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Our briefing for Tuesday, December 21, 2021:
Dec 21, 2021 3:50:04 PM
- The United States Secret Service announced on Tuesday that criminals have stolen close to $100 billion in pandemic relief funds since the government started shelling out money in early 2020. The Secret Service said the stolen funds were diverted by fraudsters from the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program, the Economic Industry Disaster Loan program and another program set up to issue unemployment assistance funds nationwide. CNBC noted the government has delivered close to $3.5 trillion in COVID-19 relief money since early 2020 when the pandemic began. “I’ve been in law enforcement for over 29 years and worked some complex fraud investigation for 20 plus years, and I’ve never seen something at this scale,” said Assistant Special Agent in Charge Roy Dotson.
- In Canada, the province of Quebec has become the new epicentre of the coronavirus pandemic in the country, thanks to the emergence of the Omicron variant. The country’s second most populous province recorded 5,043 new cases on Tuesday, breaking another record set the day before. Of the new cases, 3,586 are people who received two doses of a vaccine more than seven days ago. Due to the rapid increase in numbers and the worrying statistic of those already double vaccinated – Montreal Mayor Valerie Plante declared a new state of emergency “to better deal with the turbulence caused by the Omicron variant”. Plante made the news via a virtual press conference on Tuesday as she is in isolation after testing positive for COVID-19 over the weekend.
- United Kingdom Boris Johnson ruled out any new COVID-19 restrictions before the Christmas holidays. In a taped message to the country on Tuesday, the prime minister stated the following: “So what I can say tonight, is that naturally we can’t rule out any further measures after Christmas – and we’re going to keep a constant eye on the data, and we’ll do whatever it takes to protect public health. But in the view of the continuing uncertainty about several things – the severity of Omicron, uncertainty about the hospitalization rate or the impact of the vaccine rollout or boosters, we don’t think today there is enough evidence to justify any tougher measures before Christmas.” The UK recorded 90,269 new cases on Tuesday – a number while high – seems to raise hopes the Omicron surge in the country is slowing.
- France, too, seems to be following the cue of the UK, saying they see no need for a lockdown or more COVID-19 restrictions at the moment. Government spokesperson Gabriel Attal made the news while speaking in an interview on France 2 television while also noting the limits already placed on Christmas and New Year’s celebrations while the government continues to monitor how the Omicron variant spreads across the country. What is having the government cautiously optimistic is the rapid clip at which the French population are signing up for boosters. Health Minister Olivier Veran said via a tweet on Tuesday that France is set to achieve 20 million booster shots, which puts the country ahead of its targets.
- The World Health Organization (WHO) is warning of “another storm coming” in Europe as coronavirus cases surge across the continent due to the Omicron variant, which has now become the dominant strain in several countries. Speaking on Tuesday, WHO Europe Regional Director Dr. Hans Kluge said Omicron has been detected in at least 38 of the region’s 53 member areas. “The sheer volume of new COVID-19 infections could lead to more hospitalizations and widespread disruption to health systems and other critical services,” Kluge said.
- While the rest of the world struggles through another wave of the coronavirus, Japan’s experts are left looking for answers in their current situation. Not long after the Olympics in the summer, the country was seeing 25,000 cases a day and the medical system was stretched to its breaking point. Fast-forward to now – the turnaround has been so dramatic it has left experts and observers struggling to explain it. For instance, cases have dropped by more than 99% from their peak and Japan has seen less than one death a day in recent weeks – their lowest level since July 2020. Japan’s fortunate situation is something they want to keep, so Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said his government plans to maintain their current strict border measures “for the time being”.
