Financial Times Europe - 16 04 2020

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Briefing

i IMF warns of ‘massive’ public borrowingThe fund has forecast that lockdowns and economiccontractions will push budget deficits well abovefinancial crisis peaks in its first attempt to quantifythe pandemic’s damage to public finances.— PAGE 2

i Wall St banks add $12.8bn to provisionsBank of America, Citigroup and Goldman Sachshave unveiled $12.8bn of total first-quarter chargesfor loan losses, joining JPMorgan and Wells Fargo,which reported credit charges on Tuesday.— PAGE 5

i G20 agrees debt relief for poor nationsThe world’s richest nations have agreed to freezebilateral loan repayments until the end of the yearand urged private creditors to join their effort in abid to head off an emerging market crisis.— PAGE 3

i Africa adapts for coronavirus battleScientists and health officialshave adapted technology andsystems developed to fighttuberculosis and polio to try tomake up for a lack of healthinfrastructure.— PAGE 4

i Dividend block on bailed-out EU groupsA document seen by the FT has revealed thatcompanies given emergency equity injections byEU states will not be allowed to pay out dividends. Italso bars them from “excessive risk-taking”.— PAGE 2

i EY and Deloitte join partner pay cutsThe British audit firms have said they will slash payby 20 per cent, following similar moves by Big Fourrivals PwC and KPMG. Mid-tier rivals furloughedjunior staff to cope with the crisis.— PAGE 6

i TikTok hiring amid home video surgeByteDance, the Chinese start-up behind the videoapp, has said it will take on 10,000 staff, as everyonefrom nurses to celebrities makes clips lip-synced tomusic to absorb lockdown time.— PAGE 5

Datawatch

THURSDAY 16 APRIL 2020 WORLD BUSINESS NEWSPAPER EUROPE

World Markets

STOCK MARKETS

Apr 15 prev %chg

S&P 500 2768.10 2846.06 -2.74

Nasdaq Composite 8346.77 8515.74 -1.98

Dow Jones Ind 23323.38 23949.76 -2.62

FTSEurofirst 300 1268.07 1309.52 -3.17

Euro Stoxx 50 2805.34 2917.74 -3.85

FTSE 100 5597.65 5791.31 -3.34

FTSE All-Share 3087.44 3200.14 -3.52

CAC 40 4353.72 4523.90 -3.76

Xetra Dax 10279.76 10696.56 -3.90

Nikkei 19550.09 19638.81 -0.45

Hang Seng 24145.34 24435.40 -1.19

MSCI World $ 2006.81 1956.75 2.56

MSCI EM $ 896.29 883.14 1.49

MSCI ACWI $ 477.70 466.37 2.43

CURRENCIES

Apr 15 prev

$ per € 1.091 1.097

$ per £ 1.250 1.260

£ per € 0.873 0.871

¥ per $ 107.415 107.220

¥ per £ 134.242 135.075

SFr per € 1.053 1.054

€ per $ 0.917 0.912

Apr 15 prev

£ per $ 0.800 0.794

€ per £ 1.146 1.149

¥ per € 117.136 117.610

£ index 78.821 78.188

SFr per £ 1.207 1.210

COMMODITIES

Apr 15 prev %chg

Oil WTI $ 19.69 20.11 -2.09

Oil Brent $ 27.78 29.60 -6.15

Gold $ 1741.90 1680.65 3.64

INTEREST RATES

price yield chg

US Gov 10 yr 0.64 -0.10

UK Gov 10 yr 0.30 -0.04

Ger Gov 10 yr 103.94 -0.47 -0.08

Jpn Gov 10 yr 0.02 0.00

US Gov 30 yr 130.91 1.27 -0.12

Ger Gov 2 yr 105.19 -0.71 -0.03

price prev chg

Fed Funds Eff 0.65 1.58 -0.93

US 3m Bills 0.20 0.26 -0.06

Euro Libor 3m -0.22 -0.21 -0.01

UK 3m 0.67 0.68 -0.01Prices are latest for edition Data provided by Morningstar

ERIC PLATT ANDJAMES FONTANELLA-KHAN — NEW YORKDEREK BROWER — LONDON

Warren Buffett will receive the latest ofhis dividends from Occidental Petro-leum in shares instead of cash, as theheavily indebted oil producer tries toshore up its balance sheet in the face ofapriceroutthathasrattledthesector.

In a regulatory filing yesterday, Occi-dental said it had issued 17.3m shares toMr Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, worthabout $257m at the previous night’sclosing price and amounting to 1.9 percent of the company’s equity. The movesent Occidental’s share price more than12 per cent lower at one point yesterday,triggeringshort-sale limitsonthestock.

Occidental turned to Mr Buffett a yearago to help fund its $55bn takeover ofrival Anadarko, but the financing came

at a high price. In return for $10bn,Berkshire received preferred sharescarrying an 8 per cent dividend. Occi-dental had the option to pay with eithercashorbyissuingBerkshirenewshares.

