(Bloomberg) -- China said President Xi Jinping was invited to address the opening ceremony of the World Health Organization’s decision-making meeting, shortly after a senior U.S. official suggested Beijing sent airline passengers to spread the coronavirus worldwide.Japan’s economy sank into a recession, while Thailand’s economy contracted for the first time since 2014. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said a U.S. recovery could stretch through the end of next year and would depend on the delivery of a vaccine.Germany recorded a small increase in cases, though the daily death toll fell. Indonesia ruled out an immediate easing of social distancing rules as cases continued to spike.Key Developments:Virus Tracker: Cases top 4.7 million; deaths exceed 315,000Pandemic shatters world order, sowing anger and mistrustChina faces angry world seeking virus answers at key WHO meetingHow Germany’s relentless contact tracers helped beat virusItaly shops to reopen, but for many it’s too lateSubscribe to a daily update...
UK-based pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca (AZN) has revealed that it is hoping to make up to 30 million Covid-19 vaccine doses available by September for people in the UK, as part of an agreement to deliver 100 million doses in total.“Our scientists are at the forefront of vaccine development. This deal with AstraZeneca means that if the Oxford University vaccine works, people in the UK will get the first access to it, helping to protect thousands of lives” commented Business Secretary Alok Sharma.Oxford University has agreed a global licensing agreement with AstraZeneca for the commercialization and manufacturing of their potential recombinant adenovirus vaccine. Business Secretary Sharma also took the opportunity to announce that the project will benefit from £84 million of new government funding.“The agreement will deliver 100 million doses in total, ensuring that in addition to supporting our own people, we are able to make the vaccines available to developing countries...
Uber Technologies Inc.’s (UBER) latest stock offer for rival food delivery company GrubHub Inc. (GRUB) is said to have been rejected as merger talks continued over the weekend.The Wall Street Journal reported that talks between Grubhub Chief Executive Officer Matt Maloney and Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi on Sunday indicated that Uber’s latest offer of 1.9 of its shares for each GrubHub share is too low. Khosrowshahi said he might see room to bump up the offer to 1.925 Uber shares. However, that is still well below the price GrubHub had been seeking, the report said.Discussions are still ongoing with an agreement unlikely in the next few days, according to the report. Once an accord is struck, regulators would still need to approve the merger at a time when the coronavirus pandemic is creating a lot of uncertainty and operations are still disrupted.Shares in both Uber and GrubHub are advancing in Monday’s...
(Bloomberg) -- The top U.S. cannabis companies are notably outperforming their struggling Canadian counterparts, yet valuations are still held back by their inability to list on the big American exchanges.The divergence was well illustrated by two large companies that reported earnings Thursday night.Green Thumb Industries Inc. became the first U.S. pot company to generate revenue above $100 million and beat Ebitda expectations for the fifth consecutive quarter. Shares climbed 17% Friday. Meanwhile, Canada’s Aurora Cannabis Inc., which is struggling to turn a profit before it runs out of cash, said it is on track to meet previously disclosed cost-cutting targets. Shares skyrocketed 54%.“I think this is an inflection point where the U.S. market is becoming the dominant market in the global marijuana space,” said Mark Noble, executive vice president of strategy at Horizons ETFs Management Inc., which offers exchange-traded funds that track both the Canadian and U.S. pot sectors. “I think...
A strange tweet by Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) CEO Elon Musk, has given rise to speculation that he may be veering to the right of the political spectrum.What Happened Musk, who is known to be a prolific user of Twitter, took to the platform on Sunday to declare, "Take the red pill."The red pill may be a reference to the 1999 movie "The Matrix," in which the protagonist, Neo, is faced with the choice of taking either a red or a blue pill. However, the red pill may also be Musk's way of indicating his willingness to adopt right-wing political ideology, according to Business Insider. Musk is a self-described "moderate."Replying to Musk's tweet, Ivanka Trump exclaimed, "Taken!"Why It Matters Ivanka is not the only Trump who has been tweeting in support of Musk lately. Last week her father, President Donald Trump, expressed agreement with Musk's determination to open his then shuttered...
May.18 -- Ryanair Holdings Plc Chief Executive Officer Michael O’Leary says that support by German and French governments for their airline industries is "illegal" and will "distort the market." He made the comments after Europe's biggest low-cost carrier boosted its liquidity with a 600 million-pound ($726 million) loan backed by the U.K. government. He speaks on "Bloomberg Markets: European Open."...
(Bloomberg) -- Stocks climbed in Europe alongside U.S. equity futures on Monday as investors found reason for encouragement in signs businesses are reopening across major economies. Crude oil and commodity currencies rose.The Stoxx Europe 600 Index advanced at the open on gains in mining, energy and auto shares. Contracts on the S&P 500 climbed in the wake of news that California’s economy is now 75% open after restrictions for the coronavirus were eased. Apple Inc. said nearly 100 of its stores have reopened. Even so, the Federal Reserve has warned of potential asset-price declines if the pandemic worsens. Stock indexes in Japan, Hong Kong and South Korea all posted modest advances. Industrial metals climbed after China announced guidelines to revive large infrastructure projects.Gold traded at its the highest in seven years. The pound headed for a sixth session of declines after a Bank of England official said the central bank is...
