(Bloomberg) — U.S. President Donald Trump sets off on a road trip on Thursday intended to underscore his commitment to reopening the nation as soon as possible. Meanwhile, a second wave of cases in America is raising alarm after new infections pushed the overall count past 2 million.In Britain, Prime Minister Boris Johnson is battling to contain a public split with his own top scientific advisers, after they warned the government must learn from the catalog of failures it made during the coronavirus crisis.Stocks tumbled as the Federal Reserve indicated the pandemic could inflict lasting damage. Job losses mounted, with London’s Heathrow airport starting permanent cuts. U.K.-listed Centrica and Johnson Matthey also unveiled plans to reduce their workforce.Key Developments:Virus Tracker: Cases pass 7.3 million; deaths exceed 416,000Trump’s slipping polls make GOP holding Senate more dauntingProtester in Australia tests positive after attending rallyDisney to reopen California Disneyland in July; Coachella canceledLife and death on the Zaandam, Holland America’s pariah shipSubscribe to a daily update on the virus from Bloomberg’s Prognosis team here. Click VRUS on the terminal for news and data on the coronavirus. For a look back at this week’s top stories from QuickTake, click here.Canada’s Recovery Lags U.S. (6 a.m. NY)The worst may be over for Canada’s economy, but the nation’s more cautious approach to reopening means a slower rebound than in the U.S.Real-time data such as online job postings, restaurant bookings and mobility tracking show economic green shoots in Canada after nearly three months of Covid-19 restrictions. However, the data also suggest its economy is “about two to three weeks behind” its largest trading partner, said Frances Donald, chief economist at Manulife Investment Management Ltd.South African Mining Output Drops Most in 39 Years (5:50 p.m. HK)South African mining output dropped the most since at least 1981 in April, when the first full month of restrictions to curb the spread of the coronavirus pandemic brought almost all economic activity to a halt. Total production decreased 47.3% from a year earlier, compared with an 18% decrease in March.Indonesia’s Coronavirus Death Toll Hits 2,000 (5:45 p.m. HK)The death toll from the pandemic in Indonesia reached 2,000 as a surge in infections across the archipelago saw fatalities more than double in the past month. The country reported 41 deaths in the past 24 hours, the most since June 7, and new cases rose by 979 to 35,295.Indonesia’s fatalities are the highest in Southeast Asia and the total number of infections now only trails Singapore in the region, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.Finland to Ease Travel Restrictions (5:30 p.m. HK)Finland is eliminating border controls and quarantine requirements with Baltic and Nordic countries excluding Sweden starting June 15, Interior Minister Maria Ohisalo said. Necessary travel, such as for work, is allowed from the European Union’s Schengen area. The Russian border remains mostly shut until at least July 14.Germany Heading for 9.4% Contraction (5 p.m. HK)Germany’s economy is heading for a contraction of almost 10% this year due to the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic and will recover only gradually from its worst recession since World War II, according to one of the nation’s leading research institutes.Gross domestic product will likely shrink by 9.4% in 2020, before expanding by 3% next year, the Berlin-based DIW institute predicted Thursday in its latest forecasts for Europe’s largest economy. The projection for this year compares with the Bundesbank’s -7.1% and the OECD’s -6.6%.Beijing Reports One Confirmed Case (4:50 p.m. HK)The new case, a 52-year old Beijing resident, was reported in Xicheng district of the capital city, local officials said at a briefing. The source of the infection is unknown. Beijing hasn’t reported new local coronavirus cases for consecutive 55 days as of June 9, according to the municipal health commission, and further lowered its virus emergency response level on June 6.Baidu Lashes Out Against Harvard Study for Data Use (4:45 p.m. HK)Chinese search-engine provider Baidu Inc. lambasted a report from Harvard that suggested the novel coronavirus could have been circulating in China as early as summer last year, saying the study’s use of its database was “far-fetched and imprecise.”The study by Boston and Harvard universities drew a conclusion that the virus could have spread in China earlier than estimated, based on analysis of satellite images of hospital parking lots and internet search terms on Baidu.The Chinese tech giant’s response comes amid a global blame game over the virus’ origin and escalating tension between China and the U.S. “In fact, the search volume of term ‘cough’ in Wuhan area matches with the flu season every year,” Baidu said in a post on Weibo. “Meanwhile, the search volume of ‘diarrhea’ is slightly down in December.”Italian April Industrial Production Plunges (4:16 p.m. HK)Italian industrial production fell sharply in April as the country continued to suffer from a near total lockdown put in place to counter the pandemic. Production fell 19.1% in April from the previous month, national statistics bureau Istat said. Intermediate goods production declined 24.6%, weighing the most on the overall figure. Textiles fell 41.4%. Production had fallen almost 30% in March.Tokyo Plans to Lift All Business Restrictions June 19 (4 p.m. HK)The Tokyo Metropolitan Government is planning to lift all business restrictions on June 19, Nikkei reported, without attribution. The government will allow restaurants and Japanese-style izakaya bars to stay open without opening hour restrictions, but will continue to limit the number of visitors for certain events.Russia Passes 500,000 Covid-19 Cases (3:47 p.m. HK)Russia reported 8,779 new confirmed coronavirus infections in past day, a 1.8% rise, taking the total in the country