Bloomberg Businessweek - USA (2020-05-04)

5

○ ScandinavianairlineSASplans

tocut5,000jobs,almosthalfits

workforce.It’sthemostdramatic

reductionbya Europeancarrier

in thefaceofanimplodingtravel

market.Lufthansais consideringcourt

protectionasa lastresortshouldit

failtoreacha dealwiththeGerman

governmentabouta multibillion-

eurobailout,peoplefamiliarwiththe

situationsay.

○ FormerUBS

CEOMarcel

Ospel,the

drivingforce

behindthemerger

ofSwissBank

andUnionBank

ofSwitzerland

thatcreatedUBS

in 1997,diedof

cancerat70.

○ The U.K. real estate
market has seized up as
a result of the lockdown,
putting

£82b

($102 billion) of home
sales on hold, property
portal Zoopla said.

○Mongoliascrapped

plansforanIPOofstate-

ownedcoalminerErdenes

TavanTolgoi.Thecompany

hadsoughta listingas

earlyasthisyearin Hong

Kongthatcouldhave

raisedmorethan

$1b

accordingtopeople

familiarwiththeplan.

○ TripAdvisor plans to cut

900 jobs, or a quarter of

its total workforce. Those

who remain will be forced

to take a 20% salary cut.

Globally, the travel and

tourism sector could see

as many as 100 million jobs

lost to the virus, according

to the World Travel &

Tourism Council.

○ Bayersaidthenumber

ofplaintiffsclaiming

theRoundupweedkiller

causedtheircancerhas

risento52,500from

48,600in February.But

CEOWernerBaumann

wonbroadbackingfrom

shareholdersatthe

annualgeneralmeeting

onApril28,a yearafter

sufferinga humiliating

voteofnoconfidence

frominvestors.

○ Thefate of

NorthKorean

dictator

Kim Jong Un

remains

shroudedin

mystery.

The U.S. reports unemployment data for April on May 8.

With the economy in lockdown for much of the period,

the jobless rate has surged from its half-century low, and

some gloomy forecasts see it reaching 30% this quarter.

LockedOutofWork

AGENDA

 The Bank of England

sets interest rates

on May 7. The U.K.’s

nationwide shutdown

could be lifted later in

the month, at which point

the economy can start

its struggle to revive.

 Nomura releases

earnings on May 8. New

CEO Kentaro Okuda

managed a turnaround

in the first quarter, but

the pandemic will make

further progress much

harder now.

 Rio Tinto holds its

annual general meeting

in Brisbane on May 7.

Mining companies

have been hit by site

closures, demand

squeezes, and a rush to

relocate workers.

 On May 5, German

Chancellor Angela

Merkel hosts a summit

for the car industry to

find ways to reignite one

of the country’s most

important industries.

 When Lyft reports

first-quarter results

on May 6, it will detail

actions to shore up its

financial position and cut

costs while supporting

riders and drivers.

 German online meal-

kit company HelloFresh

reports earnings on

May 5. With restaurants

closed and everyone

stuck at home, business

is booming, and the

stock has hit a record.

His absence from the public eye and
reports of complications from surgery
have fueled speculation that he’s ill or
even dead. President Trump failed to
dispel the rumors by revealing that he
knows how Kim is doing but can’t say
more publicly.  

 IN BRIEF Bloomberg Businessweek May 4, 2020

○ Gilead said results

from a trial showed

its experimental drug

remdesivir helped patients

recover more quickly

than standard care from

Covid-19. Anthony Fauci,

the U.S. government’s top

infectious disease expert,

called the outcome “quite

good news.”