Bloomberg The decline of Spain’s rural population has vexed lawmakers and citizens for more than half a century. Now Covid-19 is suddenly changing the landscape. For the first time in decades, some towns outside the country’s main urban centers are counting more people arriving than leaving, as stay-at-home restrictions and worries about the spread of the virus spur demand for ...

Bloomberg The UK government is locked in an internal debate over a trade deal with Australia as it tries to balance a desire for greater access to new markets against potential ramifications for domestic business. Britain and Australia agreed the bulk of a free-trade agreement in April and have signaled they want to conclude the pact by the G-7 summit ...

Bloomberg The UK labour market strengthened more than expected in April as the economy began to emerge from coronavirus restrictions. The number of people on payrolls rise 97,000, and vacancies increased 13%, the Office for National Statistics said on Tuesday. The jobless rate in first quarter falls unexpectedly to 4.8% as employment surged 84,000, the first gain since the pandemic ...

Bloomberg President Joe Biden began to make good on his promise that the US would be an “arsenal” of coronavirus vaccines for the world, announcing he’d share FDA-authorised shots after criticism that his administration had hoarded hundreds of millions of doses. But he also signaled that he intends for US manufacturers to hold or grow their share of the global ...

Bloomberg While Apple Inc.’s attentions turned to a California court clash with Epic Games Inc, Europe’s top antitrust enforcer issued a reminder that the tech giant’s legal battles across the Atlantic are also heating up. EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager warned that a probe into the company’s Apple Pay product is moving ahead on top of an investigation into how ...

Bloomberg Brazil, the world’s biggest exporter of coffee, sugar and orange juice, just had a rainy season that brought hardly any rain. Soils are parched and river levels are low in the nation’s Center-South region, a powerhouse of agricultural output. The drought is so severe that farmers are worried they’ll run out of the water reserves that help keep crops ...

Bloomberg Euro-area businesses shed jobs at the start of the year after strict lockdowns pushed the economy into a double-dip recession. Employment in the 19-nation region falls by 0.3% in the first quarter after two consecutive gains. The economy shrinks 0.6% in the same period, matching an initial estimate. Since then, the outlook for the euro zone has improved. Coronavirus ...

Bloomberg Stocks and US futures rise on Tuesday as optimism that economic re-openings will boost growth outweighed concern about a pick-up in virus cases in parts of Asia. The dollar dipped and oil rises. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index climbed back towards a record reached last week, while contracts on the Nasdaq 100 Index led gains in US futures after ...

Bloomberg The Tokyo Stock Exchange is considering expanding trading hours for cash equities in a move designed to attract retail investors and foreign traders, the Nikkei newspaper reported, without citing anyone. The bourse, which ends trading at 3 pm Tokyo time, is considering expanding hours into the afternoon or evening in a change that could be in time for a ...

Bloomberg Oil drifted lower as a demand recovery in key regions raised optimism about rising fuel consumption, despite a Covid-19 flare-up in parts of Asia. Futures in New York slipped near $65 a barrel while Brent fell towards $68 in London as the dollar nudged higher. Chinese refiners have churned through record volumes of crude so far this year, but ...