IAG.L - International Consolidated Airlines Group, S.A.
| Previous close | 198.00 |
| Open | 209.90 |
| Bid | 225.70 x 0 |
| Ask | 226.70 x 0 |
| Day's range | 205.40 - 227.50 |
| 52-week range | 5.58 - 684.00 |
| Volume | 17,506,527 |
| Avg. volume | 15,298,275 |
| Market cap | 4.496B |
| Beta (5Y monthly) | 1.54 |
| PE ratio (TTM) | 1.41 |
| EPS (TTM) | 160.10 |
| Earnings date | 07 May 2020 |
| Forward dividend & yield | 0.28 (14.05%) |
| Ex-dividend date | 02 Jul 2020 |
| 1y target est | 7.17 |
- Reuters - UK Focus
UK group calls for grounded planes to be used as intensive care wards
Airlines, airports and regulators have given their backing to a plan to turn large passenger aircraft into intensive care wards during the coronavirus pandemic, a UK-based group working on the idea said on Monday. Britain is bracing for the epidemic to peak in the coming weeks, and is building field hospitals in London, Birmingham, Manchester and Cardiff to bolster its state-run National Health Service (NHS).
- Simply Wall St.
Downgrade: Here's How Analysts See International Consolidated Airlines Group, S.A. (LON:IAG) Performing In The Near Term
Today is shaping up negative for International Consolidated Airlines Group, S.A. (LON:IAG) shareholders, with the...
- Bloomberg
Grim Global Mark for Infections; N.Y. Cases Rise: Virus Update
(Bloomberg) -- In four months, the new coronavirus infected more than 1 million people and killed more than 51,000. The U.S. accounts for a quarter of the cases. Italy and Spain represent almost half the deaths.British Airways furloughed 30,000 staff and cut pay. Portugal closed airports during Easter. New York City reported a rise in new cases.The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits more than doubled to a record 6.65 million. In Britain, almost 1 million people claimed welfare payments in two weeks. Stocks gained as oil surged.Key Developments:Global cases top 1 million; deaths exceed 51,000: Johns HopkinsNations with mandatory TB vaccines show fewer coronavirus deathsLA urges city to mask up; NY, NJ deaths double in three daysLocked up, beaten and shamed: virus laws lead to abusePalantir’s new ‘driving thrust’: predicting virus outbreaksLife-or-death hospital decisions come with threat of lawsuitsTrump Issues Order on Supplies (4:40 p.m. NY)President Donald Trump issued an order under the Defense Production Act to speed production of ventilators after state officials raised alarm that supplies are inadequate.Trump directed the Department of Health and Human Services to ensure that General Electric Co., Hill-Rom Holdings Inc., Medtronic Plc, ResMed Inc., Royal Philips NV and Vyaire Medical Inc. obtain needed supplies. The order doesn’t name the suppliers to companies manufacturing ventilators.Trump has expressed reluctance to use the law, comparing it to nationalizing industries. He has said he prefers to use threats to invoke the act as leverage to force companies to comply.Tennessee Issues Stay-at-Home Order (4:25 p.m. NY)Tennessee is requiring citizens to remain at home, ending one of the last holdouts by U.S. states. Governor Bill Lee, who had previously only urged residents to stay home, said he made the decision after seeing traffic data showing people were traveling more.Ohio Extends Stay-Home Order (4:15 p.m. NY)Ohio Governor Mike DeWine extended a stay-at-home order that closes non-essential businesses through May 1. The order was set to expire April 6 but is still needed with models showing the peak of the outbreak expected by mid-May, the governor said. Stores will be asked to set, post, and enforce limits on number of customers inside at at any one time.Germany’s Deaths Top 1,000 (3:15 p.m. NY)Deaths in Germany climbed to 1,074 Thursday, a day after the government extended a nationwide lockdown beyond Easter. The toll was 931 the previous day, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Confirmed cases increased to 84,264 -- the third-highest in Europe -- from 77,981.The head of Germany’s public health authority said this week he expects the nation’s relatively low death rate of 0.8% to rise in the next few weeks.NYC Ambulance Response Slows (3 p.m. NY)New York City ambulances are taking almost three minutes longer than usual to respond to the most critical distress calls as administrative bottlenecks in emergency rooms cause delays, even as streets are uncharacteristically clear.Response times in March averaged 10 minutes and 7 seconds, according to New York City Fire Department records, compared with an average 7 minutes, 15 seconds in the same period a year earlier. Ambulances sometimes wait as long as an hour to deliver patients to an ER, said Anthony Almojera, an EMS technician and vice president of the fire department’s EMS Officers Union Local 3621.Sressed-out drivers and paramedics will get some help from 250 more ambulances and 500 specialists that the Federal Emergency Management Agency sent to the city this week.Portugal Shuts Airports (2:40 p.m. NY)Portugal’s airports will be closed April 9-13 as the nation deals with the outbreak during the Easter holiday period. The government also is limiting the number of passengers on flights to put distance between travelers, Prime Minister Antonio Costa said in Lisbon on Thursday.President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa earlier extended the state of emergency for two weeks