Today, coronavirus cases stand at just under 13.5 million globally. The United States surpassed 3.5 million infections yesterday, after adding 65,000 cases. Brazil is dangerously close to the 2 million milestone, while India’s Covid-19 numbers are approaching 1 million.
European countries are beginning to reinstate some of the quarantine policies that were in place in March, April, and May to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Lockdowns are still not necessary since the current infection rates in the EU are lower than when the virus first arrived on the continent. Flights from high-risk regions in Europe are being cancelled, and masks are being made mandatory once more.
Today politicians in Europe are busy building alliances. Most notably, Spain and Sweden are holding preliminary talks, during which Spain hopes to convince Sweden to support the 750 billion recovery fund proposed by the European Commission.
EU countries are set to vote on the proposal again at the end of the week, but it is likely not going to be accepted at this stage. Several countries, known as the Frugal Four, are opposing the part of the proposal that takes the shape of grants. They would like to see the stimulus take the shape of loans instead.
The United Kingdom joined the United States today in banning Chinese tech giant Huawei from the country’s 5G network. Huawei is arguably the world’s largest provider of 5G technology, but the US (and now the UK) have raised security concerns regarding working with a Chinese-owned company.
The United States and China, meanwhile, continue with their dispute in the South China Sea. The US plans to increase its military presence in the area. In addition, according to Mike Pompeo sanctions against China are also possible. The South China Sea issue is just the latest is what is becoming a small mountain of disagreements between the two largest economies in the world.
Lastly, today we expect more earnings data from US banks and companies. Reports on manufacturing and industrial production will also be published today.
