Bloomberg ANA Holdings’s plan to launch a new low-cost carrier has doubters, given the coronavirus pandemic’s impact on airlines worldwide and an industry trend towards retrenching. The company said it will launch a new budget brand around fiscal year 2022, targeting medium-distance flights to Southeast Asia and Oceania. That coincided with the carrier unveiling a restructuring plan involving cost reductions …

Bloomberg European stocks dropped to a five-month low and US equity futures slumped as rising coronavirus infections and tougher lockdowns added to worries about the economic hit from pandemic. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index sinks 2.5% after German Chancellor Angela Merkel proposed closing bars and restaurants for a month to curb the spread of the virus. The selloff across Europe …

Bloomberg South Africa’s main stock index dropped as much as 0.8% to the lowest since September 28 as major mining companies led the declines, with investors globally concerned about the impact of the worsening pandemic on economic activity and as jitters over next week’s US presidential election rise. Locally, traders are awaiting Finance Minister Tito Mboweni’s medium-term budget statement. The …