to 502,436, according to data from the government’s virus response center. The net increase in daily cases stayed below 2%.Total fatalities rose to 6,532 after 174 more people died.U.K. Job Losses Mount (3:30 p.m. HK)London Heathrow airport said it has begun cutting front-line jobs after a recovery in passenger numbers was delayed by Britain’s introduction of a quarantine rule for incoming passengers. Europe’s busiest airport has begun to restructure after agreeing to a voluntary severance plan with unions and has already eliminated a third of management posts. Heathrow’s May passenger traffic was down 97% from year-ago levels as the coronavirus lockdown grounded flights across most of the world.Centrica Plc said it will cut 5,000 jobs before the end of the year in order to meet its cost reduction targets as the uncertainty of the pandemic accelerated losses. Johnson Matthey Plc, the world’s largest maker of diesel-engine catalysts, plans to cut about 2,500 jobs in a further sign of the damage being caused to suppliers by the virus-led slump.Oil Trader Trafigura Thrives (3 p.m. HK)Trafigura Group reported a 27% gain in half-year net income as the commodities trading giant benefited from supply and demand disruptions created by the pandemic.The results, for the six months to March 31, offer a glimpse into how some of the biggest traders of raw materials are faring during the public health crisis that caused prices from copper to diesel to plummet. While bigger rival Vitol Group’s earnings suffered, Trafigura made the most of the price fluctuations.“This disruption in market conditions creates volatility on which Trafigura managed to thrive,” Chief Financial Officer Christophe Salmon said.German Infection Rate Drops (1:26 p.m. HK)Germany recorded the fewest new coronavirus cases since the end of February as its infection rate fell back below the key threshold of 1.0.There were 16 new cases in the 24 hours through Thursday morning, bringing the total to 186,522 according to data from Johns Hopkins University. That compares with 397 the previous day and almost 7,000 at the peak of the pandemic in late March.Pakistan’s Opposition Leader Tests Positive (1:15 p.m. HK)Pakistan’s opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif has quarantined himself at home after testing positive for the coronavirus, raising concerns about his health as he is a cancer survivor, his party leader said.Sharif, 68, took many tests since he was having symptoms of the virus, said Marriyum Aurangzeb, a spokesperson for Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz party, on Geo television. He has been receiving medical treatment for cancer, she said.Pakistan has seen a spike in infections since Prime Minister Imran Khan eased the lockdown in the second week of May. The science and technology minister Fawad Chaudhry has said about one third of lawmakers are infected or are suspected to have contracted the virus as the lawmakers are meeting in Parliament for a budget meeting session in Islamabad.U.S. Coronavirus Cases Top 2 Million (11:40 a.m. HK)Coronavirus infections in the U.S. topped 2 million with almost 113,000 deaths in the country, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The number of U.S. cases is more than double those reported for Brazil, the country with the second highest number of infections, according to the data.Localized surges have raised concerns among experts of a new wave of cases as many states ease social distancing restrictions. A month into its reopening, Florida this week reported 8,553 new cases — the most of any seven-day period.Black Lives Matter Rally Protester Tests Positive (9:46 a.m. HK)A protester who attended a Black Lives Matter rally in Melbourne last weekend has tested positive for the coronavirus, the Victoria state government said.The person may have been infectious while attending the June 6 march and authorities are undertaking contact tracing, according to an emailed statement. The man was wearing a mask during the protest and wasn’t showing symptoms at the time, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported. The rally attracted an estimated 10,000 who protested against racism and for additional protections for Indigenous Australians.Health officials and leaders in Australia, the U.S. and U.K. have warned that mass gatherings in the streets in support of racial equality risk inadvertently re-sparking the virus.Coachella Music Festival Canceled for 2020 (9:14 a.m. HK)The Coachella and Stagecoach music festivals have been canceled for 2020 after California’s Riverside County, where the event takes place, cited concerns about a resurgence of infections.Coachella was originally scheduled for April before being postponed to October. The festival attracts hundreds of thousands of attendees from around the world, which would make it “would make it infeasible, if not impossible, to track those who may be placed at risk,” Riverside Public Health Office Cameron Kaiser said in an order on the county’s website.Japan to Cap Visitors When Border Reopens (7:53 a.m. HK)The government is considering capping the number of people allowed into Japan when it reopens its borders for business travel this summer, Yomiuri reported without attribution. Arrivals could be limited to 200 to 250 a day from Australia, New Zealand, Vietnam and Thailand with plans to establish screening measures for Japanese national traveling abroad, Yomiuri said.Disney Aims to Open California Disneyland in July (6:20 a.m. HK)Walt Disney Co. said it proposed plans for a phased reopening of its Disneyland Resort in southern California in July.Pending state and local government approvals, the Disneyland and California Adventure theme parks would reopen on July 17. The Grand Californian and Paradise Pier hotels would open on July 23. Disney said it will manage attendance through a new system that will require all guests to obtain a reservation in advance.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
