story

Wall Street closes lower as surging Covid-19 cases offset vaccine hopes

elean 21 11 月

4 minutes

NEW YORK (REUTERS) - US stocks closed lower on Friday (Nov 20) as investors wrestled with fiscal stimulus developments, concerns over a lengthy rollout of vaccines, and a growing number of state-level shutdowns to combat the spiralling Covid-19 pandemic. Stay-at-home plays such as Zoom Video Communications and Netflix, which have outperformed throughout the health crisis, helped curb the Nasdaq's loss. Throughout the week, the ebb and flow of vaccine news and spiking infections had investors oscillating between economically-sensitive cyclical stocks and pandemic-resistant market leaders. The S&P 500 and the Dow posted marginal losses for the week, while the tech-laden Nasdaq settled a bit higher from last Friday's close. "Markets are still stuck in a push-and-pull between the dramatic rise of new Covid cases versus apparent progress on vaccines," said David Carter, chief investment officer at Lenox Wealth Advisors in New York. "This is likely to continue until we have an approved and distributed vaccine." US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced late on Thursday that he would allow key pandemic-relief lending programmes at the Federal Reserve to expire at the end of the year,...

Air travel in US, Europe was gaining momentum. Now what?

elean 20 11 月

6 minutes

NEW YORK (NYTIMES) - Confidence about the course of the Covid-19 pandemic has helped put passengers back on planes in recent months, and Thanksgiving week is shaping up to be one of the busiest periods for US air travel since it came to a near-standstill in the spring. News that effective vaccines may be close at hand lifted airline stocks. But new concerns over the spread of the virus are rattling travelers and threatening airlines' hopes for the months ahead. United Airlines said on Thursday (Nov 19) that bookings had slowed and cancellations had risen in recent days because of the surge in virus cases. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention urged Americans to avoid holiday travel altogether, presenting the industry with its latest wrenching question: How dark can this winter get? "There's two trains running toward us," said John Grant, a senior analyst with OAG. "One is full of optimism on a vaccine, and the other is, sadly, full of more caution. Who gets there first?" When Angela Henry booked her Thanksgiving flights months ago, she had no idea that the United States would be setting new coronavirus infection records as the holiday approached. She also didn't know that ...

US stocks gain on revived stimulus talks

elean 20 11 月

3 minutes

NEW YORK (AFP) - Wall Street stocks snapped a two-session skid on Thursday (Nov 19) as optimism over revived US stimulus talks countered worries about higher coronavirus cases. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.2 per cent at 29,483.23. The broad-based S&P 500 gained 0.4 per cent to 3,581.87, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index jumped 0.9 per cent to 11,904.71. Aides to top US lawmakers met to again discuss passing another spending Bill after months of stalemate on a package to support the coronavirus-ravaged US economy. That helped shift attention from the coronavirus as the US added more than 170,000 new Covid-19 cases, according to Johns Hopkins University. The US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention urged Americans against travelling for the Thanksgiving holiday next week in light of the worsening outbreak. Some states have begun to reimpose restrictions, but “Covid-fatigue” and public resistance makes extreme lockdowns unlikely, said economist Joel Naroff. “We will not be facing anything like what happened in the spring,” Naroff said in a note. “Nevertheless, the steps to reduce virus cases, hospitalisations and deaths are likely to cause workers to be laid ...

US stocks sag as New York shuts schools on Covid-19 rise

elean 19 11 月

3 minutes

NEW YORK (AFP) - Wall Street stocks fell for a second straight session on Wednesday (Nov 18), tumbling after New York City ordered public schools closed with anxiety over the coronavirus deepening. Equities were choppy throughout the day, but took a distinct downward path once New York Mayor Bill de Blasio announced the school closures after the city hit its target of a seven-day average coronavirus positivity rate of 3 per cent. The move came as US coronavirus cases tick higher, with Johns Hopkins University reporting nearly 162,000 new cases in the last day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished down 1.2 per cent at 29,438.42. The broad-based S&P 500 also shed 1.2 per cent to 3,567.79, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index lost 0.8 per cent at 11,801.60. "This is a tug of war between vaccine excitement and nervous trepidation" about the virus, said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at National Securities. Still, Hogan noted that stocks are still at a high level, with both the Dow and S&P 500 ending at records on Monday. Among individual shares, Pfizer rose 0.8 per cent as said it planned to apply for emergency use authorisation of a coronavirus vaccine "within days" fol...

