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Bloomberg Russian President Vladimir Putin’s government plans to dramatically ramp up stimulus measures to prop up an economy that is lurching towards recession. The government will roll out about 1 trillion rubles ($13.5 billion) of new spending, according to two people familiar with the plans, who asked not to be named because discussions are ongoing. Some of the money will ...

Bloomberg Virgin Trains USA is poised to win $10 million in tax credits from California’s economic development agency for its proposed passenger rail to Las Vegas from a southern California desert city. The company, backed by Fortress Investment Group private equity funds, has said the project will generate construction jobs and full-time and part-time posts, as well as boost housing ...

Bloomberg UK businesses are struggling to access the cash they need as government efforts fall short, according to the British Chambers of Commerce. Just 1% of companies surveyed by the BCC had managed to access Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS). Eight percent said they had been unsuccessful, citing the complexity of the application process, slow responses ...

Bloomberg Ride-hailing company Bolt Technology OU is seeking credit support from the Estonian government after a switch to quarantine-friendly services didn’t make up for lost revenue and it couldn’t access bank lending under existing state guarantee terms. The service formerly known as Taxify, a rival to Uber Technologies Inc., is asking for $54 million in loans through a state fund ...

Bloomberg In late March, Arnold Mergell delivered an urgent message to Germany’s political elite. Standing in front of a row of blue metal barrels, he complained that the funds needed by small and mid-sized companies like his to survive the coronavirus crisis weren’t getting through fast enough. “The bazooka’s been loaded, but the trigger is stuck,” said Mergell, who runs ...

Bloomberg Russia “sincerely hopes” that a consensus on oil-output cuts will be formalised among the world’s biggest producers as talks to rescue global energy markets continue after Mexico balked at proposed measures, Interfax reports, citing Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. The Opec+ coalition, including Russia, were closing in on an unprecedented agreement to lower global crude production by about 10% after ...

Bloomberg A vaccine against the coronavirus pandemic could be ready by September, according to a scientist leading one of Britain’s most advanced teams. Sarah Gilbert, professor of vaccinology at Oxford University, told The Times on Saturday that she is “80% confident” the vaccine would work, and could be ready by September. Experts have warned the public that vaccines typically take ...

Bloomberg Australia will increase its oil stock through an agreement with the US to help support the global market, following a video conference with G-20 energy ministers. Energy markets in Australia were operating safely, securely and the government is working with the sector to maintain supply for electricity, gas and liquid fuels, Energy Minister Angus Taylor said in a statement. ...

Bloomberg India is set to extend its 21-day nationwide lockdown until April 30 to allow authorities, health workers more time to control growing spread of Covid-19 infections. Delhi’s chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Twitter Prime Minister Narendra Modi — who was meeting with state leaders via video conference on Saturday — made the right decision to extend the lockdown, ...

DUBAI / WAM The number of monthly users of NYU Libraries’ Arabic Collections Online (ACO) increased from 50,000 to 350,000 in March, as remote learning and self-quarantine have become the order of the day. This digital library, a partnership between NYU New York and NYU Abu Dhabi, is a collection of Arabic-language, public-domain content drawn from distinguished libraries around the ...