Luxembourg approaching recession
Fitch and DBRS Morningstar maintained Luxembourg’s triple A rating in separate reports issued on Friday. The credit rating agencies say that while Luxembourg has necessary capacities to deal with the economic fall-out of the health pandemic, it faces a significant recession. Luxembourg’s recession should be milder than the European average and the economy will bounce back in 2021, the agencies forecast. More from the Luxembourg government.
CSSF issues fewer fines
Luxembourg’s financial services watchdog the CSSF in 2019 issued fines totalling €1.76m, three times less than the total for 2018 (€5.8m), Paperjam reports. Fines fell for banks while those levied on investment fund managers doubled.
Sunday infections uptick
54 people tested positive for covid-19 in Luxembourg on Sunday, according to the latest figures published by the health ministry. The weekend briefing included just three category updates: some 1,174 tests per 100,000 residents were carried out and the death toll remained at 124. Last week, parliament published the latest amendments to the country’s covid-19 law, which is to be extended until 31 December 2020.
Belarus protests continue
Tens of thousands of people protested in the Belarusian capital on Sunday, calling for the ouster of President Alexander Lukashenko. Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, the possible winner of the 9 August elections, fled to Lithuania while Pavel Latushko, a member of the opposition’s coordination council working on a peaceful transfer of power in Belarus, fled Poland for fear of being held in custody. More from Politico, Financial Times and New York Times.
Typhoon heads for South Korea
Hundreds of flights have been cancelled and people were evacuated as typhoon Haishen, a storm with winds of up to 144 km/hr was headed to Busan, South Korea’s second-largest city. The storm passed through Japan without causing major damage or casualties. More from Reuters, The Guardian and BBC news.
Birmingham stabbings
West Midlands police have released footage of the suspect responsible for a series of stabbings in four different locations over two hours in the city of Birmingham, UK, on Sunday morning. One 23-year-old man suffered fatal injuries while seven people were injured, of which two were in a critical condition. More from The Guardian, BBC news and Independent.
EU resident deportations imminent
A group of UK MPs has called on prime minister Boris Johnson for a legal “right to stay” for EU citizens resident in the UK. The open letter warns that his post-Brexit settled status scheme will leave many of the heroes and heroines of the coronavirus crisis facing deportation because of cracks in the project. More from the Independent. Johnson, meanwhile, has said he is ready to “accept and move on” if no EU deal is reached by October as his government prepares for a no Brexit trade deal. More from Politico.
Djokovic disqualified
Novak Djokovic, who was top seed at the US Open, was disqualified for hitting a judge in his fourth-round match. The 33-year-old was trailing 6-5 after losing a serve against Pablo Carrena Busta when he hit a ball behind him and struck the judge on the throat. More from the BBC, New York Times and office US Open site.
Agenda
8 September: Privacy Salon’s Pechakucha. 6:30pm.
9 September: Delano’s virtual live chat with covid-19 taskforce member and data scientist Lisa Veiber. 12 noon.
10 September: “Focus on payments” online conference. 2:30pm
10 September: 10X6 Next Generation, an online conference focused on 10 young talents from Luxembourg. 6pm.
10-12 September: Catch the BGT’s “David’s Redhaired Death”, starring Cindy Bloes and Lina Peller at Kinoler. 7:30pm.
Today’s breakfast briefing was written by Jess Bauldry