The Anadarko deal, which was criti-cised as too expensive by some share-holders, including activist Carl Icahn,saddled the company with debt justbefore oil prices plunged. Occidentalhas since taken a series of emergencymeasures to shore up its financial posi-tion, including cutting capital expendi-ture and slashing the dividend on itscommonsharesby90percent.

For Berkshire, the $10bn investmentin Occidental came after Mr Buffett hadgone years without clinching one of themultibillion-dollar deals for which he isknown. It allowed him to put part ofBerkshire’smammothcashpile towork,which at the time was primarily

invested in short-term Treasury bills.It is unclear whether Mr Buffett will

decidetosell theadditionalstock.Investors have soured on the US’s

debt-laden shale oil producers, causingequity valuations for the sector tounderperform against the wider mar-ket. The crisis has deepened with a halv-ing of the oil price since January as lock-downscausedacollapse indemand.

Record oil production cutsannounced by Opec and Russia on Sun-day failed to stop further price falls thisweek. The US crude benchmark, WestTexas Intermediate, dropped below $20a barrel yesterday, sparking furtherdeclines inshaleproducershares.

S&P Global Ratings, the credit ratingagency, also downgraded $37bn of Occi-dental debt to junk status, citing thehigh leverage.Payout ban for rescued groups page 2

Cash-strapped Occidental forced topay Buffett dividend with 17m shares

© THE FINANCIAL TIMES LTD 2020No: 40,375 ★

Printed in London, Liverpool, Glasgow, Dublin,Frankfurt, Milan, Madrid, New York, Chicago, SanFrancisco, Orlando, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore,Seoul, Dubai, Doha

Analysis i PAGE 8

Twitchy consumers pushcoffee into the big league

Austria €3.90 Malta €3.70Bahrain Din1.8 Morocco Dh45Belgium €3.90 Netherlands €3.90Bulgaria Lev7.50 Norway NKr40Croatia Kn29 Oman OR1.60Cyprus €3.70 Pakistan Rupee350Czech Rep Kc105 Poland Zl 20Denmark DKr38 Portugal €3.70Egypt E£45 Qatar QR15Finland €4.70 Romania Ron17France €3.90 Russia €5.00Germany €3.90 Serbia NewD420Gibraltar £2.90 Slovak Rep €3.70Greece €3.70 Slovenia €3.70Hungary Ft1200 Spain €3.70India Rup220 Sweden SKr39Italy €3.70 Switzerland SFr6.20Latvia €6.99 Tunisia Din7.50Lithuania €4.30 Turkey TL19Luxembourg €3.90 UAE Dh20.00North Macedonia Den220

Poorer countriestypically havemore householdswhere threegenerations livetogether, makingit difficult for theelderly to isolateand cut infectionrisks. Countrieslike the UK tend tohave some form ofyoung-old socialdistancing built in

Close family% of households with threegenerations in the same home

0 5 10 15 20 25 30

PakistanIndia

BangladeshIndonesia

ChinaMexico

BrazilNigeria

USItaly

UK

Source: UN, 2019 (using latest available data)

3 Is the UK paying too much attention to epidemiologists? — BIG READ, PAGE 15

3 The world’s lockdown will lead to more equality — AMARTYA SEN, PAGE 17

3 How the virus is infecting democracy — CONSTANZE STELZENMÜLLER, PAGE 17

Covid-19: theglobal impact

MICHAEL PEEL — BRUSSELSGUY CHAZAN — BERLINDEMETRI SEVASTOPULO — WASHINGTONRICHARD MILNE — OSLO

America’s allies rounded on DonaldTrump yesterday after the US presidentabruptly stopped funding the WorldHealth Organization, depriving the glo-bal body of its biggest donor as it battlesthecoronavirusoutbreak.

The move aggravated internationaltensions over the pandemic andexposed a new rift between the US andChina after Mr Trump criticised thebody’srelationshipwithBeijing.

Josep Borrell, EU foreign policy chief,warned that all countries must worktogether closely to stem the Covid-19pandemic.“DeeplyregretUSdecisiontosuspend funding to WHO,” he wrote on

Twitter. “There is no reason justifyingthis move at a moment when theirefforts are needed more than ever tohelp contain & mitigate the coronaviruspandemic.”

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHOdirector-general, expressed regret at MrTrump’s decision and said his organisa-tion was assessing the impact and howto fill any funding gaps. “This is a timefor all of us to be united in our commonstruggle against a common threat, adangerous enemy,” he told report-ers. “When we are divided the virusexploits thecracksbetweenus.”

Mr Trump shocked European allieson Tuesday when he announced thathundreds of millions of dollars in USfunding would be suspended while areview was conducted to assess the

WHO’s “role in severely mismanagingand covering up the spread of the coro-navirus”. He also criticised the organisa-tion’srelationshipwithChina.

“American taxpayers providebetween $400m-$500m per year to theWHO, in contrast China contributesroughly $40m a year, even less,” MrTrump said. “As the organisation’s lead-ing sponsor, the US has a duty to insistonfullaccountability.”