through April 17. The number of confirmed cases in Portugal rose 9.5% to 9,034, slower than the two previous daily increases.U.S. Layoffs Lead to Lost Insurance (1:10 p.m. NY)Some 3.5 million American workers probably lost their employer-provided health insurance policies in the past two weeks as the epidemic triggered an unprecedented wave of layoffs, according to research published Thursday by the Economic Policy Institute.The “very rough estimate” is based on industry-specific unemployment claims filed in Washington state, which had the earliest U.S. outbreak.It’s hard to be precise because some laid-off workers will be able to get insurance via Obamacare exchanges or a family member who still has a job, or will qualify for government coverage under Medicaid, the EPI said. On the other hand, the 3.5 million doesn’t include spouses or children of the newly unemployed who may now be without coverage.N.Y. New Cases Rise Almost 9,000 (1 p.m. NY)New York’s coronavirus outbreak shows no signs of abating, with almost 8,700 new infections, 1,200 new hospitalizations, 400 new ICU admissions and more than 400 new deaths, Governor Andrew Cuomo said.Cuomo said at the current infection rate, the state is six days away from exhausting its stockpile of breathing machines. About 350 new patients per night need ventilation, and the state has about 2,200 stockpiled.Unlike other states that claim to have received faulty ventilators from the U.S. stockpile, Cuomo says all those received by New York appear to be in working order.British Airways Staff Furloughed (12:45 p.m. NY)British Airways, which grounded most of its fleet as travel demand slumped, will furlough about 28,000 employees and pay them 80% of their usual pay, the Unite union said Thursday after labor talks. The U.K. government will cover up to 2,500 pounds ($3,095) a month under a national plan, with the airline picking up wages beyond that level.The airline is following other carriers in furloughing workers as the virus wipes out global travel demand. Among U.K. rivals, EasyJet Plc laid off cabin crew for two months Monday after grounding its entire fleet, while staff at Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd. have signed up for eight-week breaks, extended sabbaticals or voluntary severance.Netherlands Urges Quarantine for U.S. Travelers (12:40 p.m. NY)Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte called on citizens returning to the Netherlands from the U.S. to self-quarantine for 14 days, press agency ANP reports.The same is being asked for all citizens who are being repatriated. Rutte also called on residents in neighboring Germany and Belgium to stay away in the long Easter weekend.Pence Says 100,000 Get Tested (12:34 p.m. NY)Vice President Mike Pence said more than 100,000 Americans are now being tested daily for coronavirus, as the government tries to ramp up its lagging response to tracking the outbreak.A weekend breakthrough on point-of-care testing by Abbott Laboratories will make an additional 50,000 tests available each day, Pence said Thursday in an interview with Bloomberg Television.There have been about 1.2 million coronavirus tests performed in the U.S. as of noon Thursday, according to the Covid 19 Tracking Project, which examines data supplied by states.Italy Infections Slow (12:20 p.m. NY)Italy reported 4,668 new cases of the coronavirus on Thursday compared with 4,782 a day earlier, as growth in infections slowed.The nation had 760 deaths as the number of fatalities rose again after three weeks of nationwide lockdown.The toll over the past 24 hours compared with 727 on Wednesday, according to figures from the civil protection agency.Remy Cointreau Takes Hit on China Sales (12:20 p.m. NY)Remy Cointreau SA, one of the world’s largest sellers of Cognac, cut its forecast for the fiscal year and said it expects profit to be down between 25% and 30%. Producers of the spirit are enduring a collapse in sales from China as a result of the coronavirus. The country had previously grown to become one of the most important sales markets for Cognac and other European luxury goods. Just under a third of Remy Cointreau’s revenue comes from Asia, with China being the largest market in the region.Democrats Postpone Convention (12:05 p.m. NY)The Democratic National Committee on Thursday postponed the presidential nominating convention from July to Aug. 17 due to concerns about the coronavirus, according to two people familiar with the decision. The delay comes after likely presidential nominee Joe Biden said it should be pushed back for safety reasons.Pelosi Forming Panel to Oversee Stimulus (11:35 a.m. NY)U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will create a select committee with subpoena power to oversee the government’s response to the outbreak, including how the $2.2 trillion from last week’s stimulus plan is spent.Pelosi on Thursday compared the committee to the panel chaired by then-Senator Harry Truman in the 1940s to investigate defense spending as the country mobilized for World War II.