Inbound travellers to Singapore can purchase insurance for Covid-19 related costs

aseanpr 18 11 月

4 minutes

SINGAPORE - Inbound travellers arriving in Singapore can now purchase insurance coverage for Covid-19 related costs incurred during their stay here. Changi Airport Group (CAG) and the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) said in a joint statement on Wednesday (Nov 18) morning that three insurance companies have developed travel insurance products which provide at least $30,000 in coverage for Covid-19 related medical treatment and hospitalisation costs. The minimum coverage sum was decided based on recommendations by the Ministry of Health (MOH), which considered bills for Covid-19 treatment at private hospitals. The three companies providing insurance coverage are AIG Asia Pacific Insurance, Chubb Insurance Singapore Limited and HL Assurance. While AIG and HL Assurance have started selling their insurance products, Chubb's will be available from Nov 27. Under present rules, inbound foreign travellers entering Singapore through various safe travel lanes are required to bear the full cost of medical treatment, tests and isolation, should they be suspected of being infected with Covid-19 or require medical treatment for the virus while in Singapore. As such, the travel insurance plan will h...

How business networks are helping members amid pandemic

elean 16 11 月

3 minutes

SINGAPORE - With the Covid-19 pandemic showing no signs of abating, business networks in Singapore have been facilitating information exchanges through webinars and establishing new initiatives to support member businesses. Business luncheons that used to be held face to face have been moved online to ensure that members can continue to engage with one another. The coronavirus outbreak has shown the value and importance of partnerships between businesses, the community and the authorities, chamber representatives said. Dr Lei Hsien-Hsien, chief executive of the American Chamber of Commerce in Singapore (AmCham), said: "Collaboration between businesses and with the Government will be crucial to help return the economy to pre-Covid-19 levels of productivity and activity." AmCham is launching a programme later this month to support close to 200 of its small and medium-sized enterprise members, through avenues such as strategic partnerships and training and development, to help these firms grow and transform their businesses. The Singaporean-German Chamber of Industry and Commerce (SGC) has conducted eight surveys over the past few months to better understand the impact of Covid-19 on ...

Coronavirus: 2 groups of 20 people or more probed for safe distancing breaches at nature reserves

aseanpr 13 11 月

5 minutes

SINGAPORE (THE NEW PAPER) - Two groups, each comprising 20 people or more, are under investigation for allegedly breaching safe distancing rules at Singapore's nature reserves. One involved 26 hikers who had attempted to go off-trail illegally in the Central Catchment Nature Reserve, the largest on the island. The other was a group of 20 who had gathered for a birthday celebration at Labrador Nature Reserve in the south-west of Singapore. Of greater concern is that these two groups are not the only ones being investigated for possible violation of Covid-19 safety measures, nor are they even the biggest group. The Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment (MSE) revealed on Thursday (Nov 13) that a group of 50 people is also being investigated. The New Paper understands this is the largest group linked to a breach since safe distancing measures were put in place in March. Responding to queries from TNP, an MSE spokesman said these incidents are among a spate of recent cases involving 12 to 50 people intermingling in large groups at various parks, birthday celebrations, baby showers, food and beverage outlets, and basketball and football games in Housing Board estate courts. Thes...

A third of the world’s air routes have been lost due to Covid-19

elean 13 11 月

6 minutes

SYDNEY (BLOOMBERG) - Before the coronavirus, a decades-long aviation boom spawned a network of nearly 50,000 air routes that traversed the world. In less than a year, the pandemic has wiped almost a third of them off the map. Border closures, nationwide lockdowns and the fear of catching Covid-19 from fellow passengers have crippled commercial travel. As thousands of domestic and international connections disappear completely from airline timetables, the world has suddenly stopped shrinking. The crisis is unwinding a vast social and industrial overhaul that took place during half a century of air-travel proliferation. In years to come, overseas business trips and holidays will likely mean more airport stopovers, longer journey times, and perhaps an additional mode of transport. Even when an effective vaccine is found, the economic reality of the recovery may mean some non-stop flights are gone for good. With borders effectively shut from Europe to New Zealand, the bulk of the world's dropped routes are inevitably cross-border. But thousands of domestic legs have also been axed, reflecting the pressure airlines face at home as they cut jobs and retire aircraft to find a cost base th...

