FT News Briefing

Disney estimates that the coronavirus crisis wiped as much as $1.4bn from its quarterly operating profit, while Beyond Meat gears up for the price of its plant-based burgers to compete directly with real beef at the supermarket, and Germany’s constitutional court has called on the European Central Bank to justify its bond-buying programme. Plus, the FT’s global business columnist, Rana Foroohar, a...

The aviation industry took another hit from the coronavirus crisis on Monday as GE cut 10,000 aerospace jobs, and Argentina debt holders doubled down on their opposition to the government’s plan to restructure its debt. Plus, as the coronavirus pandemic rages on, advertising costs are being cut from many corporate budgets. The FT’s Tim Bradshaw explains why Silicon Valley is surviving the ad crash...

US and European banks are on track to book more than $50bn of charges on souring loans in the first quarter. Plus, the FT’s Eric Platt reports on Berkshire Hathaway’s annual general meeting, where Warren Buffett was the star of the show, and the FT’s deputy editor, Patrick Jenkins, explains how BlackRock’s small consultancy division came to have a growing influence on a number of governments.&nbsp...

Amazon has warned that coronavirus measures could cost at least $4bn in the next quarter and wipe out any gain from a jump in sales during the pandemic, and Boeing has tapped the bond market for $25bn to help weather a cash drain this year. Plus, the FT’s Judith Evans reports on a crisis building in the UK fruit farming industry.  To get free access to the FT’s Coronavirus Business Update new...

The Federal Reserve has warned of lasting “medium-term” economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic. The FT’s James Politi unpacks the central bank’s outlook. Plus, the White House praised Gilead’s remdesivir as a coronavirus treatment drug after the release of the findings from a new study, and Microsoft posted strong results in the latest quarter thanks to a jump in its cloud-related business...

Google’s internet search business stabilised in April after a sharp downturn at the end of last month, Fitch has downgraded Italy’s credit rating to a single notch above junk, and US President Donald Trump orders meat-processing plants to remain open in the wake of coronavirus-related closures. Plus, the FT’s economics correspondent, Delphine Strauss, explains why statisticians  are having su...

US oil prices fell sharply on Monday after the world’s largest oil-backed exchange traded fund began offloading all of its short-term contracts, and investors in European banks are braced for significant loan-loss provisions as the sector reports quarterly earnings this week. Plus, the FT’s John Reed will explain why the Philippines’ coronavirus lockdown is causing pain for the country’s vast outs...

An FT analysis found that the death toll from coronavirus may be almost 60 per cent higher than reported in official counts, and analysts are scrambling for explanations on the divergence between the flying stock market and the grim global economic picture. Plus, the FT’s Berlin bureau chief, Guy Chazan, explains how Berlin is fairing since the city’s shops reopened last week.  To get free ac...

Germany is prepared to make a substantial financial contribution to help relaunch eurozone economies after the coronavirus pandemic, and the World Health Organization accidentally published documents yesterday showing that a potential antiviral drug for the coronavirus flopped in its first randomised clinical trial. Plus, the FT’s global business columnist, Rana Foroohar, argues that the economic...

The European Central Bank has changed its rules to accept bonds that lose their investment grade credit rating during the coronavirus crisis as collateral, oil prices rebounded on Wednesday after Donald Trump stoked Middle East tensions, and US business groups are calling on the federal government to shield companies from litigation if workers are exposed to the virus. Plus, the FT’s Moscow bureau...

Global oil markets remained under intense pressure on Tuesday with the price of US crude oil for June delivery nearly halving and Brent dropping below $20 per barrel for the first time in 18 years. Meanwhile, the White House and congressional leaders agreed to a new coronavirus stimulus package which includes funds to replenish the small business rescue fund, and Netflix has emerged as one of the...

Yesterday, US oil prices crashed into negative territory for the first time in history. The FT’s US energy editor, Derek Brower, explains why and what is next for producers. Then, the FT’s natural resources editor, Neil Hume, explains how Singapore oil trader Hin Leong Trading suffered $800m in losses that were not reflected in its financial statements. Plus, the Trump administration is facing bac...