“We want to make sure there are not exploiters out there,” she told reporters. “Where there is money, there is mischief.”Putin Extends Lockdown Through April 30 (10:36 a.m. NY)President Vladimir Putin extended his order keeping Russians at home until April 30, warning that the spread of coronavirus has yet to reach its peak.The Russian leader said certain parts of Russia, including Moscow, haven’t managed to get the situation under control. He said he would give additional authority to regional leaders to determine the level of response locally. He noted that the stay-at-home period could be shortened if the situation improves.Russia has more than 3,500 confirmed cases of coronavirus after a 28% increase overnight.NYC Business Activity Falls (10:30 a.m. NY)A measure of business activity in the New York City area sank to the lowest level on record in March. The Institute for Supply Management-New York’s current business conditions index fell 39 points last month to 12.9, the lowest in data back to 1993 and well below its 27.1 reading duriing the global financial crisis. Levels below 50 signal contracting activity.Kenya to Hire Health Workers (10:15 a.m. NY)Kenya is set to hire 6,000 health workers to help fight the coronavirus outbreak, with 5,000 deployed to counties and 1,000 will remain at the national hospitals, Health Secretary Mutahi Kagwe said.Kenya has confirmed 110 Covid-19 cases and three deaths.Walgreens Flags Sales Downturn (9:43 a.m. NY)Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. executives said sales have started to decline at its drugstores as a result of the pandemic, though the full impact on its business won’t be known for months.U.S. consumers had raced early last month to stock up on drugs, cleaning supplies and toilet paper as they prepared to stay at home to avoid getting or spreading Covid-19. Now, that rush appears to be ebbing.Amazon Hires 80,000, Steps Up Warehouse Safety (9:24 a.m. NY)Amazon.com Inc. said it has hired 80,000 people to help meet demand for online orders and has stepped up safety precautions at its U.S warehouses.Dave Clark, Amazon’s logistics chief, said in a blog on Thursday that Amazon would probably go “well beyond” its previous estimate of an additional $350 million in costs to support a growing workforce.Germany Backs Use of Bailout Fund (9:15 a.m. NY)The government in Berlin says it’s ready to send an “unambiguous signal” to markets by letting countries tap the European Stability Mechanism, the euro area’s rescue fund, to help them deal with the fallout of the pandemic.That’s according to a position paper seen by Bloomberg, which also advocates setting up a 50 billion-euro fund to guarantee loans to small and medium-sized companies, especially in countries that don’t have their own development banks. Germany also said it would welcome a European unemployment reinsurance.U.S. Jobless Claims Doubled to Record Last Week: (8:38 a.m. NY)The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits more than doubled to a second straight record as the coronavirus widened its reach and closed more businesses.A total of 6.65 million people filed jobless claims in the week ended March 28, according to Labor Department figures released Thursday, as many stores and restaurants were forced to close across the nation to mitigate the outbreak.U.K.’s Johnson Still Has Mild Symptoms (8:24 a.m. NY)U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson continues to show mild symptoms after contracting Covid-19, his spokesman, James Slack, said at a briefing with reporters.New Cases in Italy’s Lombardy Region Remain Flat (8:21 a.m. NY)Lombardy’s trend of new virus cases remains flat, with no increases in the last 24 hours, the region’s governor, Attilio Fontana, said at a press conference on Thursday.“It seems what our experts have predicted is happening, and that in a few days we might see a blessed decline in the pandemic trend,” Fontana said.Germany Sees Economy Contracting 5% in 2020 (7:43 a.m. NY)The national output is expected to contract more than 5% in 2020, Economy Minister Peter Altmaier said. Germany’s economy could be in position for “reasonable growth” next year, he added. Angela Merkel’s government was widely anticipated to slash its forecast from the pre-crisis prediction of 1.1% growth.Amgen Joins Hunt for Coronavirus Drug, DJ Says (7:35 a.m. NY)Amgen Inc. and Adaptive Biotechnologies Corp. are partnering to develop a drug to treat the coronavirus, Dow Jones reported on Thursday, citing an interview with David Reese, Amgen’s executive vice president of research and development.No Decisions on Domestic Travel Ban, Fauci Says (7:32 a.m. NY)“It’s on the table,” National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Anthony Fauci says about whether the U.S. has any plans to restrict domestic travel. “We look at that literally every day,” he said. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he’s looking at domestic travel limits for virus hot spots.HK Orders Bars, Pubs to Close (7:28 a.m. NY)Hong Kong has ordered bars and pubs to close for 14 days from April 3. The city earlier reported 37 new cases, taking its total to 802.Boeing Offers Voluntary Buyouts (7:24 a.m. NY)Boeing Co. offered voluntary buyouts to eligible employees, in a bid to quickly shed costs and adjust its work force of 161,000 to a coronavirus crisis that’s quickly undermined the outlook for aircraft sales. The move will preserve much-needed cash at Boeing, which is facing a sharp contraction in demand along with its European rival Airbus SE.Airline customers around the world have slashed schedules, with some parking their entire fleets as the coronavirus pandemic guts travel. About 