.png?width=200&height=78&name=CH%20Diligence%20(thicker%20line).png "CH Diligence (thicker line).png")
Our briefing for Friday, September 10, 2021:
Sep 10, 2021 4:10:14 PM
- In the United States, President Joe Biden has announced sweeping new measures to augment vaccination rates across the country. The new rules will apply to 100 million workers, or about two thirds of the American labour force. The administration will require all federal workers to get vaccinated, as well as all employers with 100 or more workers. Around 17 million workers at healthcare facilities will also be required to get vaccinated or test weekly for the virus. In his speech given on Thursday, Biden expressed growing frustration with the approximately 80 million unvaccinated Americans, saying that his “patience is wearing thin.”
- In Canada, a new report from the Canadian Institute for Health Information shows that the average cost of treating a Covid-19 patient in Canada is more than $23,000. This is four times as much as a patient with influenza. Covid-19 patients are typically hospitalized for around 15 days which is twice as long as the standard pneumonia patient. According to the data, almost one in four Covid-19 patients are admitted to the ICU, and one in five die in intensive care. The average cost of a Covid-19 patient admitted to the ICU is approximately $55,000, compared with $22,000 for an ICU-admitted pneumonia patient.
- In the United Kingdom, over 8000 people were in the hospital with Covid-19 as of Wednesday, the highest number for nearly six months. The figure represents a 6% increase over the previous week. Despite this, numbers are still well below their peaks in January, when hospitalizations were hovering around 39,000. Cases have been slowly rising again in the U.K., reaching as high as 40,000 per day. The U.K. also has some of the highest vaccination rates in the world, with over 65% of the total population having had 2 doses.
- In Italy, green pass requirements have been expanded to include all university and school staff, including cafeteria workers and cleaners. Prime Minister Mario Draghi said in a cabinet meeting that the decision was made to deal with the Covid-19 emergency in schools and other social facilities. Employees in those sectors will now have to show proof of vaccination, a negative Covid-19 test or proof of recent Covid-19 recovery, as per the green pass requirements. The rules are expected to be extended to state workers in the coming weeks, and eventually private sector workers.
- In New Zealand, Auckland reported 11 new cases of Covid-19, down from 13 the previous day and the lowest number of any day this week. This takes the total number of infections for the current outbreak to 879. Auckland remains under strict level four restrictions, while the rest of the country eased them earlier this week. The government will announce on Monday whether the lockdown in Auckland will be extended. New Zealand recently purchased about a quarter of a million doses of the Pfizer vaccine from Spain, which are expected to arrive this week and boost the country’s inoculation program.
- In Australia, New South Wales (NSW) reported its highest number of new cases since the beginning of its latest outbreak, at 1542. Nine new deaths were also reported. State Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced that there will be no more daily media briefings as of Monday, updates will be provided through an online video instead. NSW is still aiming for 70% full vaccination rates before reopening, a target that is expected for mid-October. So far about 76% of adults in the state have had at least one dose of vaccine, while 44% are fully vaccinated.
Covid-19 – Due Diligence And Asset Management
BlackRock Rethinks October Return-to-Office Plan on Delta Risk
Brief: BlackRock Inc. is re-assessing its plans for U.S. employees to return to offices in early October, saying the spread of the Covid-19 delta variant calls for a more flexible approach. The world’s largest asset manager is now telling employees that it hasn’t decided when it would like to see them at their desks at least a few days a week, according to a memo seen by Bloomberg Thursday. The New York-based firm said it would give staff 30 days’ notice before moving to that hybrid work model.“We will be measured in our approach to return to the office,” executives including Chief Operating Officer Rob Goldstein said in the memo. “At this time, we are assessing our return-to-office plans for October and beyond.”
ECB slows pace of pandemic stimulus programme but insists no tapering
Brief: The European Central Bank is set to slow the monthly bond purchases under its crisis programme as the economic outlook improves. "Based on a joint assessment of financing conditions and the inflation outlook, the Governing Council judges that favourable financing conditions can be maintained with a moderately lower pace of net asset purchases under the pandemic emergency purchase programme (PEPP) than in the previous two quarters," the ECB said this Thursday (9 September). While it will buy fewer bonds for the rest of the year the ECB stated it could increase its stimulus again if the eurozone outlook worsens. UBP macro strategist Mohammed Kazmi said the decision is in line with expectations. "There would have been some fears over a more hawkish announcement coming into today, taking purchases back to Q1 levels, especially after Lane's speech.
U.K. Economy’s Coronavirus Rebound Grinds to a Halt in July
Brief: The U.K. economy barely grew in July, suggesting the recovery from the coronavirus recession is rapidly levelling off as consumer spending weakens and supply disruptions hamper production. Gross domestic product expanded just 0.1% -- a tenth of the pace posted in June, the Office for National Statistics said Friday. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had expected 0.5% growth. The figures left output 2.1% below the level in February 2020, before the pandemic struck. The slowdown heralds a return to more normal growth rates after pent-up demand following the lifting of restrictions in the spring saw the economy surge by almost 5% during the second quarter.
TSX, U.S. markets fall on concerns about virus and Fed moves
Brief: North American stock markets were weaker for at least a third-straight day over concerns about the Delta variant and the potential scaling back of monetary stimulus in Canada and the U.S.Investors remained anxious about the impact of rising COVID-19 infections on economic growth and demand for commodities such as energy. A new pandemic low in first-time U.S. benefit claims also raised anticipation that the U.S. Federal Reserve might pull back its stimulus earlier than expected. The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits fell last week to 310,000. That's below expectations and is approaching the pre-pandemic level of about 225,000. “Because things are mending on the labour front, the U.S. Federal Reserve could move sooner than anticipated to scale back some of its COVID pandemic accommodative monetary policies,'' said Anish Chopra, managing director with Portfolio Management Corp.
Airlines lower forecasts, blaming rising Covid cases for weaker travel demand
Brief: Several U.S. airlines on Thursday lowered their financial forecasts, citing weaker bookings amid a rise in Covid-19 cases in recent weeks. United Airlines said weaker revenue will mean adjusted pretax losses in the third and fourth quarters of this year. The Chicago-based carrier said in July it expected to post pretax profits for that period. It plans to further trim capacity this year because of weaker demand. United said the spike in Covid cases over the summer, however, has had less of an impact on demand than previous increases in infection rates. Air travel generally falls in late summer as schools reopen, but airline executives in recent weeks have warned that the fast-spreading delta variant has exacerbated the drop in demand.
