Half of businesses set to lay off staff once furlough ends June 17, 2020 More than half of all UK businesses will be forced to lay off staff within three months once the government’s furlough scheme ends, a new poll has revealed. According to YouGov data, 31 per cent of business leaders said a fifth or more of their staff could go, while 21 per cent said almost a [...]
Q&A: How can data science help investors map the route out of lockdown? June 17, 2020 | City Talk We ask Mark Ainsworth, Head of the Data Insights Unit at Schroders, how data science can help investors navigate the next phase of the Covid-19 crisis. The Covid-19 crisis has brought data into our everyday lives like never before. Where once we might have checked our news apps for the football scores, we’re now looking [...]
Bank of England lookahead: Bailey set to ramp up QE but avoid negative rates June 17, 2020 The Bank of England is widely expected to boost its asset purchase programme by at least £100bn tomorrow, as the central bank ramps up quantitative easing to shore up the UK economy. Governor Andrew Bailey is set to bolster UK stimulus at the Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) tomorrow, economists predicted. The expansion of quantitative [...]
German virus tracing app hits 6.5m downloads as Norway and Russia experience technical glitches June 17, 2020 Germany’s app to help trace coronavirus infections has been downloaded 6.5m times within the first 24 hours since its launch. Chief executive of software giant SAP Christian Klein today said he viewed the promising figures as a sign of a job well done, following a collaborative effort between SAP and Deutsche Telekom to develop the [...]
‘Best news so far’: Matt Hancock hails steroid drug that can combat coronavirus June 17, 2020 Health secretary Matt Hancock today hailed the use of a steroid drug called dexamethasone for treating coronavirus patients as the best news so far of the outbreak. Trial results announced on Tuesday showed dexamethasone, which is used to reduce inflammation in other diseases such as arthritis, reduced death rates by around a third among the [...]
The City View podcast: The view from Luxembourg, with Nicolas Mackel June 17, 2020 In this episode, Christian gets the view from Luxembourg, which has established itself as a key European hub for financial services. Nicolas Mackel is CEO of Luxembourg for Finance, the body representing financial services in the country, and he shares his thoughts on how the sector should respond to the economic challenges of the pandemic; [...]
Beijing shuts all schools as second wave fears escalate June 16, 2020 Beijing has shut all schools in a sharp escalation of containment measures, as fears that new coronavirus outbreaks could develop into a second wave accelerate. The Chinese capital has suspended on-campus classes for all primary school, middle school and high school students in a bit to stem the rapid spread of new cases, state news [...]
Government gives NHS immediate authorisation for coronavirus drug June 16, 2020 The government has given the NHS immediate authorisation to use the first drug shown to reduce the coronavirus death rate on patients. Earlier today the results of a clinical trial carried out by Oxford University showed that dexamethasone, a common steroid, been proven to reduce the risk of death significantly in patients with severe forms [...]
UK scientists make ‘major breakthrough’ as common steroid found to cut coronavirus death rate June 16, 2020 A common steroid has been labelled a “major breakthrough” in the fight against coronavirus by researchers after trials showed it cut the risk of death for those patients on ventilators by a third. The drug, which is called dexamethasone, is widely available, and scientists said it would be “instantly affordable” worldwide. The results of the [...]
New Zealand reports two new coronavirus cases who flew in from London June 16, 2020 New Zealand is no longer coronavirus-free, after two women who arrived in the country from Britain tested positive. The cases are New Zealand’s first for 24 days, after Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern declared the country virus-free last week. The women were released early from government quarantine and allowed to drive nearly 650km from Auckland to [...]