(Bloomberg) -- China was seen to drain liquidity from the banking system even as lenders come under pressure to handle higher demand for funds.The People’s Bank of China probably allowed 200 billion yuan ($28 billion) of its one-year lending facility to mature on Thursday, with no statement on the operation as of 11:38 a.m. local time. Analysts had expected the central bank to roll over at least some of the funds and cut the cost of the loans from the current rate of 2.95%. The PBOC typically releases a statement on MLF operations by 9:45 a.m.The central bank also refrained from injecting liquidity with short-term reverse repurchase agreements for a 30th straight day, according to a statement earlier Thursday.The PBOC may conduct an MLF operation on Friday so that the operations would take place on the 15th of each month, said Becky Liu, head of China macro strategy at Standard Chartered...
Fiat Chrysler (FCA) and PSA, which have entered into a binding merger agreement to create the world's fourth largest carmaker, said in a joint statement on Wednesday that the decision was due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. A 1.1 billion euro ($1.19 billion) ordinary dividend for both FCA and PSA was announced in December as part of the binding tie-up agreement between the two automakers. FCA and PSA said on Wednesday that preparations for their planned 50-50 merger were "advancing well", including with respect to antitrust and other regulatory filings....
Britain is in talks with Swiss drugmaker Roche Holding AG to buy an accurate COVID-19 antibody test, following the lead of the European Union and United States, which had already given preliminary approval to the tests. Mass antibody testing with millions of kits is being considered by many countries as a way to speed the reopening of economies devastated by the lockdowns and social distancing measures put in place to slow the spread of the new coronavirus. "This has the potential to be a game changer," Edward Argar, Britain's junior health minister said on Thursday....
Britain is in talks with Swiss drugmaker Roche Holding AG to buy an accurate COVID-19 antibody test, following the lead of the European Union and United States, which had already given preliminary approval to the tests. The novel coronavirus, which emerged in China, has propelled the world towards the sharpest recession in centuries with many people isolating at home as governments grapple with one of the biggest public health crises since the 1918 influenza epidemic. The British government said it was talking with Roche on rolling out its test after a Public Health England laboratory concluded on May 7 that it detected the exact antibodies prompted by the novel coronavirus....
