April, 2020

• 6 April

  Japan’s Abe unveils record $989bn stimulus package

  

  Bloomberg Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced a 108 trillion yen ($989 billion) stimulus package, Japan’s largest ever, to rescue the coronavirus-hit economy with Tokyo and six other economic hubs set to be put in a state of emergency. The package, equivalent to about 20% of the nation’s economic output, will include cash handouts worth 6 trillion yen for households and …

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• 6 April

  EU to boost tariffs on US goods in metal-trade row

  

  Bloomberg The European Union (EU) plans to impose tariffs on lighters, plastic fittings from the US in retaliation over controversial American duties on imported steel and aluminum, according to EU officials. The EU intends to apply a 20% tariff on lighters and a 7% levy on plastic fittings for furniture in response to a US decision in February widening the …

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• 6 April

  Oil pares losses as investors see chance of price-war truce

  

  Bloomberg Oil pared losses amid signs that Saudi Arabia and Russia are making progress towards an agreement to curb crude output as the coronavirus wreaks havoc on the global economy. Futures fell 3.3% in New York, having earlier plunged 11%. Large oil-producing nations are racing to negotiate a deal to stem the price crash, but hurdles remain. A meeting of …

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• 6 April

  Coronavirus may hit diesel next after gasoline, jet fuel

  

  Bloomberg The world over, one mainstream fuel — diesel — has managed to remain a decent profit centre for the oil refining industry at large as the novel coronavirus ravages economies and their wider demand for petroleum products. Diesel has risen in value relative to crude in recent weeks due to a combination of continued industrial usage and purchasing of …

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• 6 April

  Money manager adopts climate measures

  

  Bloomberg Harris Associates, a multibillion-dollar asset manager that has touted responsible investing, agreed to enact a series of investor-driven measures after it was disclosed that one of its top managers helped fund groups that question the consensus on climate change. Brunel Pension Partnership, one of Britain’s largest retirement pools, said it looked into Harris’s investment practices following a report by …

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• 6 April

  ‘Emptying skies to cut airline emissions 38%’

  Bloomberg Airlines’ carbon emissions could drop by more than one-third this year as travel demand sinks, a trend that could continue as businesses reassess their need to fly, according to the Australia Institute. The industry’s carbon-dioxide emissions between February 1 and March 19 fell by more than 10 million tons from the same period a year ago as airlines scrapped …

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• 6 April

  Donald Trump says he doesn’t expect tariffs on oil imports

  

  Bloomberg President Donald Trump said he doesn’t think he’ll have to impose tariffs on imported oil to blunt the impact of a price war between Russia and Saudi Arabia, but held out the option to protect US oil producers. “I would use tariffs if I have to,” he said at a White House news conference, restating his position from an …

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• 6 April

  Covid-19: Solar industry sees demand plummeting

  

  Bloomberg When the coronavirus hit China late last year, America’s solar industry immediately started worrying about manufacturing. Asia is the main source of panels and other equipment, and with residential installers anticipating a bumper year, a bottleneck in the supply chain could be a major hindrance. Turns out the industry’s biggest 2020 quandary is very different: dwindling demand. Many homeowners …

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• 6 April

  Stocks jump with US futures on easing coronavirus toll

  

  Bloomberg Stocks jumped in Europe and Asia alongside US equity futures after the reported death tolls in some of the world’s coronavirus hot spots showed signs of easing over the weekend. The dollar strengthened and Treasuries fell. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index opened solidly higher after Italy said it had the fewest deaths in more than two weeks, while France …

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• 6 April

  Asian stock markets still in bear country, says Goldman Sachs

  

  Bloomberg Asia stocks are not out of the woods yet, despite the recent bear-market rally, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Investors who may be getting optimistic that markets across the region have bottomed should resist that notion, strategists led by Timothy Moe said in a note on Monday. The MSCI Asia Pacific ex-Japan Index has rebounded some 12% since …

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