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Our briefing for Thursday, March 24, 2022:
Mar 24, 2022 4:32:11 PM
- The chief executives of several major airlines in the United States are urging President Joe Biden to end the federal mask mandate on airplanes and pre-departure Covid-19 test requirements. The chief executives of American Airlines, United Airlines and Delta Airlines said in a letter that the current restrictions are “no longer aligned with the realities of the current epidemiological environment.” Earlier this month the Biden administration extended the mask mandate in airports, train stations, and ride-share programs until April 18, the mandates were originally slated to end on March 18. Delta Airlines CEO Ed Bastian in a separate statement said, “considering the improved public health metrics in the US and medical advancements to prevent the worst outcomes of COVID-19, the federal mask mandate and pre-departure testing no longer fits with the current environment.” The White House did not comment on the letter but said that it had tasked the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) with developing a “a revised policy framework for when, and under what circumstances, masks should be required in the public transportation corridor.” Last week the U.S. Senate voted 57 to 40 to overturn the public health order requiring masks on airplanes and public transportation, which Biden threatened to veto if it passes.
- In Canada, wastewater data is suggesting a rise in Covid-19 cases in several provinces. According to analysis by Global News, Ontario, Saskatchewan, and British Columbia are seeing resurgences of the virus as pandemic restrictions are being lifted. Dr. Steve Hrudey, chair of the research advisory group of the Canadian Water Network COVID 19 Wastewater Coalition said, “the reality is that as all of the restrictions come off in terms of masking and the other measures which have been in place for some period of time, we can expect that more cases are going to be out there.” Experts say that wastewater testing provides a more accurate representation of the prevalence of Covid-19 at a time when testing measures fluctuate throughout different municipalities. “Wastewater testing provides a true picture of COVID-19 community health, especially in the current situation when resources for clinical testing may be limited in some areas,” said Anna Maddison, a Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) spokesperson. Dr. Peter Juni, a professor of medicine and epidemiology at the University of Toronto said that wastewater analysis has shown a “relatively steep increase” in coronavirus prevalence across all regions in Ontario.
- The number of people in hospital due to Covid-19 has risen for the 19th day in a row in the United Kingdom. On Thursday, the U.K. reported that 16,975 people were in hospital due to complications caused by Covid-19, an increase of 216 from Wednesday. The number of patients in intensive care units requiring ventilators was at 302, that number has remained relatively constant throughout the last few weeks. People aged 75 or higher are being particularly affected, as hospitalizations for that age group have jumped to their highest levels in over a year. Nearly 75 in every 100,000 people over age 75 in the country have Covid-19, that number is up from 59 the week previous, and in the over 85 age category 178 per 100,000 have contracted the virus. All regions in the country are seeing an increase in cases and experts are suggesting that numbers will continue to rise. Dr Susan Hopkins, Health Security Agency chief medical adviser said the figures are “a reminder to us all that the pandemic is not over.” She added, “hospital admissions and cases of Covid-19 have continued to rise, and we can expect to see further increases before we start to see a decline.”
- The European Medicines Agency (EMA) is recommending the use of AstraZeneca Plc’s antibody drug for adults and children over 12 who have not yet contracted Covid-19. Over the last several weeks, Europe has seen a spike in cases and a stagnation of vaccination rates in adults. The EMA is suggesting that the AstraZeneca drug can also be used by people whose immune systems may be too weak to respond to vaccines. While vaccines require an intact immune system to fight off the virus, AstraZeneca’s EVUsheld contains antibodies designed to linger in the body for months and will contain the virus in case of infection. In an independent lab study, EVUsheld was proven to be effective against both BA.1 and BA.2 strains of the Omicron variant. The studies show that EVUsheld was able to cut the risk of symptoms resulting from infection by 77 per cent with protection lasting roughly six months. The EMA’s decision to recommend the drug is expected to soon be followed by the European Commission.
- China has recorded over 2,000 new cases of Covid-19 for the third straight day and the government is now putting the blame solely on the transmissibility of the BA.2 strain of the Omicron variant. “Omicron BA.2 caused this outbreak, and spreads faster and more easily than previous viruses,” the export-heavy province of Fujian said in an online statement Tuesday, it continued by saying the BA.2 variant is “stealthier” than the previous Omicron variant, but it is causing mainly mild or asymptomatic cases. Scientists across the world have described BA.2 as a “stealth” variant because it contains mutations that make it less distinguishable than the previous Delta variant when using a PCR test. China is currently relying on local governments to impose restrictions based on the severity of the outbreaks in their jurisdiction and negative Covid tests are being required to travel throughout different regions of the country.