44% of aircraft across the globe are in storage.ECB Delays Strategic Review (7:21 a.m. NY)The big policy rethink, which was supposed to become the hallmark of President Christine Lagarde’s presidency, will be completed by the middle of next year, or six months later than initially planned, the ECB said on Thursday.EU Says It Should Have Acted Faster to Help Italy (7:05 a.m. NY)In a letter to Italian newspaper la Repubblica, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen admitted the bloc was late in understanding the scale of the outbreak in Italy and slow to act. She said Brussels has done far better recently.The unusual admission comes amid fear that Italy’s debt market is still vulnerable to a mass exodus by investors, even with the European Central Bank offering support through its 750 billion-euro ($820 billion) bond-buying program. The country’s yield spread over Germany, a key gauge of risk in the country remains elevated after last month’s virus-induced rout.Biden Says Sees Democratic Convention Delayed to August (7 a.m. NY)“I think it’s going to have to move into August,” Biden said in an interview on “The Tonight Show.” “I doubt whether the Democratic convention is going to be able to be held in mid-July.”Norway’s Wealth Fund Lost a Record $113 Billion in 1Q (6:41 a.m. NY)Norway’s sovereign wealth fund lost a record 1.17 trillion kroner in the first quarter as the coronavirus pandemic roiled stock markets. The loss comes as the fund for the first time faces forced asset sales to cover emergency spending by the government to weather the impact on the richest Nordic economy.Stanchart CEO Says U.K., U.S. Acted Too Late (6:35 a.m. NY)Standard Chartered Plc Chief Executive Officer Bill Winters said authorities in London and Washington have been too slow in ordering the type of lockdown that China used to control the outbreak. Speaking on Bloomberg Television, Winters became one of the highest-profile CEOs to criticize the Western response to the pandemic, saying the U.S. and U.K. had acted “too late.”“I find it interesting to listen to the debate now that we in the West, or in the U.K., or in the U.S., couldn’t have done what the Chinese did because we don’t have that kind of society,” Winters said. “Well, we are doing what the Chinese did; we’re just doing it too late.”EU’s Borrell Warns of Pandemic ‘Spiraling Out of Control’ (6:30 a.m. NY)European Union foreign-policy chief Josep Borrell said the bloc must mobilize help for poor countries. “Globally, it is to be feared that the worst is yet to come,” Borrell said in a letter to foreign ministers as they prepare to hold a video conference Friday. “Countries already affected by conflicts or mismanagement are particularly vulnerable.”Jobless Claims Soar As Lockdowns Bite (6:20 a.m. NY)Earlier on Thursday, Spain said claims rose by a record 302,265 in March. Spain, one of the countries at the center of Europe’s outbreak, already has an unemployment rate that’s among the highest in the developed world.Almost a million people have claimed welfare payments in Britain over the past two weeks and even Finland, one of the world’s best-funded welfare states, is starting to crack. In Ireland, more than 300,000 people are on government support and 200,000 are classed as unemployed -- that’s a total of about half a million people in a country where around 2.3 million were in work before the crisis.And one-third of Thailand’s population has registered for government cash handouts designed to soften the blow of the novel coronavirus outbreak, far exceeding the funds available for the policy.Brexit Delay May Be Inevitable (6 a.m. NY)Prime Minister Boris Johnson says he won’t delay Britain’s final parting with the European Union at the end of the year. Empty meeting rooms across Whitehall suggest delay is all but inevitable.Business lobbyists say government officials have canceled most meetings to prepare for Brexit as civil servants are pulled away to deal with the growing coronavirus pandemic. It’s now only a question of how Johnson will sell a delay to the British public, rather than whether or not one will happen, they say.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
- Reuters
BA suspends more than 30,000 staff, owner scraps dividend
British Airways said on Thursday it has struck a deal with its unions to suspend more than 30,000 cabin crew and ground staff in one of the airline industry's most dramatic moves yet to survive the coronavirus pandemic. "Given the incredibly difficult circumstances that the entire aviation sector is facing, this is as good a deal as possible for our members," Unite national officer Oliver Richardson said. With planes unable to fly because of travel restrictions, compounded by a plunge in demand over fears of contagion, airlines worldwide have grounded most of their fleets, and many have said they need government support to survive.
- Fool.co.uk
Is now a good time to buy IAG shares?
International Consolidated Airlines has plunged in value in recent weeks, but could this be a great opportunity for value investors to pick up a bargain? The post Is now a good time to buy IAG shares? appeared first on The Motley Fool UK.
- Yahoo Finance UK
What to Watch: 'Tepid' rise in stocks, lay-offs grow, BA decision on staff
A daily overview of the top business, market, and economic stories to watch in the UK, Europe, and abroad.