Wall St ends sharply lower as pandemic fears resurge

elean 13 11 月

3 minutes

NEW YORK (REUTERS) - Wall Street ended sharply lower on Thursday ((Nov 12) as US coronavirus infections surged and investors weighed the timeline for the mass rollout of an effective vaccine. New York became the latest state to introduce stricter social distancing rules on Wednesday, as new infections in the country surged above 100,000 for an eighth consecutive day. The blue-chip Dow was pulled down by industrial and financial companies sensitive to economic growth, with Boeing and Goldman Sachs each down more than 2 per cent. Airlines and cruise operators, among the hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic, also fell. Even after Thursday's drop, the S&P 500 has gained almost 2 per cent this week, buoyed by positive vaccine trial data that increased expectations of a quick economic recovery. Stocks have also benefited from expectations that a divided Congress will keep President-elect Joe Biden from enacting tax hikes that would hurt corporate profits. "The reality is that we don't know what the new normal is going to look like, even when we do recover from the coronavirus, and that is still a ways away," said Tom Martin, senior portfolio manager at Globalt Investments in Atlanta. ...

US shares end mixed after coronavirus vaccine high fades

elean 11 11 月

3 minutes

NEW YORK (AFP) - Wall Street pulled back from the celebration that followed good news on a potential Covid-19 vaccine, ending Tuesday's (Nov 10) session mixed. The benchmark Dow Jones Industrial Average finished the day with a 0.9 per cent gain at 29,420.92, while the broader S&P 500 dipped 0.1 per cent to 3,545.53. But the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 1.4 per cent to close at 11,553.86. Optimism about Monday's announcement from Pfizer and BioNTech that their vaccine was 90 percent effective was tempered by the realisation the economic gains likely will not be felt until late next year since it will take months for any vaccine to be widely distributed. Meanwhile, investors are shifting away from the stay-at-home stocks, like videoconference service Zoom, and are returning to back-to-normal shares like airlines and cruise companies. Quincy Krosby from Prudential Financial said "tech names were overbought, reaching the point where we would expect to see some consolidation." That trend should continue as focus turns to "sectors that will benefit from a vaccine once it is distributed and take us to the other side of the pandemic," Krosby said. Uncertainty generated by the US election has rec...

Singapore could have a Covid-19 vaccine by early 2021; close to $300m commitment from S’pore authorities to make and buy vaccine

aseanpr 10 11 月

4 minutes

SINGAPORE - Singapore could have a Covid-19 vaccine by early next year. The first shipments of the vaccine co-developed by Singapore researchers are expected in the first quarter. Arcturus Therapeutics, the American pharmaceutical company working with Duke-NUS scientists on the vaccine, said this on Monday (Nov 9), as it announced positive preliminary results from the early stage clinical trials ongoing in Singapore. Singapore's Economic Development Board (EDB) is pumping in some US$45 million (S$60.5 million) into the manufacture of the vaccine, said Arcturus. EDB will also have the right to purchase up to $175 million of the vaccine at pre-negotiated prices, with shipments expected to begin in the first quarter of 2021, said Arcturus. Duke-NUS Medical School's Professor Ooi Eng Eong, who had co-developed the vaccine with Arcturus, said the results so far show that the vaccine could be effective as a single dose. "This differentiates this investigational vaccine from many other Covid-19 vaccines in development," said Prof Ooi, who is also a member of Arcturus' Vaccine Platform Scientific Advisory Board. "The vaccine has the potential to provide important public health benefits by ...

Nursing home staff tested for Covid-19 once every two months as part of surveillance measures: MOH

aseanpr 5 11 月

4 minutes

SINGAPORE - Nursing home staff in Singapore are now being tested for Covid-19 once every two months as part of measures to ensure that senior citizens in the homes are kept safe from the virus. In response to queries from The Straits Times, a Ministry of Health (MOH) spokesman said that all nursing home providers will complete one round of testing of all staff every two months as part of a regular surveillance testing programme that began in the last days of October. There are about 9,000 nursing home employees here and 16,000 residents. Surveillance testing of nursing home residents will also be conducted in the coming months, added the spokesman. The ministry will also study how to introduce testing for other groups that interact with nursing homes, such as volunteers and external vendors, as other methods of testing - like Antigen Rapid Testing - emerge. "This will help maintain the level of protection for seniors in nursing homes, in the light of the higher risks that can come with the overall safe reopening," said the spokesman. All nursing home staff and residents underwent one round of mass testing in May as a precautionary measure. At the time, the mass testing exercise als...

