The ship has been steadied but when’s the right time to unfurl the sails? The European Central Bank (ECB) has done everything it can to maintain the stability of the continent’s finance system during the Covid crisis. In June it doled out 1.3 trillion euros ($1.54 trillion) of super-cheap loans to the banking system at a negative 1% rate; it ...

Bloomberg AirAsia Group Bhd posted its largest quarterly loss on record as restrictions imposed by governments to contain the spread of the coronavirus decimated travel. Southeast Asia’s second-biggest budget carrier by market value reported a net loss of 992.9 million ringgit ($238 million) in the three months ended June 30 versus net income of 17.3 million ringgit a year ago, ...

Bloomberg A court ordered Kenya Airways Plc to stop a plan to fire some pilots pending the determination of a case challenging the move, according to a ruling by Judge Onesmus Makau. Sub-Saharan Africa’s third-largest airline said not being able to proceed with the cuts imperils the viability of the airline. Kenya Airways is facing financial troubles that have partly ...

Bloomberg Wizz Air Holdings Plc wants to expand its new base at London’s Gatwick airport from just one plane to 20 within a year if it can secure enough takeoff and landing slots. While the hub will open with a lone Airbus SE A321 jet in October, Budapest-based Wizz sees scope to quickly expand it to employ 800 people, an ...

Bloomberg Grocery stores are booming as the coronavirus pandemic drives Americans to stock up their pantries. But the nation’s biggest grocer is largely missing out. Walmart Inc, which has sat at the top of the food chain for years, has lost market share to companies like Kroger Co and Albertsons Cos, whose quarterly sales have risen by double-digit percentages. While ...

Bloomberg Bed Bath & Beyond will eliminate 2,800 jobs under a plan to cut costs and streamline operations amid deepening challenges for brick-and-mortar retailers. The “significant workforce reduction” will begin immediately, affecting both corporate headquarters and retail stores, the home-goods retailer said in a statement. Along with previously announced restructuring actions, the latest effort will result in as much as ...

Bloomberg What’s going on with Kim Jong-un? Is he sick? Worried about Covid-19? Consumed by an economic crisis? Battling internal threats? Perhaps the North Korean leader is biding his time until the US presidential election? Or maybe he’s playing the same game of threats, reconciliation and retreat that has kept his family in charge of the secretive state since the ...

Bloomberg Two Hong Kong opposition politicians known for protesting against the city’s China-backed administration were among 16 people arrested on Wednesday, according to police, in the latest blow to the pro-democracy movement. Democratic Party lawmakers Ted Hui and Lam Cheuk-ting were arrested at their homes, their party said in a statement. The developments come in the wake of a sweeping ...

Bloomberg With Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny lying in an induced coma just minutes from Angela Merkel’s office in Berlin, the German chancellor is at a loss over what to do about Vladimir Putin. The German leader — a key conduit to the West for the Russian president — is frustrated that Putin has shown no flexibility on the case, ...

Bloomberg Support for Scottish independence has risen during the coronavirus pandemic, yet the financial reality of breaking away from the UK has been thrown back into the argument again. The government in Edinburgh recorded a budget deficit of 8.6% of gross domestic product compared with 7.4% a year earlier, according to the annual expenditure and revenue report. The deficit for ...