European stocks more broadly might not have enjoyed quite as buoyant a comeback as U.S. markets, but investors say there are unique characteristics which make a compelling investment case for the region in the recovery from the coronavirus crisis.
As recently as Friday, France paid investors negative yields on 10- year debt, alongside peers such as the Netherlands and Germany, which are widely seen as some of the strongest credits in the world. "France is considered a safe asset under other circumstances, but this is now a story about public finances- and that's a weak point for France," said an official at a bank...
As recently as Friday, France paid investors negative yields on 10- year debt, alongside peers such as the Netherlands and Germany, which are widely seen as some of the strongest credits in the world. "France is considered a safe asset under other circumstances, but this is now a story about public finances- and that's a weak point for France," said an official at a bank...
Worker representatives in Italy, France, Belgium, Spain and Germany have demanded stricter controls on hygiene, disinfection and isolation for employees working heel-to-heel on Europe's production lines. Italy has been the European country worst hit by the crisis and the first to enforce a nationwide lockdown, which has now been replicated by Spain and to a...
LONDON, March 16- Brent and U.S. crude fell below $30 on Monday as emergency rate cuts by the U.S. Brent crude was down $4.03, or almost 12%, to $29.82 a barrel by 1339 GMT. To combat the economic fallout of the pandemic, the Fed on Sunday slashed its key rate to near zero, triggering an unscheduled rate cut by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand to a record low as markets in Asia...
Worker representatives in Italy, France, Belgium and Germany have demanded stricter controls on hygiene, disinfection and isolation for employees working heel-to-heel on Europe's production lines. Italy has been the European country worst hit by the crisis and the first to enforce a nationwide lockdown, which has now been replicated by Spain and to a lesser...
*Italy worst hit, Portugal, Spain also impacted. *Plants in Italy, Serbia, Poland affected. Italy has been the European country worst hit by the crisis and the first to enforce a nationwide lockdown, which has now been replicated by Spain and to a lesser extent France as the virus sweeps through the continent.
LONDON/ PARIS, March 16- Airlines made unprecedented cuts to flights, costs and staffing on Monday, stepping up calls for emergency aid as coronavirus lockdowns and new travel restrictions hit more major routes. The outlook darkened further after Spain declared a state of emergency and the United States extended travel curbs to Britain and Ireland, while...
BERLIN, March 16- A German supermarket chain called on Monday for students whose universities have shut due to the coronavirus crisis to help it refill its shelves after shoppers stockpiled many essential goods, known as "hamstering" in German. Germany's second-biggest supermarket group REWE said on Monday anybody who wanted to work in its stores could apply...
*ESM has lending capacity of 410 billion euros. BRUSSELS, March 16- Euro zone finance ministers will discuss on Monday the possible use of an EU emergency fund worth more than 400 billion euros to tackle the economic crisis caused by the coronavirus outbreak, officials said. But the ESM could help boost confidence, one euro zone official told Reuters, adding that...
ALMATY, March 16- The Kazakh tenge dropped 6.6% against the dollar in the interbank market on Monday after the central bank said it would stick to a free float regime following a sharp fall in the price of oil, the country's main export. On the Kazakh Stock Exchange, the tenge's decline briefly reached 7.6%, and trading went into the Frankfurt auction mode, which...
*Metals fare better than other markets on China hopes. That's mainly because around half of metals demand comes from China, where new virus cases have fallen sharply and the government is expected to roll out major stimulus spending. "Despite the very, very negative numbers for China over the weekend in terms of industrial production and fixed asset investment, I...
SINGAPORE, March 16- China's state oil company Sinochem Corp is rejecting any crude cargo "from or related to" Russia's state oil major Rosneft before U.S. sanctions on a Rosneft unit take effect in May, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters. In February, Washington ramped up pressure on Venezuela, by sanctioning Rosneft Trading SA, the Geneva-...
FRANKFURT, March 16- The southwestern German state of Baden-Wuerttemberg will halt air travel in coming days due to the spread of the coronavirus, a spokesman said on Monday. The government is looking into exceptions for air freight, he added. Baden-Wuerttemberg, home to some of Germany's largest companies, is among the hardest-hit German states and is home to...
VIENNA, March 16- The European Central Bank will intervene in government bond markets if needed, ECB policymaker Robert Holzmann said on Monday, as Governing Council members seek to reassure markets it will act to help countries tackle the impact of coronavirus. The ECB has been engaged in a concerted rearguard action since President Christine Lagarde upset...
PARIS, March 16- France's ADP on Monday warned that coronavirus could knock 190 million euros off its core profit as it announced steps to help airlines and closures at some of its airports. It said assuming there was a 25% drop in traffic at its Paris hubs between March and June, and falls at other airports in which it has stakes including in Turkey, the hit to EBITDA...
Japan and New Zealand followed the Fed with sweeping emergency cuts in interest rates and offers of cheap dollars. "Market reactions to each surprise monetary policy easing have been sell first and ask questions later," said Selena Ling, head of treasury research and strategy at OCBC Bank in Singapore. Berlin is trying to stop Washington from persuading German...
*Fosun takes marketing rights for China. FRANKFURT, March 16- BioNTech struck a collaboration deal with Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical over the German biotech firm's rights in China to an experimental coronavirus vaccine, the latest gambit in a global race to halt the pandemic. Mainz-based BioNTech, founded in 2008 and listed on the Nasdaq exchange in October...
*'Once-in-500-year' floods, fires now more frequent. SYDNEY/ LONDON, March 16- Only a year after losing their homes to floods in parts of Australia's north eastern coast of Queensland, people are moving into new houses built on or near the same plots. But while banks have been only too willing to offer them long-term loans at rates in line with the national average,...
PARIS, March 16- French airports group ADP said on Monday that it would be considering closing down some areas in its main Paris airports to deal with the coronavirus outbreak, and added it was expecting a major financial hit due to the virus. ADP said it would consider closing down some boarding areas at Paris' Charles de Gaulle and Orly airports, as well as a...
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