Parliament: Phase 3 could last over a year, restrictions may be reimposed if cases spike again

aseanpr 4 11 月

6 minutes

SINGAPORE - Phase 3 of the nation's reopening in the wake of Covid-19 could last a year or more, Health Minister Gan Kim Yong told Parliament on Wednesday (Nov 4). Ms Cheng Li Hui (Tampines GRC) had asked about phase 3, including what factors are taken into account when deciding on the maximum number of people allowed for various events, what safeguards will be put in place when activities resume on a larger scale, and what might happen if cases were to surge again. In response, Mr Gan reiterated that phase 3 - which Singapore could move into by year-end if the virus remains under control here - would not be a return to pre-Covid days. It would last until the rest of the world has the virus under tight control or when effective treatments or vaccines are widely available, he added. This means that measures must be put in place to enable everyone to stay safe while continuing to live, work and mark major life events. Mr Gan said group size limits depend on factors such as how frequently an activity takes place, what potential risks it has, and whether additional safety measures can be implemented to mitigate such risks. Pointing to the large clusters of Covid-19 cases that had forme...

Covid-19: Automated wireless system that monitors blood oxygen successfully piloted

aseanpr 3 11 月

5 minutes

SINGAPORE - A new weapon has been added to Singapore's arsenal against Covid-19: an automated system that monitors oxygen levels in the blood. Low blood oxygen could be a symptom of Covid-19. The new system utilises Bluetooth-enabled pulse oximeters to measure blood oxygen levels. It will help automate manual tasks and compile pulse oximeter readings from thousands of individuals neatly on a dashboard. A team of researchers from the National University of Singapore (NUS) - in consultation with clinicians from the National University Hospital and Singapore General Hospital - worked on the new system from April to June. The project was also supported by both Temasek Foundation and the National Research Foundation. This new system consists of several components: wireless nodes to capture data from the Bluetooth-enabled pulse oximeters, individual Bluetooth-enabled pulse oximeters which individuals can use to take their readings, WiFi stations and a dashboard that presents the data. Workers living in dormitories need to measure and record their oximeter readings twice a day as part of precautionary measures to identify new cases of infection. This process is currently done manually. Wi...

Royal Caribbean suspends cruises through year end on rising Covid-19 cases

elean 3 11 月

2 minutes

BENGALURU (REUTERS) - Cruise operator Royal Caribbean Group said on Monday (Nov 2) it would stop all its cruises through the end of the year, extending previous suspensions, as coronavirus infections continue to increase globally. The company's announcement comes days after the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a framework for a phased resumption of cruise ship operations, after a no-sail order issued in March in response to the Covid-19 pandemic expired on Saturday. Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings earlier in the day said it plans to extend the suspension of its cruises starting December through the end of the year. Royal Caribbean reported negative revenue for the first time last week, as well as a billion-dollar quarterly loss. Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise had previously set up an expert panel to safely resume operations, as the cruise industry came to a virtual standstill after many vessels became hotbeds of infection and some operators even faced lawsuits for onboard outbreaks. More on this topic Related Story Global cruise industry still largely stuck in port, but several regions have restarted cruises cautiously Related Story Coronavirus microsite: G...

Relax Covid-19 curbs or open borders in S’pore’s phase 3, but not both

aseanpr 31 10 月

10 minutes

Singapore is at a crossroads. Community cases here are now extremely low, with just six in the past fortnight. This means measures to contain the virus here are working and Singapore should be able to significantly ease them with little risk, experts have pointed out to The Straits Times. Singapore can also open up its borders to visitors from countries with equally low spread of the virus. But it should not do both, the experts cautioned. Every easing of measures, whether internally or in terms of border control, increases risks. Doing too much too soon could result in a major second-wave outbreak, they explained. Singapore has decided on opening its borders, with the promise of a slight easing of domestic measures, provided the infection numbers stay low. People in general have welcomed the move that allows for easier travel without the need for a 14-day quarantine. But allowing travel to resume, even in a controlled manner, exposes the country to the risk of imported infections that could spread to the community, the experts said. Globally, there are more than 400,000 new Covid-19 infections and about 5,000 deaths a day. With winter approaching in the Northern Hemisphere, there ...

