30Mar2020 Pre-Market Commentary: Stocks Gain Fractionally, While Oil Stumbles Under $20, DOW Futures Up 165 Points, US Dollar Fractionally Higher 99.17 – +0.58%, Gold Steady At 1615

Here is the current market situation from CNN Money

European markets are mixed. The DAX is higher by 0.12%, while the CAC 40 is leading the FTSE 100 lower. They are down 0.84% and 0.32% respectively.

Exclusive: American Airlines in talks to hire Millstein for aid advice

American Airlines Group Inc is in advanced talks to hire Guggenheim Securities co-chairman James Millstein for advice on tapping a $50 billion industry relief package available from the U.S. Treasury Department to cope with the coronavirus pandemic, people familiar with the matter said.

U.S. stimulus package is biggest ever, but may not be big enough

The Federal Reserve has offered more than $3 trillion in loans and asset purchases in recent weeks to stop the U.S. financial system from seizing up, but it has not yet directly helped large swaths of the real economy: companies, municipalities and other borrowers with less than perfect credit.

Virgin Atlantic asks UK government for financial help: source

Virgin Atlantic has asked the UK government for emergency financial help in addition to the coronavirus package made available to all British companies, said a source familiar with the situation.

Futures choppy as U.S. shutdown extension weighs

U.S. stock index futures see-sawed on Monday after a strong recovery last week, as President Donald Trump extended his stay-at-home guidelines until the end of April, raising fears of a larger economic hit from the slump in business activity.

EasyJet grounds fleet as pandemic pushes airlines to the brink

British budget airline easyJet has grounded its fleet of 344 planes and has no clear idea when it might resume flights, it said on Monday, highlighting the strain on airlines trying to survive the coronavirus pandemic.

Oil plunges to 2002 lows, shares sink again

Oil took another eyewatering 8% tumble on Monday and world shares buckled again as fears mounted that the global coronavirus shutdown could last for months.

China’s big banks flag asset pressure due to virus, boding ill for smaller kin

China’s largest state banks said the impact of restrictions on movement imposed to slow the spread of the coronavirus could pull down asset quality as borrowers struggle to repay loans, though they are likely big enough to weather any fallout.

Ted Baker names finance chief Rachel Osborne as CEO

Troubled fashion retailer Ted Baker on Monday named Chief Financial Officer Rachel Osborne to the permanent role of chief executive officer, replacing Lindsay Page who stepped down last year.

Trump’s attack on GM over ventilators quickly turns to praise

President Donald Trump, who excoriated General Motors Co on Friday and invoked emergency powers to compel the production of badly needed ventilators to tackle the coronavirus pandemic, has abruptly shifted gears to praise the automaker.

The Fed’s Faustian Bargain: “We’re Experiencing The End-Game Of The Great Debt Super-Cycle”

The Fed’s Faustian Bargain: “We’re Experiencing The End-Game Of The Great Debt Super-Cycle”

Echoing many of Jim Grant’s recent fears, Guggenheim Investments’ CIO Scott Minerd fears the consequences of policymakers returning to the same tools employed in the financial crisis as a grand Faustian bargain.

œIn Goethe’s 1831 drama Faust, the devil persuades a bankrupt emperor to print and spend vast quantities of paper money as a short-term fix for his country’s fiscal problems. As a consequence, the empire ultimately unravels and descends into chaos. Today, governments that have relied upon quantitative easing (QE) instead of undertaking necessary structural reforms have arguably entered into the grandest Faustian bargain in financial history.”

-Â Scott Minerd œGlobal CIO Outlook , August 21, 2012

With the global economy slipping into recession and many economists estimating second-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) growth in the United States will fall by 15 percent or more, the world is being confronted with the worst downturn since the 1930s.

In the post-Keynesian era, the standard policy solution to a business cycle downturn has been for governments to temporarily offset any decline in demand with increased fiscal stimulus and easy mone …

China Unexpectedly Cuts Reverse Repo Rate To The Lowest On Record

China Unexpectedly Cuts Reverse Repo Rate To The Lowest On Record

China’s central bank joined the global easing bandwagon early on Monday when it unexpectedly cut the rate on reverse repurchase agreements by 20 basis points, the largest in nearly five years, as authorities stepped up measures to relieve pressure on an economy ravaged by coronavirus pandemic.