The European Commission said theEU backed the WHO in its efforts to con-tain the pandemic and was weighing aresponse to the US move. “This is thetime for solidarity, not for finger-pointing or undermining multilateralco-operation,” it said.

In Germany, Heiko Maas, foreignminister, said it did not help to “appor-

tion blame” over the pandemic. SimonCoveney, Ireland’s foreign minister,slammed Mr Trump’s decision as “inde-fensible” inthe“midstofpandemic”.

Sergei Ryabkov, Russia’s deputy for-eign minister, branded the US move“veryalarming”.

Mr Trump’ was also condemned byBill Gates, the Microsoft founder andbillionaire head of the Bill & MelindaGates Foundation. “Halting funding forthe World Health Organization during aworld health crisis is as dangerous as itsounds,”hewroteonTwitter.

More than 26,000 people have diedfromCovid-19 intheUS, thehighestoffi-cial national death toll. Globally, thenumber of people infected has doubledin two weeks to 2m, according to datafromJohnsHopkinsUniversity.

Trump condemned for WHOfund freeze as coronavirus rages3 China-link accusation stirs tension 3 Gates joins criticism 3 Global infections pass 2m

Watered downIndia to easerestrictionsA worker in Faridabad, India, spraysdisinfectant in a residential area yester-day. India’s Covid-19 lockdown, whichwas imposed on March 24 with littlewarning, will slowly begin to unwindnext week with limited manufacturingand agricultural work resuming outsidevirushotspots.

But the lockdown will remain one ofthe world’s strictest, with all schools,public transport, flights, religious sites,shopping centres and other publicspaces remaining out of bounds untilnext month. While India has reported377 coronavirus-related deaths, doctorsbelieve many more deaths linked to thediseasehavebeenuncounted.Strict curbs remain page 3Notebook page 16

Money Sharma/AFP

3 Virus reportsPages 2-43 CorporateimpactPages 5-73 MarketsPages 8-93 Big Read53 EditorialCommentPage 163 OpinionPage 173 Lex Page 18

Inside

APRIL 16 2020 Section:FrontBack Time: 15/4/2020 - 19:00 User: simon.roberts Page Name: 1FRONT USA, Part,Page,Edition: EUR, 1, 1

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2 ★ FINANCIAL TIMES Thursday 16 April 2020

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CORONAVIRUS

Cases so far

Russia launches stimulus measures forSMEs, essential businesses and airlines

Vladimir Putin has announced Russia will introducemeasurestostemunemploymentandsupportbusiness.

Russia’s president said that small and medium enter-prises from hard-hit sectors would receive up toRbs12,100 ($162) per employee to cover salary pay-ments on the condition they retain at least 90 per centof staff. Other measures include government-backedloans for essential businesses at near-zero interest ratesandRbs23bntosupport theairline industry.

Global number of cases hits 2m mark

New Zealand premier takes pay cut insolidarity with struggling workers

New Zealand’s prime minister and her cabinet will takea 20 per cent pay cut for the next six months to showsolidarity with citizens struggling financially because ofthecoronaviruspandemic.

“We acknowledge New Zealanders who are reliant onwage subsidies, taking pay cuts and losing their jobs as aresult of the Covid-19 global pandemic,” JacindaArdernsaid inherdailybriefing.NewZealandhas1,386viruscasesasofyesterday,andninehavedied.

Cumulative confirmed cases

0

500,000

1,000,000

1,500,000

2,000,000

Mar 01 Mar 23 Apr 06

Source: Johns Hopkins University, CSSE

The Covid-19 count has topped 2m. Signs of a plateau incases are seen in Italy and Spain but many countries arein early phases. The global case count hit 1m on April 2.

2,016,020and 130,528 deaths by 18.45 BST on April 15Source: Johns Hopkins University, CSSE

Read more at ft.com/coronavirus

CORONAVIRUS

ROUND-UP

Germany celebrates ‘interim success’ inslowing virus and reopens small shops

Germany is to reopen small shops next Monday, butpeople will have to wear masks in them and on publictransport.

Angela Merkel, chancellor, said Germany hadachieved an “interim success” in slowing the spread ofthevirus,but itwas“fragile”.Restrictionsonsocial con-tact would remain until at least May 3. All big publicevents such as fairs will remain forbidden until the endofAugust.SchoolswillbepartiallyreopenedonMay4.

Brussels to host donation drive toraise funds for Covid-19 research

The EU will hold an online “pledging conference” toraise fundsforresearchintoCovid-19onMay4.

Ursula von der Leyen, president of the EuropeanCommission, said that Brussels would host the dona-tion drive in co-ordination with organisations such asthe Gates Foundation, the Wellcome Foundation andthe World Health Organization. “[The conference] willhelp address the immediate funding gaps to come upwith innovativeandequitablesolutions,”shesaid.

CHRIS GILES — LONDON

The increase in borrowing by govern-ments as a result of the pandemic will be“massive”, the IMF said yesterday, fore-casting that lockdowns and economiccontractions will push budget deficitswellabovefinancialcrisispeaks.

