May, 2020

• 31 May

  Airlines leave $29b aid fund untapped in bet on rebound

  

  Bloomberg US airlines have yet to tap $29 billion in federal pandemic relief loans as they wait to see whether the reopening of the economy revives demand and diminishes the need for money that comes with government strings attached. Although the four largest US passenger airlines have applied for the Treasury Department program, only American Airlines Group Inc has said ...

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• 31 May

  S Africa opens 4 airports for business travel

  

  Bloomberg South Africa permits air travel from four main airports from Monday as the nation eases lockdown measures put in place to curb the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. Limited domestic flights will be allowed for business purposes, and passengers must ask for authorisation based on their reason for travel, Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula said in a televised briefing. Flights ...

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• 31 May

  Air traffic not to recover for three years, says S&P

  Bloomberg The aviation industry’s recovery from the coronavirus outbreak will be long and slow, with passenger numbers likely to stay below pre-pandemic levels through 2023, according to S&P Global Ratings, which warned of more rating downgrades for airports over the next few months. Global air passenger numbers will drop as much as 55% this year, a far steeper slump than ...

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• 31 May

  The big stock bull case says Fed stimulus doesn’t go away

  

  Bloomberg How willing will the Federal Reserve be just to switch off all the stimulus it rolled out to safeguard markets from the coronavirus? The most plausible answer is “not very,” logic that forms the most aggressive bull case on equities. As anyone who has watched the rocky path to reopening cities and states, it’s hard to know when to ...

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• 31 May

  Middle East equity markets surge as economies reopen

  

  Bloomberg Middle Eastern equity markets mostly rose on Sunday as economies continued to open up from coronavirus lockdowns, with Saudi Arabia leading gains. The Tadawul All Shares Index climbed as much as 4.1%, before trimming gains to 1.7%. Gauges in Abu Dhabi, Egypt and Oman rose. Saudi Arabia began the second phase of easing its shutdown on Sunday by resuming ...

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• 31 May

  Bangladesh stocks rise by 1.3% as exchanges reopen

  Bloomberg Bangladesh’s benchmark equity index rose after stock markets opened following a two-month trading halt, as investors bet the government ending a nationwide lockdown will revive economic growth. The DSE Broad Index advanced 1.3% Dhaka on Sunday, rising to its highest level since March 12. Stocks last traded on March 25, marking the longest trading halt since 1976. Investors are ...

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• 30 May

  Oil faces demand uncertainty after record rebound from crash

  

  Bloomberg Oil posted its biggest monthly advance on record, just a few weeks after prices made a dramatic plunge below zero. Crude surged about 88% in May, with US futures rising above $35 a barrel for the first time since March, driven by massive supply curbs by producers across the world. Still, prices are well below levels at the start ...

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• 30 May

  UAE, Germany to enhance cooperation on all fronts

  

  ABU DHABI-BERLIN / WAM As part of ongoing efforts to elevate UAE-German ties, Dr Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of State and UAE’s Special Envoy to Germany, conducted a virtual visit to Berlin. During the virtual visit, Dr Sultan Al Jaber met with a number of German officials and parliamentarians, including Niels Annen, Minister of State at the German ...

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• 30 May

  China bank no longer considers fossil fuels ‘green’

  

  Bloomberg Fossil fuels are no longer considered “green” by China’s central bank. The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) plans to remove “clean utilisation of fossil fuel” projects from the list of programs that can be funded by green bonds, according to a draft plan. The bank has drawn the ire of environmentalists for allowing the sustainable financing tools to fund ...

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• 30 May

  Occidental cuts dividend over rising debt woes

  Bloomberg Occidental Petroleum Corp cut its quarterly dividend by 91% to the lowest since at least the 1970s amid the pandemic-driven collapse in energy demand that has strained the oil explorer’s ability to shoulder its debt. Occidental shareholders will receive a penny per share on July 15, the Houston-based company said in a statement. The move extends a cut announced ...

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