At least half and perhaps more of this universe will be excluded from ECB purchases, according to strategists, while debt sold by companies in France is likely to benefit the most from expanded QE in particular. France and Germany account for about a third of outstanding euro-denominated debt. Source: FT
French carmaker Renault said on Friday it was launching talks with unions to restructure some plants and potentially close others as it confirmed plans to cut around 15,000 jobs worldwide to ride out a slump in sales. Source France 24
More than 3 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week, raising to more than 42 million the number of workers who have lost jobs since the coronavirus crippled the economy. Source CBSNews
American consumer spending ground to a halt during the coronavirus lockdown, and that is a massive problem for the spending-addicted US economy.
April’s personal consumption data showed a 13.6% drop in consumer spending, according to a Bureau of Economic Analysis report released Friday. That’s equal to $1.89 trillion, and drags spending down to a level not seen since September 2014.
It was the largest month-to-month decline since the BEA began tracking the data in 1959, and worse than economists had expected. Source ABC