- Reuters - UK Focus
GLOBAL MARKETS-World stocks drift as wary investors expect grim U.S. jobs data
World stocks were mixed on Thursday, as the death toll from coronavirus rose and economic pain deepened, with another record week of jobless claims expected in the United States. Oil futures surged after U.S. President Donald Trump said he expected Saudi Arabia and Russia to reach a deal soon to end their oil price war.
- Yahoo Finance UK
Coronavirus: Lufthansa to put 87,000 staff on part-time hours
Europe's largest airline group has grounded over 90% of all flights.
- Yahoo Finance UK
Coronavirus: British Airways expected to furlough 36,000 staff
Airline expected to use the government’s Job Retention Scheme to pay for up to 80% of wages, capped at £2,500 ($3,071) a month.
- Reuters - UK Focus
BA in union talks to suspend around 32,000 staff - source
- Bloomberg
Virus Leaves Thatcher’s Children with Bigger Nightmare Than 2008
(Bloomberg) -- Twelve years ago, politicians saved the world’s banking system from collapse by providing billions of dollars in bailouts. The coronavirus is confronting them with an even bigger and more complicated task.This time, it’s not the financial industry that needs government intervention to survive. Whole swathes of the rest of the U.K. economy have been brought to a standstill by the pandemic, and businesses as varied as airlines, carmakers and real estate developers are all looking to dip their hand into the public purse.“There’s going to be government money going into all sorts of places that would have been unthinkable just weeks ago,” said Philip Hampton, former chairman of Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc, which in 2008 received the biggest bailout of any lender in the world.For U.K. Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak, the crisis means tearing up four decades of economic orthodoxy in a country that more than any other in Europe has pulled the state out of the sphere of business. The 39-year-old former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. banker has pledged to do everything necessary to put the world’s fifth largest economy back on its feet -- at the risk of leaving himself vulnerable to a future political and financial reckoning.In a sign of how preparations are advancing, U.K. Government Investments, the 120-strong arm of the Treasury that oversees the state’s remaining holding in RBS, is preparing to draft in staff from other arms of the government, according to a person with knowledge of the unit’s workings.Political DecisionsAs he grapples with what is likely to be the biggest bailout of private business since the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., Sunak will have to deal with some of the same controversial questions but on a far broader scale: Which companies should be helped? What losses should the government inflict on private shareholders, some of whom had until very recently been receiving dividends? And how will the government get its money back?“This is obviously an exceptional time, with exceptional measures called for,” said Robert Colvile, co-author of the most recent Conservative Party election manifesto and director of the Centre for Policy Studies, the London-based think tank co-founded by the late U.K. Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.“But there’s a crucial difference between helping companies with a short term cash-flow or liquidity problem, caused by a crisis outside of their control, and taking on responsibility for those whose business models were already running into trouble,” he added. “Bailouts should very definitely be an option of last resort, once all others have been exhausted.”Fred GoodwinThen there’s the complication of whether to punish existing managers and shareholders financially by wiping out their stakes in any bailout. Unlike 2008, when bankers such as RBS’s former CEO Fred Goodwin and Lehman’s Richard Fuld became the targets of public anger, few in Westminster blame today’s executives for the situation they find themselves in.“I make a clear distinction between bailouts that are due to errors and management from something that is an act of God,” said Paul Myners, who as City minister under the last Labour government helped direct the bailout of RBS.Rather than rescuing companies by injecting fresh equity, one option the government is considering is the use of convertible debt, where the state provides support in the form of loans that can be exchanged for shares in a company subject to ensure taxpayers’ money is protected as far as possible.“Government should never be an attractive place for companies to come for capital,” said Myners. “Businesses must make the maximum effort to find the best possible solution on their own and use their existing capital before they come to the government.”Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd., the airline partly owned by billionaire Richard Branson, has already called on the government to provide 7.5 billion pounds ($9.3 billion) of support for an industry that has been effectively shut down by international restrictions on travel brought in by many countries to fight the spread of coronavirus.Hands in PocketsOn Tuesday, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps told the BBC shareholders would have to “put their hands in their pockets to rescue their businesses as well,” adding that any aid would be more likely to take the form a loan than an injection of fresh equity.