Globally, net public debt will rise from69.4 per cent of national income lastyear to 85.3 per cent in 2020, the IMFsaid, raising concerns about the willing-ness of the private sector to finance gov-ernments with chequered records inservicingtheirborrowings.

In its first attempt to quantify thescale of the damage to the publicfinances by coronavirus, the fund provi-sionally forecast global deficits willclimb by 6.2 percentage points this yearto reach 9.9 per cent of national income,

topping levels in the 2008-09 crisis.Despite these concerns, the IMF said

the surge in short-term public borrow-ingwasnecessarytocontainthevirus.

“Government responses should beswift, concerted, and commensuratewith the severity of the health crisis,with fiscal tools taking a prime role,” itsaid in itsannual fiscalmonitor.

“The human cost of the pandemic hasintensified at an alarming rate, and theimpact on output and public finances isprojectedtobemassive.”

It recommended that countries withgood access to lenders should borrowinitially to finance their health sectorsand protect companies and householdsfrom falling revenues and incomes.Once lockdowns were lifted, even moreborrowing would be needed to “facili-tate therecovery”, theIMFwarned.

“As the virus is contained and peoplereturn to work, a broad-based fiscalstimulus becomes more effective,” theIMF said. But longer term, governmentswould need to raise taxes and curb pub-

lic spending. “Once economies recover,achieving progress on ensuring debtsustainabilitywillbeneeded,” it said.

Deficits would rise sharply across theworld, it said. In the US, the public sec-tor deficit will surge from 5.8 per cent ofnational income in 2019 to 15.4 per cent

this year, with net public debt risingfrom84percent to107percent.

Deficits are likely to rise towards10 per cent of gross domestic productacross the eurozone and net debt-to-GDP ratios will balloon in all countries,and that could exacerbate the differ-ences between members states’ budgetpositions that have caused so muchpolitical tensioninthebloc inthepast.

Germany’s net debt is expected to riseby 7.9 percentage points to 49.2 per centofGDP,but inItaly itwill riseby19.6per-centage points to 142.7 per cent of GDP,the fund said, reflecting a deeper down-turnandgreater lossof taxrevenues.

Higher borrowing costs would exposeemerging economies to the risk of capi-tal flight,a“concerning”outlook, it said.There was a high risk of an “abruptworsening infinancingconditions”.

The average interest bill on govern-ment debt in low-income developingcountries was 20 per cent of tax reve-nues in 2019. The IMF expects this torisebeyond30percent thisyear.

Fallout

IMF warns of global rise in public debtBorrowing expected tobuild deficits surpassingpeaks of 2008-09 crisis

JOE MILLER — FRANKFURTDAVID KEOHANE — PARIS

Days after Germany brought its econ-omy to a temporary halt in March, 500workers in the country’s southernmosttown, Sonthofen, learned their jobsmightbe inperil.

While a strike to protest against theplanned closure of a specialist gear-making plant, nestled at the foot of theAlps, was called off owing to the virusoutbreak, the factory’s owner, Voith, didnotsuspenditsrestructuringplans.

The company was swiftly accused byGermany’s largest union of takingadvantage of the pandemic. “Such anapproach does not create cohesion,”said Johann Horn, the head of IG Met-all’s Bavarian branch, “but can lead tothetearingapartofsociety.”

For the time being, the incidentremains an isolated example; workers’representatives in Europe’s two largesteconomies, Germany and France, havemostly co-operated with the region’slargestcorporations.

However, Philippe Martinez, head ofthe Communist-aligned French tradeunion, the CGT, believes there is a “riskthat restructuring projects in deskdrawers could be taken out and usedduringthiscrisis”.

Companies such as Lufthansa arealready warning that they could emergefrom the crisis much smaller. The pros-pect of leaner businesses being able tofunction with reduced workforcesalarms labour organisations that havedominated the continent’s manufactur-inghubssincethesecondworldwar.

Thepandemichasalsodisproportion-ately placed low-paid workers in shops,hospitals and on public transport atrisk, spurring unions to fight for wageincreases and for emergency supportoffered to gig economy workers to bemadepermanent.

“We have to discuss a new social con-tract and put the most important sub-jects on the table, ” said Laurent Berger,the head of France’s largest trade union,the Confédération Française Démocra-tique du Travail. “We have asked for alot from workers, we have to let themspeakwhenthis isallover.”

Unions in both France and Germanyare urging the government to push backagainst globalisation and protect morestrategic industries. They recentlyreceived the tacit support of EU compe-tition commissioner MargretheVestager, who told the Financial Timesthat European countries should buystakes incompaniesunderthreatofChi-nesetakeovers.

While unions search for longer-termrelevance, the crisis has put them in theunusual position of fighting the rights ofworkers to stay at home. “We do notwant to see the shutdown or contact banrestrictions lifted even a day before it isabsolutely safe to do so,” said Uwe Mein-

hardt, IG Metall’s director of policy.“Why do we keep making planes,

cars, lipstick, when scientists say thebest protection is to stay at home?Despite all of our warnings and alertsthere are still shops where people arenotprotected,”saidMrMartinez.

