Covid-19 infection and death rates should be on a par with seasonal flu by mid-2022: Bill Gates
SINGAPORE - Through a combination of natural immunity, vaccine immunity and new oral treatments, the death and disease rates for Covid-19 are coming down dramatically - and by the summer of 2022, should be on a par with, or even lower than, the average levels of seasonal flu, said Mr Bill Gates on Thursday (Nov 18). Once this happens, it is likely that economic activity will resume fully, notwithstanding some remaining hot spots, said Mr Gates, the co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum in Singapore. Responding to moderator and Bloomberg editor-in-chief John Micklethwait's question on countries' different approaches to the Covid-19 pandemic, he said that any country that was able to do what China did - which was to spot the disease early and lock down its borders - is "blessed". But there are consequences to such extreme measures, he said. "That means they have very little natural immunity, and so they have to drive their vaccination coverage up dramatically before they drop that wall that has allowed them to (stop infected people) from coming in. "Maintaining that wall is very hard. And many countries decide that, between vaccination ra...
Wall Street ends little changed as rising yields weigh on tech
NEW YORK (REUTERS) - Wall Street indexes closed out Monday's (Nov 15) session near the unchanged mark as rising Treasury yields dented the appetite for technology stocks, while Boeing shares advanced on signs of demand for its freighter aircraft. The technology sector was among the biggest drags on the day as US Treasury yields moved higher, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year US Treasury note touching its highest level since Oct 27. Higher Treasury yields tend to weigh on high-growth areas such as tech, as they discount future earnings from the sector. Bank stocks, which benefit from climbing yields, advanced with bond yields on the rise as investors positioned for the potential effects of the Federal Reserve's tapering of its massive asset purchases. "Wall Street is completely fixated over what is happening in the bond market. We are starting to see yields are rising and that will, ultimately, signal that there's a lot more nervousness that the Fed could be a little bit late to the game on delivering a rate hike and will be forced to react a lot quicker, given the inflationary pressures," said Ed Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA. "You're seeing mixed trade right now becau...
Wall Street ends week lower after latest inflation spike
NEW YORK (AFP) - US shares closed lower on Friday (Sept 10) for the fourth straight day, with major indices posting losses for the week amid worries about a slowing recovery and rising prices. While Wall Street equities remain near their all-time highs, investors are grappling with worries over the impact of the Delta variant of Covid-19 on economic activity and supply chains, as delays and shortages are pushing costs higher. US wholesale prices posted another record increase in August, in the latest sign that increased demand coupled with supply and labor shortages were fuelling US inflation. The producer price index (PPI) jumped 8.3 per cent from August 2020, not seasonally adjusted, the biggest increase since the data was first collected in November 2010, according to a Labour Department report. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.8 per cent to close the week at 34,607.72. The broad-based S&P 500 fell 0.8 per cent to end at 4,458.58, while the tech-rich Nasdaq composite Index lost 0.9 per cent to 15,115.49. "This is part of a recent trend downwards in the market, probably fuelled by the Delta variant and the potential for slowing," said Jack Ablin of Cresset Capital. Abli...
You can’t go far with Zoom alone
(NYTIMES) - In my 17 years on Wall Street advising corporate executives on restructurings, leveraged buyouts, and mergers and acquisitions, I was far from God's gift to the profession. But watching and learning from Wall Street giants such as Mr Felix Rohatyn at Lazard and Mr Ray McGuire at Merrill Lynch were invaluable. Sitting in their offices, I'd observe them as they romanced a potential client to win an assignment, subtly laid the groundwork to help a big shot decide whether to consummate a merger or helped negotiate the terms of a bankruptcy. I learnt how the business really worked and began to understand what levers to pull to get deals done. Please subscribe or log in to continue reading the full article. Get unlimited access to all stories at $0.99/month Latest headlines and exclusive stories In-depth analyses and award-winning multimedia content Get access to all with our no-contract promotional package at only $0.99/month for the first 3 months* Subscribe now *Terms and conditions apply.
US stocks end lacklustre week on losing note
NEW YORK (AFP) - Wall Street stocks fell on Friday (July 16), ending a lacklustre week on a negative note amid uncertainty over the outlook for global growth and inflation. Analysts pointed to profit taking as a factor in Friday's session and throughout the week following records earlier in the month. The losses pushed all three major indices into the red for the week. Investors are "continuing to trim winning positions," said Briefing.com analyst Patrick O'Hare, as investors await more clarity on the course of the economy. The broad-based S&P 500 ended down 0.8 per cent at 4,327.16, taking its weekly losses to around one per cent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.9 per cent to 34,687.85, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 0.8 per cent to 14,427.24. Retail sales rose 0.6 per cent last month, an unexpectedly strong performance as shoppers stepped up purchases at department stores and electronics outlets as pandemic business restrictions ease. But a survey by the University of Michigan showed consumer confidence weakening, with inflation playing a role in the report that lagged expectations. Among individual companies, Dow member Intel fell 1.5 per cent followi...
As meme stock mania fizzles, Wall Street sees ‘big reckoning’
NEW YORK (BLOOMBERG) - The day-trading Reddit crowd turned the first quarter of 2021 into one of the wildest periods of stock market mania in modern history. Books - plural - will undoubtedly be dedicated to the topic in years to come. But after these small-time speculators banded together to drive up dozens of obscure stocks by hundreds or even thousands of per cent - and in the process burned a few hedge-fund barons betting on declines - the movement appears to be petering out. An index that tracks 37 of the most popular meme stocks - 37 of the 50 that Robinhood Markets banned clients from trading during the height of the frenzy - is essentially unchanged over the past two months after soaring nearly 150 per cent in January. Talk to Wall Street veterans and they'll tell you that this flat-lining is the beginning of what will be an inexorable move downward in these stocks. It's not so much about the poor fundamentals of the companies. At least not in the short term. The day-trading zealots have shown a surprising ability to ignore those facts. It's more that as the pandemic slowly winds down and the economy starts to open up, many of them will leave their homes and start going bac...
Epic battle over GameStop as ‘nerds’ take on Wall Street
NEW YORK (AFP) - An epic battle is unfolding on Wall Street with a cast of characters clashing over the fate of GameStop, a struggling chain of video game retail stores. The conflict has sent GameStop on a stomach-churning ride with amateur investors taking on the financial establishment in the mindset of the Occupy Wall Street movement launched a decade ago. Why have GameStop shares been so volatile? GameStop, a well-known retail chain whose business model of selling games on discs appears to have been overtaken by a move to the internet, has been the target of "short sellers," often big hedge funds which bet on a decline by selling borrowed shares in the hope of repaying at a lower price. But a group of amateur investors, organising using the online platform Reddit, has fought the trend. A group calling itself WallStreetBets with some three million members who exchange tips and boast about beating "the system," is credited with pushing up GameStop shares and roiling the Wall Street establishment. Some analysts have described the situation as a "nerds vs Wall Street" battle. Jaime Rogozinski, founder of WallStreetBets, said the movement "is able to do what Occupy Wall Street was n...