Without giving a reason for the move, the People’s Bank of China said on its website that it was lowering the 7-day reverse repo rate to 2.20% from 2.40%, the lowest on record. This was the first rate cut since a 10bps cut in December 2019, and the third cut in the 7-day rate since November.

Futures Rollercoaster As Global Coronacases Approach 1 Million

Futures Rollercoaster As Global Coronacases Approach 1 Million

Global markets started off the new week wobbly, with stocks around the world trying desperately to find firm footing even as the global coronavirus cases rose above 732,000 on Monday morning and are set to hit 1 million by the end of the week.

U.S. stock index futures see-sawed on Monday after a strong recovery last week, swinging between losses and gains after President Trump abruptly abandoned his ambition to return American life to normal by Easter raising fears of a larger economic hit from the slump in business activity. After opening more than 4% lower on Sunday, futures have stince staged a rebound, and were trading slightly above Friday’s close when stocks sold off after the Fed announced it would taper its Unlimited QE from $75BN to $60BN. Abbott Labs was a standout, jumping in early trading after unveiling a five-minute coronavirus test.

Spain’s COVID-19 Case Total Passes China’s, South Korea Reports Disturbing Rebound In New Cases: Live Updates

Spain’s COVID-19 Case Total Passes China’s, South Korea Reports Disturbing Rebound In New Cases: Live Updates

Summary:

Dr. Fauci says 100k-200k Americans may die from COVID-19

Trump extends guidelines to April 30

Spain case total passes China

South Korea reports worrying rebound in cases around Seoul

Russia expands Moscow lockdown throughout country

NYC remains undisputed center of US outbreak

Seattle area reports optimistic slowdown in new cases, deaths

New York surpasses 1k deaths

Indian migrant workers ‘washed’ with disinfectant

Netanyahu goes on quarantine

Trump: US has enough medical equipment & ventilators to deal with peak of virus outbreak

Spike in cases should arrive around Easter, Trump said, deaths expected to be “very low”

JNJ announces encouraging progress on vaccine

Chinese press publishes photo of Xi standing in public without mask

Australia launches worker subsidy program

Amazon workers planning strike

*Â Â *Â Â *

Update (0825ET): Before Trump insisted he would “rely on experts” to determine the end of the quarantine and that the worst thing to do would be to “declare victory” over “the invisible enemy” and have it not be true, the president took a few minutes to slam the national press. “I’ve spent three years trying to figure out who is more dishonest the New York Times or the Washington Post,” Trump said. “When I figure it out I’ll call you and we’ll have a special.”

Steve Doocy laughed a little, though his co-hosts were less amused.

If you have …

Inside Maruti’s sprint to make emergency ventilators for India

Inside Maruti’s sprint to make emergency ventilators for IndiaMaruti is planning to make available as many as 10,000 ventilators per month.

Delay in payment may not lead to downgrade

Delay in payment may not lead to downgradeSebi has asked rating cos not to consider as default any delay in payment due to coronavirus lockdown.

Drones could be a key weapon in Covid fight

Drones could be a key weapon in Covid fightNot just in India, drones have been used in China and South Korea for spraying disinfectants.

Futures Movers: Oil dips below $20 a barrel to start week as coronavirus crushes demand amid price-war

Oil futures get the week off to an ugly start, with the U.S. benchmark dipping below the psychologically important $20-a-barrel level to trade at an 18-year low as the global COVID-19 pandemic crushes demand and a price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia floods the world with crude.

The Wall Street Journal: Trump wants his signature to appear on coronavirus stimulus checks

A civil servant would typically sign such federal disbursements, said Don Hammond, a former longtime Treasury Department official.

Outside the Box: America’s highly paid CEOs should give their 2020 salary and stock compensation to the coronavirus fight

Millions of dollars could go to U.S. workers, cities and towns if corporate leaders do their part.