The CGT has already filed a criminalcomplaint against Carrefour and itschief executive, Alexandre Bompard,alleging the supermarket chain was notadequately protecting its workers, whileon Tuesday a French court handed theunions a victory after telling Amazon toonly ship essential items in the countryuntil it had done a systematic review ofits safetymeasures.

Governments across Europe havespent tens of billions of euros ensuringcompanies keep millions of employeeson their books through short-term paidleave schemes. The unions, too, haveplayed their role. Several large manu-facturers, including Germany’sVolkswagen and France’s PSA, have vol-

untarily topped up their government’stemporary pay measures after negotiat-ingwithworkers’ representatives.

While Germany and France havelargely avoided huge job losses, someanalysts have begun to raise concernsabout the longer-term impacts of job-saving policies on both countries’ econ-omies, as companies are lumbered withexcess capacity. The relative speed ofeconomic recoveries in developed coun-tries will put the strength of Europe’sunions and job-saving schemes undermorescrutinythanever.

While the unions’ traditional MayDay celebrations are unlikely to goahead this year, the solidarity that fuelsthem may still prove vital to an eco-nomic recovery once workers are askedto go back to risky jobs. “A few monthsago, [French president Emmanuel]Macron thought that the unions weren’tgood for anything but now . . . he thinkswe serve a purpose,” said Mr Martinez.“Iwillwaitandsee if thatcontinues.”

Employment. Workers at risk

Europe’s trade unions fear for futureCompany restructurings and

lifting of lockdown restrictions

too early top list of concerns

JAVIER ESPINOZA — BRUSSELS

Companies given equity injections byEU member states as a result of thecoronavirus will not be allowed to payout dividends, buy back shares or pro-vide bonuses or similar remuneration,according to an official document seenbytheFinancialTimes.

The terms and conditions emerged afterthe FT reported last week that the Euro-pean Commission was exploring afurther relaxation of the bloc’s rules onstate aid to help ailing companies as aresultof thepandemic.

Bailed-out businesses are also forbid-den to take “excessive risks” or evenengage in “aggressive commercialexpansion”, says a document setting outamendments to the recent relaxation ofstate aid rules. They will not be able tobuy up rivals or other operators in thesame sector while still repaying thestate, thedocumentadds.

The constraints are aimed at prevent-ing “undue distortions of competition”and mirror similar restraints imposed

on the banking sector at the height oftheglobal financialcrisisadecadeago.

European businesses that receive anequity injection of more than 20 percent will also be obliged to set up a clearexit strategy from that support in theaftermathof thepandemic.

Brussels is also setting out clear time-lines to give companies an incentive topay back the aid. If by December 31,2024 the state’s shareholding is notreducedtobelow15percent,companieswillbeobligedtopresentarestructuringplantothecommissionforapproval.

Brussels is also encouraging incen-tives for companies to exit the schemesas soon as possible. “The member stateshall put a mechanism in place to incen-tivise redemption before 1 January2023,” thedocumentadds.

“The commission is expected to askmember states to attach conditions torecapitalisations in order to preservecompetition,” said Natura Gracia, apartner in law firm Linklaters inLondon.“It showsthat theEUhas learntfrompastcrises.”

Competition concerns

Brussels lays out terms forcompanies handed state aid

Solidarity:members of theCGT uniondressed astraditionalcleanersprotest againstgovernmentpolicies incentral Parisin JanuaryKiran Ridley/Getty Images

Government deficits set to rise% of GDP

Source: IMF

-15 -10 -5 0

Advanced economiesUS

CanadaFrance

UKItaly

JapanGermany

Emerging economiesChinaBrazilIndia

Russia

5

20192020

MAMTA BADKAR — NEW YORKBRENDAN GREELEY — WASHINGTON

Data from the US economy yesterdayrevealed the scale of the collapse inconsumer demand, industrial activityand confidence, suggesting the lock-downshavehitdeeperthanfeared.

Two measures in particular were histor-ically bad: US industrial output showedthe biggest monthly decline since theend of the second world war, while retailsales dropped by the most since the databeganbeingcollected in1992.

“It will be a brutal spring quarter forthe economy,” said Joshua Shapiro, atconsulting firm MFR. “While there willbe a bounce in growth rates as the econ-omy is gradually reopened, returning tothe levels of activity that prevailed pre-crisis will take a long time . . . probablyyears for themostaffectedsectors.”

Industrial production, a broad gaugeof output from factories, mines and util-ities, fell 5.4 per cent in March on theprevious month, said the Federal Res-erve, itsworstperformancesince1946.

Headline retail sales in shops and res-taurants fell 8.7 per cent, according tothe commerce department, erasing fouryearsofgrowth.

The retail sales data in particularshowed how the pandemic has hitspending habits since mid-March, whensocial distancing measures wereimposed and Americans began to losetheir jobs inrecordnumbers.

Purchases at grocery stores surged by27 per cent, but there was a 27 per centdrop at bars and restaurants, which inmany cases had to close. Sales at petrolstations sank 17 per cent. Clothing saleswere cut in half, the worst of any cate-gory. Car and furniture sales eachdroppedbyaquarter.