“I’m not terribly sympathetic to airlines,” said Myners. “As a whole, they have carried too much debt, paid massive amounts in executive compensation, and bought back massive amounts of stock.”EasyJet Plc, which this week grounded much of its 318-aircraft fleet, paid shareholders 174 million pounds in dividends as recently as last month. British Airways parent International Consolidated Airlines Group has returned a total of 4.4 billion euros ($4.8 billion) to its owners through dividends and buybacks since 2015.In any bailout, there is always the question of exactly why a government is supporting one company or industry over another. This calculation becomes even more complicated given the international nature of many large U.K. businesses. Take British Airways and its owner. London-based and with a little more than half of its staff in the U.K., IAG is a seemingly strong candidate for British government support. However, only about a fifth of its shareholders are U.K. institutions, while more than a third of its stock is held by the U.S. investors. Indeed, its largest individual shareholder with a 25% stake is Qatar Airways. For Sunak, the question then is: Should these foreign holders be compensated with U.K. taxpayers’ money?How Long?For the Treasury and its advisers, the other big issue to shape their level of support will be how long the crisis lasts. If the lockdown of large parts of the economy where to be brought to an end within weeks, firms could likely survive on temporary bridging loans, avoiding the need for bailouts. But if the disruption stretches on for much of the rest of the year, that line may not hold.The last financial crisis shows the inherent risk for a government when it takes a stake in a business. When the state bailed out RBS, the expectation was that its 84% holding would be sold off within a few years. More than a decade later, the government still owns a little over 60% of the bank, highlighting just how hard it can be to get back money injected during a moment of crisis.“In normal times, I’d be against bailing out companies altogether,” said Julian Jessop, an economics fellow at the Institute of Economic Affairs, a free-market think tank. “It’s clearly different though, on this occasion, because it’s a completely un-anticipatable external shock, also one the government itself has caused.”For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
- Bloomberg
N.Y. Braces for Hospital Surge; Italy Levels Off: Virus Update
(Bloomberg) -- New York Governor Andrew Cuomo called for a statewide sharing of health-care workers as cases surged by more than 9,000, with more than 300 new deaths. The state now has more infections than China’s Hubei province had.Spain said new infections have stabilized even as it reported its biggest death toll yet. Italy’s new cases leveled at a two-week low.Anthony Fauci, the U.S. government’s top infectious-disease expert, said on CNN that he’s starting to see “glimmers” that social distancing may be slowing the spread of the pathogen, though he warned that the situation remains very dangerous. Key Developments:Cases top 846,000; 41,000 dead, 176,000 recovered: Johns HopkinsSocial distancing shows signs of progress on U.S. West CoastHospitals tell doctors they’ll be fired for talking to pressElderly endangered by virus in states with loose controlsSick crew keeps ship running, risking spread of virusJapan plans $554 billion package; Italy prepares emergency handoutSubscribe to a daily update on the virus from Bloomberg’s Prognosis team here.Click VRUS on the terminal for news and data on the coronavirus and here for maps and charts. For analysis of the impact from Bloomberg Economics, click here. For BNEF’s view of the impact on energy, click here.California to Issue Guidance on Use of Masks (4:45 p.m. NY)California Governor Gavin Newsom said the state will put out guidance in the next day or so over the widespread use of face masks.The governor said there are potential benefits to a recommendation for broad public use, while cautioning that the state of 40 million residents already has a mask shortage for health-care workers. The science also is unclear on the benefits of using masks to protect against the virus, he said. “It is not a substitute for physical distancing,” Newsom said. “The last thing we want are people putting on coverings and moving them and not washing their hands and potentially causing additional issues.”N.Y. MTA Needs U.S. Aid to Avoid Default (3:21 p.m. NY)New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which runs the area’s subways, buses and commuter trains, needs more help from the federal and state governments to ensure it can keep paying bondholders as ridership plummets, agency head Pat Foye said Tuesday.The MTA, which runs the nation’s largest public transportation system, has more than $45 billion of debt outstanding.New York’s subway ridership is down nearly 90%, and the number of passengers on the MTA’s Metro-North Railroad has fallen 94%. The agency is losing an estimated $125 million each week in fare and toll revenue, leading it to boost its short-term loan capacity to $3 billion from $1 billion to help raise cash.Spain’s Outbreak Peaks: Health Minister (3 p.m. NY)Spain’s coronavirus outbreak has peaked and is now in a period of stabilization, Health Minister Salvador Illa said.The pace of increase in new infections has slowed to about 11% from 20% a week ago, Illa said in a press briefing Tuesday in Madrid. The country, which has recorded the most deaths after Italy, has been carrying out 15,000 to 20,000 tests a day for the past few weeks, he said.