Bloomberg The euro-area economy’s expansion has come to a dramatic halt, pummeled by a pandemic that’s killed thousands and destroyed businesses and livelihoods. First-quarter GDP data due on Thursday will show a 3.7% contraction, the first since 2013, capturing the early hit to the economy from shutdowns to contain the coronavirus. The current quarter is likely to be even worse, ...

Bloomberg More than seven weeks after Italy imposed one of Europe’s most rigorous lockdowns, money is finally trickling down to companies hurt by the ensuing economic paralysis. Ironically, the aid is starting to arrive just as Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced easing of some of the curbs from May 4. But the delay in getting money to companies and households ...

Bloomberg Wirecard AG said an independent audit by KPMG uncovered no need to restate earnings, but added all data needed to confirm past revenues could not be obtained. Wirecard hired the accounting firm in October, which has been looking into the payment processor’s third-party partner business, as well as business activities in India and Singapore. In a statement on Tuesday, ...

Bloomberg Learning new skills is taking on greater significance at manufacturer Zero Point 8 in the UK’s industrial heartland. For workers, it’s about staying employed and healthy. For the company, it’s about keeping afloat. Social distancing rules that dictate production can only continue safely if workers are two meters apart means splitting them into two shifts. Some staff at the ...

Bloomberg Bayer AG’s Werner Baumann has a return engagement with shareholders after an unprecedented rebuke last year. Though an avalanche of Roundup litigation has grown, the chief executive officer appears to be on firmer footing this time around. While Baumann has failed to settle claims with more than 50,000 US plaintiffs who say the weedkiller caused cancer, he has drawn ...

Bloomberg The German government has brought in SAP SE and Deutsche Telekom AG to help develop an app to trace Covid-19 infections as European governments look to national champions to help build solutions to the pandemic. “Deutsche Telekom and SAP will play their part in Germany and throughout Europe to ensure that European digital technologies are a central component in ...

Bloomberg Brazil’s Supreme Court gave the green light for a probe into allegations that Jair Bolsonaro tried to interfere with police investigations, adding to the president’s difficulties as the wheels come off Latin America’s biggest economy and his cabinet threatens to implode. Brazilian bonds dropped after the court decision, which presents Bolsonaro with his deepest political crisis to date. The ...

Bloomberg The number of deaths caused by Covid-19 in care homes in England and Wales soared to 2,050 in the week ending on April 17, more than double the number a week earlier, highlighting the difficulties the government faces in stopping the spread of the virus. The latest toll contributed to the overall number of fatalities rising to the highest ...

Bloomberg For about as long as North Korea has existed, Kim Pyong Il has been considered a possible successor to the throne. And now, with his nephew Kim Jong-un’s health status unclear, his name is being bandied about again. Kim Pyong Il, 65, is the last known surviving son of North Korea’s founder, Kim Il Sung. After losing out in ...

Bloomberg Hong Kong announced plans to reopen government offices and some public facilities, as Chief Executive Carrie Lam took cautious steps to get the city back to work amid the threat of further coronavirus outbreaks and fresh political protests. Government employees will start returning to offices from May 4 and the city is preparing to open facilities including museums and ...