The drop in retail sales was “just thebeginning of the consumer pullback”,said Lydia Boussour at Oxford Econom-ics. “Plummeting consumer confidence,collapsing employment, and lockdownrestrictions have compounded into anextraordinary and multi-faceted shockto spending and brought the economy’smainenginetoasuddenhalt.”

Monthly data

Factory output and retail salesunderline economic hit to US

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World Markets

STOCK MARKETS

Mar 30 prev %chg

S&P 500 2365.93 2361.13 0.20

Nasdaq Composite 5902.74 5897.55 0.09

Dow Jones Ind 20703.38 20659.32 0.21

FTSEuro�rst 300 1500.72 1493.75 0.47

Euro Stoxx 50 3481.67 3475.27 0.18

FTSE 100 7369.52 7373.72 -0.06

FTSE All-Share 4011.01 4011.80 -0.02

CAC 40 5089.64 5069.04 0.41

Xetra Dax 12256.43 12203.00 0.44

Nikkei 19063.22 19217.48 -0.80

Hang Seng 24301.09 24392.05 -0.37

FTSE All World $ 297.99 297.73 0.09

CURRENCIES

Mar 30 prev

$ per € 1.074 1.075

$ per £ 1.249 1.241

£ per € 0.859 0.866

¥ per $ 111.295 111.035

¥ per £ 139.035 137.822

€ index 89.046 89.372

SFr per € 1.069 1.072

Mar 30 prev

€ per $ 0.932 0.930

£ per $ 0.801 0.806

€ per £ 1.164 1.155

¥ per € 119.476 119.363

£ index 76.705 76.951

$ index 104.636 103.930

SFr per £ 1.244 1.238COMMODITIES

Mar 30 prev %chg

Oil WTI $ 50.22 49.51 1.43

Oil Brent $ 52.98 52.54 0.84

Gold $ 1248.80 1251.10 -0.18

INTEREST RATES

price yield chg

US Gov 10 yr 98.87 2.38 0.00

UK Gov 10 yr 100.46 1.21 -0.03

Ger Gov 10 yr 98.68 0.39 -0.01

Jpn Gov 10 yr 100.45 0.06 0.00

US Gov 30 yr 100.14 2.99 0.01

Ger Gov 2 yr 102.58 -0.75 0.00

price prev chg

Fed Funds E� 0.66 0.66 0.00

US 3m Bills 0.78 0.78 0.00

Euro Libor 3m -0.36 -0.36 0.00

UK 3m 0.34 0.34 0.00Prices are latest for edition Data provided by Morningstar

LAURA NOONAN — DUBLINJENNIFER THOMPSON — LONDON

AboastfulWhatsAppmessagehas costa London investment banker his joband a £37,000 fine in the first case ofregulators cracking down on commu-nications over Facebook’s popularchatapp.

The fine by the Financial ConductAuthority highlights the increasingproblem new media pose for companiesthat need to monitor and archive theirstaff’scommunication.

Several large investment banks havebanned employees from sending clientinformation over messaging servicesincluding WhatsApp, which uses anencryption system that cannot beaccessed without permission from theuser. Deutsche Bank last year bannedWhatsApp from work-issued Black-

Berrys after discussions with regulators.Christopher Niehaus, a former Jeffer-

ies banker, passed confidential clientinformation to a “personal acquaint-ance and a friend” using WhatsApp,according to the FCA. The regulator saidMr Niehaus had turned over his devicetohisemployervoluntarily.

The FCA said Mr Niehaus had sharedconfidential informationonthemessag-ing system “on a number of occasions”lastyearto“impress”people.

Several banks have banned the use ofnew media from work-issued devices,but the situation has become trickier asbanks move towards a “bring your owndevice” policy. Goldman Sachs hasclamped down on its staff’s phone billsas iPhone-loving staff spurn their work-issuedBlackBerrys.

Bankers at two institutions said staffare typically trained in how to use new

media at work, but banks are unable toban people from installing apps on theirprivatephones.

Andrew Bodnar, a barrister at MatrixChambers, saidthecaseset“aprecedentin that it shows the FCA sees these mes-saging apps as the same as everythingelse”.

Information shared by Mr Niehausincluded the identity and details of aclient and information about a rival ofJefferies. In one instance the bankerboasted how he might be able to pay offhismortgage ifadealwassuccessful.

Mr Niehaus was suspended from Jef-feries and resigned before the comple-tionofadisciplinaryprocess.

