EU leaders agree additional €500bn coronavirus package April 10, 2020 Late last night EU governments have agreed an additional €500bn (£438.6bn) package to support their coronavirus-ravaged economies in a bid to stave off a steep recession. The deal was forced through by the bloc’s economic heavyweights France and Germany, which overcame opposition from the Netherlands regarding attaching economic conditions to emergency credit to be given [...]
Foreign Office to bring 3,000 stranded UK nationals back from India April 10, 2020 The Foreign Office has chartered 12 more flights to bring around 3,000 UK nationals back from India as repatriation efforts continue in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. The new flights come in addition to seven that have already been set up, meaning a total number of 5,000 UK citizens will be brought home from [...]
Oil prices fall as Opec production cut deal hangs in balance April 10, 2020 Oil prices have dropped sharply overnight despite a tentative agreement between oil cartel Opec and Russia to cut production by 10m barrels per day, roughly 20 per cent of their output. Discussions will resume today, with the negotiations hinging on whether Mexico decides to join in with the cuts, which it has thus far balked [...]
Coronavirus: The protectionists’ siren song must go unheeded April 10, 2020 The Coronavirus pandemic is changing the way we live, the way we work, and the way we see the world. Relationships are being made and affected. Geopolitics is in a state that we’ve rarely seen before. Political views are being disregarded and changed. It’s important, however, that fundamental aspects of our economic model, such as [...]
Coronavirus: If we get it right, there are grounds for optimism for SMEs April 10, 2020 The Government have acted promptly and in scale to address the unprecedented crisis we face. In addition to the schemes to protect jobs and certain hard-hit sectors, such as hospitality, some of the schemes are intended for distribution through the banks. These include: Coronavirus Commercial Financing Facility (CCFF) where the Bank of England buys debt [...]
Coronavirus: PM Boris Johnson out of intensive care April 9, 2020 Boris Johnson has left intensive care and is in “extremely good spirits,” Downing Street has confirmed in the last few minutes. The Prime Minister remains in hospital, at St Thomas’ in London, where he will receive close monitoring as he makes his recovery from the Covid-19 virus. A spokesman said he was in “extremely good [...]
Former business secretary Greg Clark leads calls for overhaul of coronavirus loan scheme April 9, 2020 Former business secretary Greg Clark MP today branded the government’s coronavirus loan scheme for small and medium-sized businesses a “disappointment” and called for an overhaul of the programme. “It hasn’t been taken up as widely as was touted when it was first launched. Since it was there to provide finance for businesses in substantial quantities [...]
Dominic Raab: Still ‘too early’ to lift lockdown restrictions April 9, 2020 The government has said that it is still too early to lift lockdown restrictions across the UK, urging people again not to travel over the Easter bank holiday weekend. Foreign secretary Dominic Raab, who is deputising for Boris Johnson while the prime minister remains in intensive care, said that although the early signs were that [...]
Opec closes in on record deal with Russia to cut oil production by 20m barrels a day April 9, 2020 Oil producer cartel Opec is in talks with Russia about cutting production by 20m barrels per day, roughly 20 per cent of the world’s oil supply, in a bid to end their price war and support the market. Sources from both sides told Reuters that the cuts, which are at least 5m barrels per day [...]