Covid-19 – Due Diligence And Asset Management
Hong Kong Holds Third Spot in World’s Financial Centers Ranking
Brief: Hong Kong, in the midst of an exodus of residents as it grapples with its largest ever outbreak of Covid-19, held its third place ranking among the world’s financial centers, trailing New York and London, according to a survey. In the main areas of competitiveness, Hong Kong ranked in the top four for business environment, human capital, infrastructure and general reputation, but out of the top 10 in financial sector development. Its overall hold on the third spot came as financial centers in Asia “generally recovered losses” experienced in the previous study, suggesting restored confidence in the region’s economic strength, according to the Global Financial Centres Index published by Z/Yen and the China Development Institute. Shanghai and Shenzhen moved up to fourth and 10th place, respectively. Hong Kong’s strict pursuit of Covid zero, coupled with a brain drain over the past years amid a political crackdown on media and civil society groups, has prompted warnings over the city’s status as a financial hub.
Private equity's pandemic-era health care push
Brief: Private equity firms invested nearly $70 billion in the life sciences and medical device industries last year — a sign that the pandemic's disruptions didn't cool interest in the sectors, according to a new report by the American Investment Council. Why it matters: The influx of capital could help bring more lifesaving drugs and medical technologies to market. But private equity's growing presence in health care isn't always viewed positively, particularly when it's associated with price increases or reduced access to care. By the numbers: Private equity deals in the life sciences sector were worth nearly $26 billion in 2021, the highest amount in a decade. Medical devices and supplies deals were worth nearly $44 billion last year, which was also the highest value over the last decade — by far. Private equity has invested more than $280 billion into the sectors over the last decade, according to the report. What they're saying: "What COVID brought was probably a bigger focus on health care gaps and needs in the country, and I think you saw more money going into this sector as a result of a new focus on exposing some of the challenges we have in the health care system," American Investment Council CEO Drew Maloney said in an interview.
Record-Setting Venture Capital Market Shows Signs Of A Slowdown
Brief: When pandemic-induced lockdowns started to spread in March 2020, partners at some venture capital firms became concerned about an overdue correction. Instead, the opposite happened, and the pandemic pushed the market into one of the strongest bull periods on record. Now, amid a geopolitical crisis and a downward-trending stock market, some in the industry say the overheated venture capital climate is finally beginning to cool down. Investors tell Forbes that late-stage deal activity — which set records for both deal count and investment volume in 2021 — has slowed considerably over the past few weeks. They say that crossover investors who helped drive the breakneck pace in 2021 may have overindulged at the late stages. The broader venture ecosystem is realizing the swollen price tags they were willing to buy into to get into the hottest deals of 2021 were inflated, these investors say.
Nearly 50% of foreign firms in Hong Kong plan to relocate staff
Brief: Nearly half of the European companies in Hong Kong plan to fully or partially relocate operations and staff out of the city, a new survey suggests, in the latest sign that the world's toughest Covid-19 travel and quarantine restrictions are eroding the appeal of Asia's main finance hub. Around 25 per cent of responding companies said they planned to fully relocate out of Hong Kong in the next year, according to a new survey from the European Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, while another 24 per cent said they are planning to partially move out of the city. Roughly 34 per cent of firms said they were uncertain about their plans, while just 17 per cent said they had no desire to relocate over the next 12 months. The negative results, which come amid a surprisingly chaotic coronavirus outbreak, are the latest measure of declining business confidence in a once-freewheeling city that has been increasingly isolated from the world over more than 2 years.
Will the world economy avoid an inflationary bust?
Brief: Today’s high inflation is being compared to the 1970s. However, robust consumer spending, fuelled by pandemic savings, makes for a different set of circumstances. Memories of the 1970s were evoked as the price of Brent crude oil temporarily climbed above $139 a barrel in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. That was a period when very high oil prices and elevated rates of consumer inflation plunged some of the world’s major economies into recession. Using the definition of recessions from the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), there have been seven such downturns in the US since the 1970s. The first four were all preceded by a pick-up in inflation and interest rates (see chart, below). The decision by the US Federal Reserve (Fed) to raise interest rates amid signs of inflationary pressures broadening out in the US – as they did in the 1970s – has further put parallels with the past back into focus. Could this “economic cycle” play out like those from the 1970s, 80s and 90s, when economic conditions were seemingly more akin than to those seen over the past two decades? The economic cycle, which is sometimes referred as the business cycle, is the period in which an economy moves from a state of expansion to one of contraction, before expanding again.