Jefferies declined to comment whileFacebook did not respond to a requestforcomment.Additional reportingbyChloeCornishLombard page 20

Citywatchdog sends a clearmessage asbanker loses joboverWhatsAppboast

Congressional Republicans seeking toavert a US government shutdown afterApril 28 have resisted Donald Trump’sattempt to tack funds to pay for a wallon the US-Mexico border on tostopgap spending plans. They fearthat his planned $33bn increase indefence and border spending couldforce a federal shutdown for the firsttime since 2013, as Democrats refuseto accept the proposals.US budget Q&A andTrump attack over health bill i PAGE 8

Shutdown risk as borderwall bid goes over the top

FRIDAY 31 MARCH 2017

Briefing

iUSbargain-hunters fuel EuropeM&AEurope has become the big target for cross-borderdealmaking, as US companies ride a Trump-fuelledequity market rally to hunt for bargains across theAtlantic.— PAGE 15; CHINA CURBS HIT DEALS, PAGE 17

iReport outlines longerNHSwaiting timesA report on how the health service can survivemore austerity has said patients will wait longer fornon-urgent operations and for A&E treatment whilesome surgical procedures will be scrapped.— PAGE 4

iEmerging nations in record debt salesDeveloping countries have sold record levels ofgovernment debt in the first quarter of this year,taking advantage of a surge in optimism towardemerging markets as trade booms.— PAGE 15

i London tower plans break recordsA survey has revealed that arecord 455 tall buildings areplanned or under constructionin London. Work began onalmost one tower a weekduring 2016.— PAGE 4

iTillerson fails to ease Turkey tensionsThe US secretary of state has failed to reconciletensions after talks in Ankara with President RecepTayyip Erdogan on issues including Syria and theextradition of cleric Fethullah Gulen.— PAGE 9

iToshiba investors doubt revival planIn a stormy three-hour meeting, investors accusedmanagers o�aving an entrenched secrecy cultureand cast doubt on a revival plan after Westinghousefiled for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.— PAGE 16

iHSBCwoos transgender customersThe bank has unveiled a range of gender-neutraltitles such as “Mx”, in addition to Mr, Mrs, Miss orMs, in a move to embrace diversity and cater to theneeds of transgender customers.— PAGE 20

Datawatch

UK £2.70 Channel Islands £3.00; Republic of Ireland €3.00


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Recent attacks —notably the 2011massacre byAnders Breivik inNorway, theattacks in Parisand Nice, and theBrussels suicidebombings — havebucked the trendof generally lowfatalities fromterror incidents inwestern Europe

Sources: Jane’s Terrorism and Insurgency Centre

Terror attacks in western Europe

Highlighted attack Others

NorwayParis Nice

Brussels

A Five Star plan?Italy’s populists are trying to woothe poor — BIG READ, PAGE 11

WORLDBUSINESSNEWSPAPER

Trump vs the ValleyTech titans need to minimisepolitical risk — GILLIAN TETT, PAGE 13

Dear Don...May’s first stab at the break-upletter — ROBERT SHRIMSLEY, PAGE 12

Lloyd’s of London chose Brus-sels over “five or six” othercities in its decision to set up anEU base to help deal with the expected loss of passportingrightsafterBrexit.

John Nelson, chairman of thecenturies-old insurance mar-ket, said he expected other

insurers to follow. Most of thebusiness written in Brusselswill be reinsured back to thesyndicates at its City of Londonheadquarters,picturedabove.

The Belgian capital had notbeen seen as the first choice forLondon’s specialist insurancegroups after the UK leaves the

EU, with Dublin and Luxem-bourg thought to be more likelyhomes for the industry. ButMr Nelson said the city won onits transport links, talent pooland “extremely good regula-toryreputation”.Lex page 14Insurers set to follow page 18

Lloyd’s of Brussels Insurancemarketto tapnew talent poolwithEUbase

AFP

JAMES BLITZ — WHITEHALL EDITOR

A computer system acquired to collectduties and clear imports into the UKmay not be able to handle the hugesurge inworkloadexpectedonceBritainleaves the EU, customs authorities haveadmittedtoMPs.

HM Revenue & Customs told a parlia-mentary inquiry that the new systemneeded urgent action to be ready byMarch 2019, when Brexit is due to becompleted, and the chair of the probesaid confidence it would be operationalintime“hascollapsed”.

Setting up a digital customs systemhas been at the heart of Whitehall’sBrexit planning because of the fivefoldincrease in declarations expected atBritishportswhentheUKleavestheEU.

About 53 per cent of British importscome from the EU, and do not requirechecks because they arrive through thesingle market and customs union. ButTheresa May announced in January thatBrexit would include departure fromboth trading blocs. HMRC handles 60mdeclarations a year but, once outside thecustoms union, the number is expectedtohit300m.

The revelations about the system,called Customs Declaration Service, arelikely to throw a sharper spotlight onwhether Whitehall can implement ahost of regulatory regimes — in areasranging from customs and immigrationto agriculture and fisheries — by thetimeBritain leavestheEU.

Problems with CDS and other projectsessential toBrexit could force London to

adjust its negotiation position with theEU, a Whitehall official said. “If runningour own customs system is provingmuch harder than we anticipated, thatought to have an impact on how wepress forcertainoptions inBrussels.”

In a letter to Andrew Tyrie, chairmanof the Commons treasury select com-mittee, HMRC said the timetable fordelivering CDS was “challenging butachievable”. But, it added, CDS was “acomplex programme” that needed to belinked to dozens of other computer sys-tems to work properly. In November,HMRC assigned a “green traffic light” toCDS, indicating it would be deliveredontime. But last month, it wrote to thecommittee saying the programme hadbeen relegated to “amber/red,” whichmeans there are “major risks or issuesapparent inanumbero£eyareas”.