Hong Kong economy shows first signs of revival since protests began

elean 30 10 月

5 minutes

HONG KONG (BLOOMBERG) - Hong Kong's economy is showing the first signs of emerging from a crippling recession sparked by political unrest last year and deepened by the global pandemic. After more than a year of weakness in multiple economic indicators, data this week showed exports from the Asian financial hub surged the most in almost two years in September, fueled by a 17 per cent increase in shipments to mainland China. Advance third-quarter economic growth figures to be released today are forecast to show quarter-on-quarter growth of 0.7 per cent, according to the median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg. That would mark the first time the measure has risen since before the start of anti-government protests last year, as a third wave of virus infections subsided last month. The economy has been in its longest recession since the tumultuous period from 1997 to 1998 that included the handover to China and the Asia financial crisis. Still, the recovery is nascent and Hong Kong will need more robust commerce and tourism to sustain a return to economic growth, economists say. On a year-on-year basis, the city's economy is forecast to extend declines for a fifth quarter. "...

Covid-19 breathalyser tests may be deployed more widely in trials here before Q1 2021

aseanpr 29 10 月

6 minutes

SINGAPORE - More people here may soon be able to get tested for Covid-19 and know their results in less than a minute, simply by breathing into a tube. A test kit that can accomplish this has been developed by National University of Singapore (NUS) spin-off Breathonix. Following a successful trial at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID), the company said on Thursday (Oct 29) that it is currently in discussions with the Health Ministry (MOH) to deploy its breathalyser tests in trials at public locations in the coming months. Dr Jia Zhunan, chief executive of Breathonix, said the firm is also working to expand the NCID trial to include a further 250 patients in addition to the current 180. The company's chairman, Associate Professor Neo Kok Beng, added that they are in talks with a "major hospitality player" here to deploy the tests at such events as conferences following approval from the Health Sciences Authority (HSA). The company hopes to receive it in the first quarter of next year. Prof Neo declined to name the hospitality player. He added that Breathonix has also received some requests from groups overseas for the tests to be rolled out there. For the test, peopl...

Global economic rebound at risk from rising coronavirus cases

elean 29 10 月

5 minutes

BENGALURU (REUTERS) - There is a high risk the resurgence in coronavirus cases halts the global economic recovery by year-end, according to Reuters polls of around 500 economists, a majority of whom expected the rebound next year to be weaker than previously thought. Governments and central banks around the world have pledged trillions of dollars of stimulus, helping most economies out of deep recessions. But a second wave of infections in places that eased lockdowns is now underway, leading to more restrictions. That was a top risk repeatedly highlighted by Reuters surveys of economists, forex analysts, bond and equity strategists, as well as global fund managers since the start of the pandemic. The Oct 6-27 Reuters polls of economists across Asia, Europe and the Americas covering 46 economies showed scant sign of activity recovering to pre-Covid-19 levels anytime soon. Nearly three-quarters of 150 analysts who responded to an additional question said the resurgence in coronavirus cases posed a high risk of halting the current global economic recovery as early as this year. "Even before the renewed lockdowns there was already a broad acceptance that many countries will see a perma...

IATA slashes airline revenue forecast for 2021 on Covid-19 resurgence

elean 28 10 月

3 minutes

PARIS (AFP) - Airline industry revenues are expected to remain 46 per cent lower in 2021 than the US$838 billion (S$1.14 trillion) booked in the last pre-coronavirus year of 2019, industry body IATA said on Tuesday (Oct 27) in a marked worsening of its forecasts. Its previous outlook for a smaller drop of 29 per cent "was based on expectations for a demand recovery commencing in the fourth quarter of 2020." That is now unlikely to materialise because of renewed Covid-19 outbreaks and government restrictions in response, said the federation representing 290 airlines. Over the full year in 2020, IATA forecasts a 66-per cent drop in traffic compared to last year. "The fourth quarter of 2020 will be extremely difficult and there is little indication the first half of 2021 will be significantly better, so long as borders remain closed and/or arrival quarantines remain in place," IATA director general Alexandre de Juniac said in a statement. Even with drastic cost-cutting, airlines will need further government aid to avoid running out of cash, de Juniac said. IATA also urged airports and air traffic controllers not to increase their prices to cover shortfalls from the vastly lower traffi...

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