Gilead Sciences (GILD) has announced that its remdesivir drug has received emergency FDA approval for the treatment of severe cases of Covid-19.“It is reasonable to believe that the known and potential benefits of RDV outweigh the known and potential risks of the drug for the treatment of patients hospitalized with severe COVID-19” the FDA wrote in its approval letter to Gilead.The decision was based on review of the topline data from the randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial conducted by The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and from the Gilead-sponsored open-label trial that evaluated different durations of remdesivir.Following the news, RBC Capital analyst Brian Abrahams commented that the approval was ‘unsurprising given [the drug’s] statistically significant benefit on shortening time to recovery in a large, controlled, government-sponsored study and strong trends on mortality.’He notes that the FDA letter indicates that remdesivir should be directed towards "severe" hospitalized COVID-19 pts with...
Apple (AAPL) has reported solid earnings results for its fiscal second quarter with Q2 GAAP EPS of $2.55 beating consensus expectations by $0.29. Revenue of $58.31B came in marginally higher year-over-year, smashing the Street’s forecast by $3.67B. International sales accounted for 62% of the quarter’s revenue.Crucially, AAPL also reported that its install base of active users reached an all-time high in all geographic segments as well as all major product categories. “Despite COVID-19’s unprecedented global impact, we’re proud to report that Apple grew for the quarter, driven by an all-time record in Services and a quarterly record for Wearables,” commented Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO.Apple also revealed that it generated operating cash flow of $13.3 billion during the quarter, up $2.2 billion over a year ago. In a further encouraging sign, the board of directors boosted the dividend 6% to $0.82 per share and authorized an increase of $50 billion to the existing...
(Bloomberg) -- Even a calamity of disease, death and economic destruction afflicting the world all at once isn’t enough to suppress the notion in some quarters that inflation could return with a vengeance.The coronavirus crisis has killed hundreds of thousands, incapacitated millions and affected the livelihoods of billions -- prompting policy makers to fear a deflation spiral reminiscent of the Great Depression. But economists including former Bank of England official Charles Goodhart, and investors such as BNP Paribas Asset Management, are asking if a different phenomenon lurks in the wreckage of global growth.Such contrarians wonder if an environment of ultra-loose monetary and fiscal easing, commodity shortages, frayed supply chains and braking globalization might be fertile ground for surging consumer prices. Reinforcing that shift, monetary authorities could face pressure to keep interest rates low, capping the cost of servicing ballooned government debt while allowing inflation to erode it too.Even some traditionally deflation-wary...
(Bloomberg) -- Elena, a 42 year-old Moscow shop assistant, has a family to feed, a mortgage to pay, and half the income she was receiving a month ago. She can’t apply for support because she hasn’t lost her job, but Russia’s labor laws make it almost impossible for her employer to make her redundant.It’s a Catch-22 situation that’s becoming commonplace in households across Russia as the near total economic shutdown due to the coronavirus takes its toll. President Vladimir Putin prides himself in overseeing one of the lowest unemployment rates in the world, but the pandemic is showing the downside of a system that restricts flexibility.The situation is exacerbating poverty at time when Putin badly needs a popularity boost following five years of stagnation and falling incomes. His approval rating has fallen to the lowest since 2014 and scattered protests have broken out in some parts of Russia over the fallout...
(Bloomberg) -- Even a calamity of disease, death and economic destruction afflicting the world all at once isn’t enough to suppress the notion in some quarters that inflation could return with a vengeance.The coronavirus crisis has killed hundreds of thousands, incapacitated millions and affected the livelihoods of billions -- prompting policy makers to fear a deflation spiral reminiscent of the Great Depression. But economists including former Bank of England official Charles Goodhart, and investors such as BNP Paribas Asset Management, are asking if a different phenomenon lurks in the wreckage of global growth.Such contrarians wonder if an environment of ultra-loose monetary and fiscal easing, commodity shortages, frayed supply chains and braking globalization might be fertile ground for surging consumer prices. Reinforcing that shift, monetary authorities could face pressure to keep interest rates low, capping the cost of servicing ballooned government debt while allowing inflation to erode it too.Even some traditionally deflation-wary...
Governments, businesses and individuals are seeking such blood tests, to help them learn more about who may have had the disease, who may have some immunity and to potentially craft strategies to end lockdowns that have battered global economies. Roche had previously pledged to make its antibody test available by early May and to boost production by June to "high double-digit millions" per month. The Basel-based company, which also makes separate molecular tests to identify people with active COVID-19 infections, said its antibody test, Elecsys Anti-SARS-CoV-2, has a specificity rate of about 99.8% and sensitivity rate of 100%....
(Bloomberg) -- U.S. daily coronavirus cases rose faster than the one-week average, with New York adding another 4,663 cases and Texas reporting its biggest one-day rise. New York City’s mayor reiterated a call for federal financial aid as the state’s governor said new deaths were higher.U.K. fatalities neared the toll for Italy, which reported a jump that kept its tally the highest in Europe.Warren Buffett said Berkshire Hathaway has sold its entire stake in four major airlines as a result of the economic fallout from the virus. The Philippines halted all commercial flights starting Sunday.Australia continued to relax curbs, with Sydney resuming property auctions, while Saudi Arabia warned of “painful” measures and budget cuts because of the effects of the virus and the slump in oil prices.Key DevelopmentsVirus Tracker: global cases top 3.4 million; deaths 243,000Covid exit strategy needs a worldwide vaccineSingapore to ease limits on some businesses, schoolsOne U.K. shopkeeper...