“Since March 25 we’ve observed a point of inflection,” Illa said. “We’re seeing a stabilization in the epidemic’s evolution.”Total Spanish virus deaths rose by a record 849 to 8,189 in the past 24 hours, according to the latest Health Ministry data. The number of new cases increased by 9,222 -- the most in a single day -- to bring total confirmed infections in the country to 94,417.San Francisco Sees $1.3 Billion Tax Loss (2:30 p.m. NY)San Francisco is forecasting it may lose as much as $1.26 billion of tax revenue over the next two years because of the economic shutdown imposed to slow the spread of the coronavirus.With restaurants and stores shuttered and hotels vacant, the lost revenue is already leaving the city facing a deficit of as much as $287 million for the fiscal year that ends in June, according to a report released Tuesday by Controller Ben Rosenfield and city budget analysts. The revenue hit could cost San Francisco another $972 million through June 2022 if the nation’s economy doesn’t quickly rebound from the recession.Netherlands Extends School, Bar Closings (1:45 p.m. NY)The Dutch government extended measures, including keeping schools and bars closed in the coming weeks, as officials await conclusive evidence that the battle against the coronavirus pandemic is bearing fruit.Restaurants, museums and barber shops are also among places that will stay shut until April 28, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte told the country in a televised briefing. The previous end date for the closures had been April 6.Read more hereN.Y. Coronavirus Cases Surge Past China’s Hubei (12:45 p.m. NY)New York state reported a 9,300 increase in coronavirus cases on Tuesday to 76,000, surging past China’s Hubei province, where the virus began.New York has the lion’s share of infections in the U.S., which now has the most cases in the pandemic after eclipsing China last week. China’s epidemic, which has now been contained to a few new domestic cases after a two-month battle, was largely confined to Hubei province, which had 67,801 cases as of March 30.With a population only a third of Hubei’s, New York has emerged as the new epicenter of the outbreak, which has now infected over 788,000 people worldwide and killed more than 37,800 people.N.Y. Governor’s TV Anchor Brother Is Positive (12:04 p.m. NY)Chris Cuomo, who has been leading CNN’s nightly coverage of the coronavirus pandemic, has tested positive for the infection, according to New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, his older brother.Chris Cuomo, 49, is now quarantined at home in his basement, away from his family, the governor said at a press briefing Tuesday.“He’s young in good shape, strong,” the 62-year-old governor said. “Not as strong as he thinks -- but he will be fine.”His diagnosis is a reminder that everyone is vulnerable to the pandemic and should stay indoors if possible, Andrew Cuomo said.FEMA Sending Ambulances to NYC (11:01 a.m. NY)The U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency is sending 250 ambulances to New York City, staffed by 500 paramedics and medical technicians to help its fire department respond to an unprecedented number of medical calls.Fire department rescue personnel report a 50% increase over normal daily call volume, Mayor Bill de Blasio’s office said in a statement. The ambulances will help respond to that surge of calls and assist in transporting patients from hospitals, which will be turned into intensive-care Covid-19 treatment centers, to other temporary medical facilities such as the USNS Comfort hospital ship docked in the Hudson River, the Javits Convention Center and the National Tennis Center in Queens, which will handle patients needing non-coronavirus-related treatment.NYC Reports First Death of Minor (10:20 a.m. NY)New York City reported its first coronavirus death of a person under age 18, as fatalities continue rising in the region, according to the Associated Press. The person’s exact age wasn’t disclosed.There have been more than 914 coronavirus deaths in the city, AP said, citing the city Health Department.Russia Doctor Who Met Putin Is Diagnosed: TV (9:29 a.m. NY)The head of Russia’s main coronavirus hospital, Denis Protsenko, who hosted President Vladimir Putin there on March 24, has been diagnosed with Covid-19, state-run Rossiya 24 television reported.Sweden May Block Subsidies to Firms That Pay Dividends (9:21 a.m. NY)Swedish lawmakers are uniting across party lines to send an ultimatum to companies struggling to adapt to the pandemic: Ditch the dividend or lose out on state aid. The Riksdag is expected to vote on the proposal on Thursday.“It’s unjustifiable for companies receiving state support for short-term layoffs to pay out dividends at the same time,” Parliament’s finance committee said in a statement.U.K.’s Johnson Faces Calls to Release Lockdown Data (9:11 a.m. NY)British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is facing calls to release data showing why he needed to lock down the country to slow the spread of coronavirus.Johnson ordered the most sweeping curbs on the population ever imposed, shutting restaurants, gyms, schools and shops, and banning people from gathering in public. Now members of Parliament from across the political spectrum are calling on the government to release the data that prompted the stringent measures so the public can see why they were needed -- and whether they could or should have been taken earlier.Pelosi Says Moving Toward Vote By Mail in November (8:24 a.m. NY)U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told MSNBC she sees the country moving toward a vote by mail for the November elections, and said she hoped the postal service would receive funding to accommodate it.Dutch Deaths Surpass 1,000 (8:10 a.m. NY)The Netherlands became the latest country with a death toll surpassing 1,000 after 175 more fatalities were reported, bringing the total to 1,039. Confirmed cases rose 7% to 12,595.The southern province of Brabant at the heart of the country’s outbreak seems to have passed the peak of hospitalized cases, according to the RIVM National Institute for Public Health and the Environment.Portugal Confirmed Cases Rise 16% (7:40 a.m. NY)The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Portugal rose to 