MACRO ECONOMIC NEWS

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Macro Economic News 24 Mar 2020

The U.S. Federal Reserve rolled out an extraordinary array of programs to backstop an economy reeling from sweeping restrictions on people and businesses that scientists say are needed to limit the spread of the coronavirus. FED signaled it would do practically anything—extending loans to businesses, backstopping funds to municipalities and purchasing hundreds of billions of dollars of government debt—to help the U.S. economy. World Bank said that the development lender could deploy as much as $150 billion in resources over the next 15 months to help developing countries fight and recover from the pandemic. Eurozone consumer confidence hits 5-year low. Europeans became much gloomier about their economic prospects in early March as governments announced increasingly stringent restrictions on movement and social interaction, suffering the largest loss of confidence in a single month on record while Bank of England and the banks have assured to help through the outbreak. India shuts down flights, big cities as coronavirus toll rises in region while RBI advances OMO date, announces repo of Rs 1 trn in two tranches whereas Labour Ministry advises to employers, “Do not cut jobs or trim wages.”

FINANCIAL TIMES

[I]  Fed unleashes unlimited Treasury purchase plan

[I]  Gold bars in short supply due to coronavirus disruption

[I]  Russia sends Italy coronavirus aid to underline old ties

[I]  Eurozone consumer confidence hits 5-year low

[I]  Pandemic throws Argentina debt strategy into disarray

[I]  Senate Democrats block $2tn stimulus for second time

[I]  Companies axe dividends in global push for cash

REUTERS

[I]  India shuts down flights, big cities as coronavirus toll rises in region

[I]  Exclusive: Indian government asks banks to provide liquidity support to corporates

[I]  Trump suggests he may scale back closures soon despite worsening coronavirus outbreak

[I]  $2 trillion coronavirus aid package stalls in U.S. Senate

[I]  U.S. Fed aims 'bazooka' to backstop coronavirus-hit economy

[I]  World Bank could deploy $150 billion over 15 months in coronavirus battle

[I]  Pandemic vs Policy: contagion outstrips global containment consensus

[I]  Bank of England and the banks say: we are here to help through the outbreak

BLOOMBERG 

[I]  U.K. Locked Down After Johnson Acts Over ‘National Emergency’

[I]  Fed Sidesteps Congress’s Bickering With Sweeping Rescue Plan

[I]  Markets Get Weirder With Stocks and Volatility Tumbling Together

[I]  Merger Monday Vanishes With Coronavirus Roiling Dealmaking

[I]  A Longstanding Fear About The Corporate Debt Market May Finally Be Coming True

[I]  Economists See U.S. Facing Worst-Ever Quarterly Contraction

WALL STREET JOURNAL

[I]  As Economic Toll Mounts, Nation Ponders Trade-Offs

[I]  Fed Unveils Major Expansion of Market Intervention

[I]  Trump Mulls Easing Social Distancing to Boost Economy

[I]  Coronavirus-Response Bill Isn’t a Corporate Bailout, Says Mnuchin

[I]  Coronavirus Sparks Hiring Spree for Nearly 500,000 Jobs at Big Retailers

[I]  Economy Week Ahead: Assessing Mounting Damage from Coronavirus Pandemic

[I]  European Consumers Despondent as Lockdowns Spread

BUSINESS LINE

[I]  As buyers stock up, exports of cereals, processed food, spices spike

[I]  Covid-19 lockdown: Mumbai IT authorities ask CBDT to extend March 31 deadline

[I]  Do not cut jobs or trim wages: Labour Ministry to employers

[I]  WEF invites India to join its Covid Action Platform

[I]  India to ban all commercial domestic flights from midnight of March 24

[I]  Lok Sabha passes Finance Bill without discussion

ECONOMIC TIMES

[I]  In locked down India, world's back offices have it the worst

[I]  Informal workers caught in Covid firing line

[I]  States can lift PDS grains for 3 months on credit: FM

[I]  Dollar surges on funding crunch as virus roils global equities

[I]  RBI may soon allow repo operations in corporate bonds: Sources

[I]  Covid-19: S&P pegs Asia-Pacific income loss at $620 bn

[I]  UNCTAD estimates economic impact of Covid-19 at $1 trillion

[I]  UBS cuts India's FY21 real GDP growth forecast to 4 per cent

[I]  Social distancing a luxury that workers on Rs 152 a day can’t afford

BUSINESS STANDARD

[I]  Maintain production line of essential commodities, PM Modi tells India Inc

[I]  Biggest crash ever makes India worst performing market in the world

[I]  RBI advances OMO date, announces repo of Rs 1 trn in two tranches

[I]  Electronics hubs in complete lockdown amid coronavirus outbreak

[I]  Corporate bond yields spike as coronavirus-induced fears grip investors

[I]  High-debt companies face risk of default amid coronavirus spread: Analysts

[I]  RBI extends priority sector classification for bank loans to NBFCs

MARKETS (08:30 am)

[I]  SGX NIFTY Fut: 7942;  USDINR DGCX: 76.6175;  DJIA Mini: 19145;  FTSE 100 Fut: 5093;  NIKKEI 225 Fut: 17820;  EUR-USD: 1.0806; Crude Oil (WTI): 24.43;  Gold (Spot): 1574

Best Regards, ARBIND

24 Mar 2020