemployment rose in the three months to January although Britain continued to add jobs, suggesting the labour market tightened before coronavirus began to spread through the country. Unemployment rose to 3.8 per cent, up 0.2 percentage points from the previous quarter. Yet the employment rate also rose, hitting 76.5 per cent, a joint record [...]
UK budget watchdog: No time to be ‘squeamish’ about big coronavirus spending March 17, 2020 Britain’s economy faces a “wartime situation” and the government must not be “squeamish about one-off additions to public sector debt,” the head of Britain’s fiscal watchdog has said. Robert Chote, head of the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), told MPs that a big fiscal package to support the UK’s businesses and households would be “money [...]
‘Catastrophic’: Hospitality and leisure industries sound alarm over Johnson measures March 17, 2020 The UK’s hospitality industry issued a doom-laden warning last night after Prime Minister Boris Johnson yesterday told Brits to steer clear of pubs, eateries and theatres as the government escalated its coronavirus “fightback”. In a statement which Johnson acknowledged was unprecedented in peacetime, he urged Londoners in particular to “avoid all non-essential contact” with others [...]
Met Police confiscated just one e-scooter a week despite ban March 16, 2020 The Metropolitan Police confiscated just one e-scooter per week on average last year, despite a crackdown on the illegal road use of the vehicles. Of these, 25 confiscations came in the two weeks following the death of Emily Hartridge, who was hit by a lorry while riding an e-scooter in London in July 2019. In [...]
Boris Johnson calls on UK businesses to make ventilators amid Covid-19 crisis March 16, 2020 Prime Minister Boris Johnson has called on the UK’s biggest manufacturers to help produce vital medical equipment like ventilators as the coronavirus crisis worsens. This evening Johnson, along with Michael Gove, spoke to more than 60 UK businesses, asking them both to share their expertise and make the components themselves. According to a Downing Street [...]