March, 2020

• 24 March

  Plunge in pollution cost is hindering a key green ambition

  

  Bloomberg The world’s biggest carbon market is joining the long list of victims of the economic fallout from the coronavirus. The price of certificates allowing companies to emit carbon dioxide in the European Union (EU) has crashed by 40% so far this year, including two drops of more than 10% in the past week. That has erased two years of ...

  Read More »
• 24 March

  US solar workforce could be halved by virus

  

  Bloomberg The leading US solar-trade group warns fallout from the coronavirus could slash the industry’s workforce in half. The Solar Energy Industries Association made the projection on March 23 as part of a campaign to convince Congress to make the federal tax credit for the sector refundable or payable directly to businesses and customers. “As the stock market tanks, tax-equity ...

  Read More »
• 24 March

  Working from home to drive up electricity bills

  

  Bloomberg Household electricity bills are set to soar, thanks to the millions of people now working at home to avoid catching the coronavirus. Running laptops and other home appliances will cost consumers an extra 52 million pounds ($60 million) each week in the UK, according to a study from Uswitch, a website that helps consumers compare the energy prices that ...

  Read More »
• 24 March

  Coronavirus is pushing door-to-door solar salesmen online

  

  Bloomberg The novel coronavirus pandemic is testing the residential-solar sector, which had forecast strong growth this year but hasn’t faced a recession since it reached the American mainstream. Its key challenges are similar to those facing many other industries: how to close sales, complete installations, and convince homeowners to add solar panels during a period of unexpected and mounting economic ...

  Read More »
• 24 March

  US to let nuclear plants defer repair works

  Bloomberg US regulators are willing to let nuclear power plants defer some maintenance and inspections as the coronavirus threatens availability of workers. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) expects to issue guidelines for operators to request permission for employees to work longer than allowed under current regulations. The agency expects to add additional sections covering maintenance as soon as possible, a ...

  Read More »
• 24 March

  US stock futures hit limit up while dollar declines

  

  Bloomberg US index futures and European stocks rallied alongside Asian shares on Tuesday as investors rediscovered some appetite for risk after global equities hit their lowest level since 2016. The dollar slumped following a 10-day winning streak, and Treasuries slipped. Contracts on the S&P 500, Nasdaq 100 and Dow Jones Industrial Average all jumped more than 5% to hit their ...

  Read More »
• 24 March

  India stocks rebound after worst day as volatility hits record

  

  Bloomberg Indian stocks rebounded in a volatile session, following a record fall on March 23 triggered by a nationwide lockdown. The S&P BSE Sensex Index closed up 2.7% at 26,674.03, after advancing as much as 5.7%, with the NSE Nifty 50 Index rising 2.5% for the day. Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s speech in the last hour of trading failed to ...

  Read More »
• 24 March

  BOE’s $231b of QE to come quicker than advertised

  

  Bloomberg The Bank of England’s (BOE) new 200 billion pounds ($231 billion) of bond purchases has the potential to hit the market at a faster pace than currently advertised. With rates near zero already, increasing the speed of purchases is one lever policy makers could pull if they want to boost the impact of the current package of measures, without ...

  Read More »
• 24 March

  Japanese banks tap Fed for over $150b in just one week

  

  Bloomberg Japanese banks took almost $90 billion of cheap-dollar funding through the Federal Reserve’s enlarged swap lines on Tuesday, with total borrowings surpassing the record seen during the global financial crisis. Including earlier operations on March 17 and 23, the lenders have gobbled up more than $150 billion of dollars, exceeding the amount seen in other nations with the revamped ...

  Read More »
• 24 March

  Philippines cuts reserve ratio by 200 bps

  

  Bloomberg The Philippine central bank is infusing more funds into the economy, slashing big lenders’ reserve requirement ratio (RRR) by 2 percentage points and flagging more cuts to come. “The reduction is intended to calm the financial markets and encourage banks to continue lending to both the retail and corporate sectors,” Governor Benjamin Diokno said in a mobile phone message ...

  Read More »