Markets down on covid-19 concerns
Global stock markets have slumped on fears of a second wave of the pandemic hitting and a sluggish economic outlook in the US. European shares were down by 4% and US shares closed 6% lower on Thursday, while Asian shares lost more than 2% on Friday morning. Sources: BBC, Bloomberg, CNN, Financial Times, Marketwatch and Seeking Alpha.
More than 1.5m fresh US jobless claims
An additional 1.54m Americans filed for unemployment benefits for the first time last week, bringing the cumulative total since mid-March to 44.2m. Sources: CNN, Financial Times, NPR and RTE.
Luxembourg economy to rebound next year: Statec
The national statistics bureau, Statec, forecast that Luxembourg’s economy will contract by 6% this year, followed by 7% growth in 2021. However, at the end of next year output is expected to be “3% below the forecast set out before the crisis hit.” There should be a net rise in the number of jobs and the public balance sheet was estimated to hit -6% of GDP at year-end. Source: Statec.
ESM to build new HQ
The European Stability Mechanism’s board of governors (who are Eurozone finance ministers) approved a plan to construct a new headquarters building in Luxembourg City. The offices should be completed by 2028. Sources: ESM and Pierre Gramegna on Twitter.
Domestic violence steady during crisis
The number of domestic violence cases handled by Luxembourg police rose by 14% in 2019. However, the number was more or less stable during the covid-19 lockdown from March to May 2020. Eight out of ten adult victims last year were women. Sources: Equality ministry and Paperjam.
Tornado donations distributed
Officials have distributed €915,000 from a charity fund to victims of last year’s tornado. The fund still has roughly €114,000 remaining. The tornado struck Käerjeng and Pétange communes on 9 August 2019, injuring 14 people, and caused an estimated €100m in damage. Sources: Committee press release and Paperjam.
Luxembourg coronavirus update
Only 3 of the 7,029 people tested for covid-19 in the 24 hours to Thursday afternoon were positive. There have been no virus-related deaths since 23 May. The Rt_eff reproduction rate rose slightly, from 0.77 on 10 June to 0.81 on 11 June. Source: Health ministry.
Biden tells Facebook to fact check political content
The US presidential candidate Joe Biden called on Facebook to crack down on false information ahead of this November’s election. Sources: CNBC, Financial Times, NPR and Politico.
US confirms cut to troops stationed in Germany
The outgoing US ambassador to Berlin said that Donald Trump will order the number of American troops in Germany be reduced by 9,500, leaving 25,000 posted in the country. Moscow welcomed the move. Sources: Associated Press, Euractiv, Financial Times and Reuters.
Lufthansa job cut warning
The German airline Lufthansa said it could make 22,000 full-time staff redundant (out of a total of 135,000 employees), despite agreeing to a €9bn state bailout. Sources: Associated Press, BBC, Deutsche Welle and RTE.
New HK police unit
Hong Kong police will set up a special unit to enforce the controversial national security law passed by Beijing for the semi-autonomous territory. Sources: The Guardian, South China Morning Post and Vice.
Zoom closes dissident account
The video conferencing service Zoom said it shut down the account of a prominent activist group after it hosted an event commemorating China’s Tiananmen Square crackdown. Sources: Axios, CNBC, Financial Times and South China Morning Post.
Playstation 5 preview
Sony unveiled its new Playstation 5 console and new game titles that will go on sale later this year. Sources: BBC, Bloomberg, CNBC and Cnet.
Agenda
Monday 15 June, 1pm-2:30pm: Nicolas Mackel of Luxembourg for Finance speaks during a City of London webinar on “the skills and talent crisis facing the European financial services sector.” Monday 15 June, 5pm: Luxembourg Private Equity and Venture Capital Association’s “10 years, 10 minutes” interview with Pierre-Antoine de Selancy of 17 Capital on GP liquidity solutions. Wednesday 17 June, 9am: British Chamber of Commerce’s “Leadership in times of crisis: the good, the bad and the ugly” online conference. Thursday 18 June, 9:30am-12:45pm: Paperjam Club online workshop on the “P-E-R-K system for employee engagement”. Thursday 18 June, 2pm-5:15pm: Paperjam Club’s “Demystifying portfolio management services” workshop.
Here are 5 science & technology stories you may have missed
Chemistry: Ars Technica looks inside tear gas canisters (article from 2011). Computer programming: Critics have called Imperial College London’s coronavirus simulation code (used by the UK government) “totally unreliable”, “a buggy mess” and “horrible”, but other scientists have reproduced its results, per Nature. Fauna: Sea creatures called giant larvaceans build “the equivalent of a complex five-story house” using their own mucus, per the Associated Press. Physics: Popular Mechanics explains what a bicycle would look like if it was travelling at warp speed. Public health: Scientific American reviews how to use and maintain facial masks, including tips on avoiding the foggy glasses problem.
Steaming ahead
A strange maritime incident, where five commercial ships in the South Atlantic were stuck sailing in circles on 31 May, was either caused by GPS jamming or changes in Earth’s magnetic field, per Sky News.
Today’s breakfast briefing was written by Aaron Grunwald