Satellite success, Lux. millionaires, David Arendt

The historic launch of the SES-10 satellite on 30 March by SpaceX’s Falcon 9 has been declared a success. It was the first time a satellite had been launched with a reusable rocket that returned from space to Earth. SES, based in Betzdorf, said that following “a battery of tests in orbit”, the satellite was “fully operational”. SES-10 will provide TV broadcast and mobile communications to Latin America and the Caribbean.
The boss of Alinéa bookshop has received an outpouring of support since announcing that he would shutter his doors at the end of August, after he failed to find a successor. The Saturday after the news broke, traffic in the shop “was like the Saturday before Christmas”, said Edmond Donnersbach. In addition to customers, he’s received support from the CSV and Déi Lénk parties. Donnersbach now says that he will consider keeping Alinéa open.
There are 34,100 millionaires in Luxembourg, 42% more than in 2006. That’s according to the “Wealth report” published by Knight Frank, a high end real estate agency in the UK. The firm projected that there would be 40,900 millionaires in the grand duchy in 2026.
Despite continued political risk, the global economic outlook has improved, said Philippe Ledent, senior economist at ING Belgium and Luxembourg. He cited the improved jobs market and household confidence rates in the US as a strong point. The bank economist also noted the slightly healthier growth rate in the euro zone. On the other hand, the current Brexit negotiations carry particular risk for Benelux firms, who are particularly exposed to the UK, and Ledent reckoned that the European Central Bank will keep interest rates at historic lows for quite some time.
David Arendt has joined The Directors’ Office. The former managing director of the Freeport will now work with the consultancy, which places independent board members and conducting officers on firm and investment fund boards.