Aviation industry hits coronavirus turbulence
Airbus: The aircraft maker furloughed 6,000 staff in France and the UK, and slashed production. Its CEO said Airbus is “bleeding cash at an unprecedented speed” as airlines cancel orders and delay deliveries. Sources: BBC, CNN, Financial Times, Marketwatch, Reuters and the Telegraph. Boeing: The CEO of Boeing warned the company could cut jobs and probably would have to seek fresh financing soon, as the global aviation industry will take “years” to recover. Sources: CNBC, Financial Times, Marketwatch, NPR, Reuters and Seeking Alpha. Norwegian Air Shuttle: The budget airline said that most of the fleet would remain grounded until April 2021 and lobbied shareholders to accept a state-backed restructuring deal. Sources: Bloomberg, Financial Times and The Guardian. Air France-KLM: The Dutch and French governments will bailout the carrier with a reported €9bn-€11bn in loans and guarantees. Sources: BBC, CNBC and Euractiv.
Oil plunges again
US oil prices dropped sharply as storage capacity is quickly running out. The price briefly fell below $0 last week. Sources: CityAM, CNBC, Financial Times and Reuters.
Luckin faces fresh probe
Market regulators raided the office of Luckin Coffee, a Chinese rival of Starbucks, after the firm disclosed that it had faked sales figures. China’s securities regulator already started an investigation. Sources: BBC, Financial Times, Marketwatch, Reuters and South China Morning Post.
Alibaba exec demoted
The Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba demoted a top executive, Jiang Fan, following an internal inquiry into improper behavior surrounding an alleged extramarital affair. He had been seen as a future CEO of the firm. None of the allegations have been proved externally. Sources: Bloomberg, Financial Times, Reuters and the Telegraph.
Amazon extends shutdown of warehouses in France
The American e-commerce giant Amazon will keep its French distribution centres, in the middle of a legal battle over worker safety, closed until at least 5 May. Sources: AFP, DPA and Reuters.
EU rejects Chinese pressure allegations
The EU’s foreign policy chief has denied that an EU report on Chinese covid-19 disinformation was watered down following pressure from Beijing. China’s foreign ministry has refuted the claims. Sources: AFP, Euronews, The Guardian and Reuters. Background: Euractiv and Vox.
Berlin changes course on contact tracing
The government in privacy-sensitive Germany has made a U-turn on contact tracing software and now backs an app made by Apple and Google. Sources: Deutsche Welle, Euractiv, Financial Times, NPR and Reuters.
NZ eases virus restrictions
New Zealand has begun its lockdown exit after suppressing the country’s covid-19 outbreak. But PM Jacinda Ardern warned the country needed to remain vigilant. Sources: BBC, CNN, Euronews, Radio New Zealand and RTE.
US demonstrations
Thousands of Americans have been protesting coronavirus lockdowns, per the BBC and The Guardian. Meanwhile, American healthcare professionals are engaging in counter-protests in support of stay-at-home orders, such as those held in Arizona and Colorado (both per CNN). A lawyer in Florida has vowed to visit beaches dressed as the grim reaper, arguing that restrictions have been eased too soon, per Indy100.com and NBC News. An anti-lockdown protestor in Ohio has died after contracting covid-19, per Metro UK and NPR.
Agenda
Tuesday 28 April, 10am-10:45am: Luxinnovation’s “Locking down the right content” creative industry webinar. Tuesday 28 April, 11:30am-1pm: Luxembourg House of Startup’s “How to visualize strategy and translate into execution” webinar. Tuesday 28 April, 1:30pm-2:30pm: Paperjam Club’s “Marketing and communication in times of covid-19” webinar. Wednesday 29 April, 11:00am-12noon: British Chamber of Commerce’s “Your brain under quarantine: humans need connection not monitoring” webinar on teleworking. Thursday 30 April, 1:30pm-2:30pm: “Useful information” webinar for anyone planning to relocate to Luxembourg, organised by Luxrelo and the Indian Business Chamber of Luxembourg.
Sorry, another toilet paper story
A bakery in Helsinki has hired extra staff to keep up with demand for its latest creation: a loo roll cake. Details and pictures: Reuters and UPI. Video: South China Morning Post.
Today’s breakfast briefing was written by Aaron Grunwald