The Trump administration is closing in on a deal with Congress to provide another $300bn to coronavirus-hit small businesses. Then, the FT’s US economics editor, Brendan Greeley, explains how state budgets are coping without their normal tax revenue. Plus, the European Central Bank has held high-level talks about creating a eurozone bad bank for non-performing loans, and investors have pushed back...

President Donald Trump backed away from threats to force a quick reopening of the US economy by unveiling guidelines for states, and US stock market futures rose 3 per cent late on Thursday after a report suggested a Gilead coronavirus drug had shown positive results in a clinical trial. Then, in an interview with the FT, French president Emmanuel Macron warned of the collapse of the EU as a “poli...

The coronavirus crisis is propelling Eurozone government debt towards 100 per cent of gross domestic product, three major US banks reported a total $12.8bn of charges in the first quarter for loan losses and warned there could be more to come, and data from all corners of the US economy published on Wednesday suggest the hit from coronavirus lockdowns has been deeper than feared. Plus, the FT’s Hu...

The US Treasury Department has reached an agreement with US airlines that paves the way for a $25bn bailout for the industry. Plus, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo increased loan-loss provisions by $10bn from last year to prepare for the impact of the pandemic. Then, the IMF said on Tuesday that the coronavirus crisis will leave lasting scars on the global economy. The FT’s economics editor, Chris...

New figures show that venture capital funding in China rebounded in March after the country’s coronavirus outbreak, and Amazon has announced plans to hire 75,000 extra workers after hiring 100,000 new staff to handle coronavirus-induced demand. Plus, Anjli Raval explains why oil traders have doubts about the US-backed Opec deal to cut supply, and Rana Forhoohar argues that WeWork’s struggles illus...

The coronavirus’ place of origin, Wuhan, has emerged from the world’s largest mass quarantine. Meanwhile, Japan is gambling that it can control the spread of coronavirus without a full lockdown. The FT’s correspondents on the ground in China and Japan, Don Weinland and Robin Harding, look at the differing stages these two places are at when it comes to the pandemic and the road ahead. Hosted on Ac...

Wall Street banks are warning investors to brace for a new wave of stock market declines despite the recent relief rally, and eurozone finance ministers will reconvene today to work toward a deal on emergency lending to tackle the Covid-19 outbreak. The FT’s Mehreen Khan will explain the dispute between the Netherlands and Italy over the terms. Plus, Stefania Palma in Singapore explains how the co...

The Trump administration is in talks with Congress to secure an additional $250bn to fund loans for small businesses hit by the coronavirus pandemic, and a special committee of WeWork board members issued a legal challenge on Tuesday over SoftBank’s withdrawal from a $3bn deal. Plus, the FT’s capital market’s correspondent Rob Smith explains how Carnival Corporation managed to persuade investors t...

US stocks and global equities surged on Monday as investors took heart from signs that the coronavirus outbreak may be stabilising in some of the worst-affected countries. Plus, with a death count of more than 16,000 people and its economy on course to suffer the deepest recession in its modern history, Italy is wrestling with a lack of assistance from its European neighbours. The FT’s Miles Johns...

Emerging markets are scrambling to keep their economies afloat as the coronavirus pandemic deepens. The FT’s David Pilling will have more. Plus, America’s biggest banks will defend their plans to continue paying dividends in submissions to regulators today, and oil producers push back against the price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information...

Oil soared nearly 50 per cent at one point on Thursday in its biggest ever one-day rally after US president Donald Trump stoked hopes of a supply cut deal, German biotech groups are urging regulators to ease restrictions when it comes to testing a coronavirus vaccine, and bankers are raising doubts about whether the US government’s small business loan programme will begin today, as scheduled.&nbsp...

France is pushing for a common EU fund to help Europe through the coronavirus crisis. The FT’s Paris bureau chief, Victor Mallet, explains what the plan entails. Then, the rapid spread of the outbreak has pushed commercial landlords and their tenants to breaking point. FT property reporter George Hammond unpacks the brewing conflict between landlords and the tenants that are unable to pay rent. Pl...

The FT’s Gillian Tett unpacks the Federal Reserve’s latest move to meet the global demand for dollars, and science editor Clive Cookson explains how different countries are handling coronavirus testing and how the private sector could step in.  Plus, Donald Trump is set to suspend some tariffs for 90 days as he tries blunt the economic damage from the pandemic, the UK’s six biggest banks have...