7,443 as of 11 a.m. on Tuesday from 6,408. That’s faster than a 7.5% gain on Monday, following a 15% increase on Sunday.Italy Readies Emergency Cash for Underground Economy (7:15 a.m. NY)Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte is preparing an unprecedented emergency handout for workers trapped in Italy’s underground economy, as his government seeks to stave off the risk of social unrest during a nationwide lockdown.Conte is expected to host a cabinet meeting on Wednesday or Thursday to approve a new request to parliament for a wider budget deficit, paving the way for a second stimulus package worth at least 30 billion euros ($33 billion), according to officials who asked not to be identified by name. Italy’s initial package was valued at 25 billion euros.The government may extend restrictions through the May 1 holiday weekend, with a gradual opening of the country from May 4, Italian newspapers including La Stampa reported on Tuesday. The controls, now in their fourth week, are currently in place until the end of this week.European Air Shutdown Broadens (7 a.m. NY)British Airways suspended operations at its second London hub at Gatwick airport. In France, Orly airport outside the capital will shut down at the end of the day, while those flying out of Amsterdam will now have to wait until November next year for the opening of Lelystad Airport, a second hub for the Dutch capital.South Africa Rolls Out Mass Screening Program (6:55 a.m. NY)South Africa will dispatch about 10,000 field workers to check up on people in their homes, the first country in sub-Saharan Africa to do so. The field workers will refer people with symptoms to local clinics or mobile clinics for testing, and those with severe symptoms will be transferred to hospitals, President Cyril Ramaphosa said.France to Push for Emergency Aid to Developing Nations (6:45 a.m. NY)French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire will propose on a call of Group of 20 economy chiefs that the International Monetary Fund increase its special drawing rights by $500 billion as part of an aggressive push to assist developing nations battered by the coronavirus.HK Traders Allowed to Work From Home (6:29 a.m. NY)Staff of licensed firms are allowed to conduct regulated activities, such as trading, when working from home, the Securities and Futures Commission said. All post-licensing regulatory examinations due on or before Sept. 30, 2020 will be given an automatic three-month extension.Earlier, Hong Kong reported 32 additional cases, taking the city’s total confirmed cases to 714.Goldman Quadruples Profit Hit for European Banks (6:25 a.m. NY)European banks are likely to see $131 billion in potential profit disappear over the next three years as the spreading coronavirus upends clients and economies, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc.Italy Business Lobby Sees Country’s Economy Shrinking 6% (6 a.m. NY)Italy’s economy may shrink 6% this year, with household consumption declining 6.8% and gross business investments falling 10.6%, hurt by emergency caused by the spread of coronavirus, business lobby Confindustria says in a report on economic outlook for Italy. The outlook may further worsen if the acute phase of the health emergency is not over by May.Iran Reports Another Jump in Cases (5:45 p.m. HK)Iran’s health ministry reported 3,111 new coronavirus infections and 141 more deaths over the past day, marking another large jump in cases during the Persian new year holiday. The country has now reported 44,606 cases and 2,898 total deaths.Dubai Plans Equity Injection Into Emirates Airline (5:35 p.m. HK)Emirates, the world’s largest long-haul airline, will receive a state bailout in the form of new equity from its owner, the Dubai government. The amount wasn’t detailed in a tweet from Sheikh Hamdan, the deputy ruler of the emirate, on Tuesday.The carrier, which relies on international flights joining far-flung points from its Gulf hub, has grounded virtually its entire passenger fleet as countries sealed off access to fight the coronavirus.Spain Deaths, Cases Surge (5:30 p.m. HK)The country reported 849 more deaths, marking its deadliest day since the outbreak began, and taking its total to 8,189. The number of confirmed cases increased to 94,417 from 85,195.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
- Fool.co.uk
EasyJet grounds entire fleet. Should you invest in airline stocks in this market crash?
Shares in airline operators have plummeted in the stock market crash. But does that mean now is a good time to invest?The post EasyJet grounds entire fleet. Should you invest in airline stocks in this market crash? appeared first on The Motley Fool UK.
- Reuters
Factbox: Airlines ground flights, count mounting costs of the coronavirus shock
Air France-KLM said on March 16 it would park its biggest airliners and slash services by up to 90%. Air New Zealand said on March 16 it would cut long-haul capacity by 85% in the coming months and the domestic network by 30% in April and May. The airline has withdrawn its full-year outlook, frozen hiring and offered unpaid leave to staff.
- Yahoo Finance UK
Coronavirus: British Airways grounds all flights from Gatwick Airport
Parent company IAG has slashed its flight schedule by 75%.
- Reuters
British Airways suspending flights from Gatwick
British Airways said it is temporarily suspending flights from Gatwick Airport in southern England, Britain's second busiest airport, due to the coronavirus. BA's boss warned earlier in March that the airline was in a battle for survival and would have to cut jobs and park planes. "Due to the considerable restrictions and challenging market environment, like many other airlines, we will temporarily suspend our flying schedule at Gatwick," a BA spokesman said.