Covid-19 – Due Diligence And Asset Management
Omicron Casts a New Shadow Over Economy’s Pandemic Recovery
Brief: Just as Americans and Europeans were eagerly awaiting their most normal holiday season in a couple of years, the omicron variant has unleashed a fresh round of fear and uncertainty — for travelers, shoppers, party-goers and their economies as a whole.The Rockettes have canceled their Christmas show in New York. Some London restaurants have emptied out as commuters avoid the downtown. Broadway shows are canceling some performances. The National Hockey League suspended its games until after Christmas. Boston plans to require diners, revelers and shoppers to show proof of vaccination to enter restaurants, bars and stores. A heightened sense of anxiety has begun to erode the willingness of some people and some businesses to carry on as usual in the face of the extraordinarily contagious omicron variant, which has fast become the dominant version of the virus in the United States.
Former United Airlines CEO on Travelling During COVID-19 Pandemic: It’s Airline’s Jobs to Keep you Safe
Brief: Former United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz is sticking with his long-time peers in the airline industry that safety is a top priority during the pandemic, even if that means you have to wear a mask on a plane or employees must be vaccinated. Shared Munoz on Yahoo Finance Live, "This is an industry where no good deed goes unpunished. There are so many viewpoints that it is hard to sort of measure everything. At United — which is all I can speak of with my successor and all those folks — the concept has always been about human safety. When you develop a principle that is paramount, that's what drives the conversations and decisions around that. So everything that we have done at United is about safety." The commentary comes after Munoz's successor as CEO of United Airlines — Scott Kirby — was grilled by Senator Ted Cruz (R, TX) at a hearing of airline industry leaders last week. United Airlines has decided to implement a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for workers, which Cruz insisted is causing job loss for those in his home state of Texas.
Stocks Bounce Back from Three-Day Rout on Omicron Concerns
Brief: The major averages rebounded sharply on Tuesday following three days of losses amid fears about the fast-spreading Covid omicron variant. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained about 530 points, helped by gains in Nike and Boeing. The S&P 500 rose about 1.6%. The technology-focused Nasdaq Composite added 2.2%. The small-cap benchmark Russell 2000 was up about 2.7%. Reopening plays, like airlines, cruise lines and entertainment stocks, saw some relief buying on Tuesday. Delta Air Lines rose 6.2%, United Airlines gained 7% and Carnival Corp. added 9%. Las Vegas Sands was up more than 8%. Caesars Entertainment added 8.4%. Boeing rose 5% and Booking Holdings popped 6%... Stocks are coming back from a three-day losing streak spurred by the omicron surge that accounted for 73% of new infections in the U.S. last week, federal health officials said Monday. The S&P 500 notched its worst three-day stretch since September on Monday.
UK to Give $1.3 Billion in Aid to Businesses Hurt by Omicron
Brief: Britain announced 1 billion pounds ($1.3 billion) in grants and other aid to help the hospitality industry survive the onslaught of the omicron variant of COVID-19, bowing to days of pressure frompubs, restaurants and other businessesthat complain public health warnings have torpedoed the vital Christmas season. Businesses in the hospitality and leisure sectors in England will be eligible for one-time grants of up to 6,000 pounds ($7,954) each. An additional 100 million pounds ($133 million) will be given to local governments to support businesses in their areas hit by the sudden spike in COVID-19 infections driven by thehighly transmissible new variant. While industry groups welcomed the funding, many said it was too narrowly focused and more assistance would be needed if the surge in infections continues or the government imposes more restrictions.
Equity Markets Dip as Europe Toughens Covid Restrictions
Brief: Europe has moved to implement tougher restrictions in a bid to stop the spread of Omicron, sending equities lower triggered by investors’ “renewed nervousness”. Global equities fell 1.5% last week and are down a further 1-2% today, as Omicron continues to disrupt the economic recovery, according to Rupert Thompson, chief investment officer at UK-based wealth manager Kingswood. He said that, should US markets start to follow suit, "this will leave markets off around 4-5% from their mid-November high”. The latest drop in investor optimism can be attributed to “renewed nervousness” about Omicron, and restrictions being introduced in much of Europe, with the Netherlands now being back in full lockdown, Thompson said. Nevertheless, investment experts believe Omicron presents a temporary disruption to economic recovery, as booster jabs continue to evidence their effectiveness and anti-viral pills start to be rolled out to help reduce hospitalisations, he added.