HMRC said last night: “[CDS] is ontrack to be delivered by January 2019,and it will be able to support frictionlessinternational trade once the UK leavesthe EU . . . Internal ratings are designedto make sure that each project gets thefocus and resource it requires for suc-cessfuldelivery.”

HMRC’s letters to the select commit-tee, which will be published today, pro-vide no explanation for the ratingchange, but some MPs believe it wascaused by Mrs May’s unexpected deci-sionto leavetheEUcustomsunion.Timetable & Great Repeal Bill page 2Scheme to import EU laws page 3Editorial Comment & Notebook page 12Philip Stephens & Chris Giles page 13JPMorgan eye options page 18

HMRCwarnscustoms risksbeing swampedbyBrexit surge3Confidence in IT plans ‘has collapsed’3Fivefold rise in declarations expected

World Markets

STOCK MARKETS

Mar 31 prev %chg

S&P 500 2367.10 2368.06 -0.04

Nasdaq Composite 5918.69 5914.34 0.07

Dow Jones Ind 20689.64 20728.49 -0.19

FTSEuro�rst 300 1503.03 1500.72 0.15

Euro Stoxx 50 3495.59 3481.58 0.40

FTSE 100 7322.92 7369.52 -0.63

FTSE All-Share 3990.00 4011.01 -0.52

CAC 40 5122.51 5089.64 0.65

Xetra Dax 12312.87 12256.43 0.46

Nikkei 18909.26 19063.22 -0.81

Hang Seng 24111.59 24301.09 -0.78

FTSE All World $ 297.38 298.11 -0.24

CURRENCIES

Mar 31 prev

$ per € 1.070 1.074

$ per £ 1.251 1.249

£ per € 0.855 0.859

¥ per $ 111.430 111.295

¥ per £ 139.338 139.035

€ index 88.767 89.046

SFr per € 1.071 1.069

Mar 31 prev

€ per $ 0.935 0.932

£ per $ 0.800 0.801

€ per £ 1.169 1.164

¥ per € 119.180 119.476

£ index 77.226 76.705

$ index 104.536 104.636

SFr per £ 1.252 1.244COMMODITIES

Mar 31 prev %chg

Oil WTI $ 50.46 50.35 0.22

Oil Brent $ 53.35 53.13 0.41

Gold $ 1244.85 1248.80 -0.32

INTEREST RATES

price yield chg

US Gov 10 yr 98.63 2.41 -0.01

UK Gov 10 yr 100.35 1.22 0.02

Ger Gov 10 yr 99.27 0.33 -0.01

Jpn Gov 10 yr 100.36 0.07 0.00

US Gov 30 yr 99.27 3.04 0.01

Ger Gov 2 yr 102.57 -0.75 0.00

price prev chg

Fed Funds E� 0.66 0.66 0.00

US 3m Bills 0.78 0.78 0.00

Euro Libor 3m -0.36 -0.36 0.00

UK 3m 0.34 0.34 0.00Prices are latest for edition Data provided by Morningstar

ALEX BARKER — BRUSSELSGEORGE PARKER — LONDONSTEFAN WAGSTYL — BERLIN

TheEUyesterdaytookatoughopeningstance in Brexit negotiations, rejectingBritain’s plea for early trade talks andexplicitly giving Spain a veto over anyarrangementsthatapplytoGibraltar.

European Council president DonaldTusk’s first draft of the guidelines,which are an important milestone onthe road to Brexit, sought to damp Brit-ain’s expectations by setting out a“phased approach” to the divorce proc-ess that prioritises progress on with-drawal terms.

The decision to add the clause givingSpain the right to veto any EU-UK tradedeals covering Gibraltar could make the300-year territorial dispute betweenMadrid and London an obstacle to

ambitioustradeandairlineaccessdeals.Gibraltar yesterday hit back at the

clause, saying the territory had “shame-fully been singled out for unfavourabletreatment by the council at the behest ofSpain”. Madrid defended the draftclause,pointingoutthat itonlyreflected“thetraditionalSpanishposition”.

Senior EU diplomats noted thatMr Tusk’s text left room for negotiatorsto work with in coming months. Primeminister Theresa May’s allies insistedthat the EU negotiating stance waslargely “constructive”, with one saying itwas “within the parameters of what wewere expecting, perhaps more on theupside”.

British officialsadmittedthat theEU’sinsistence on a continuing role for theEuropean Court of Justice in any transi-tiondealcouldbeproblematic.

Brussels sees little room for compro-

mise. If Britain wants to prolong itsstatus within the single market afterBrexit, the guidelines state it wouldrequire “existing regulatory, budgetary,supervisory and enforcement instru-mentsandstructures toapply”.

Mr Tusk wants talks on future tradeto begin only once “sufficient progress”has been made on Britain’s exit bill andcitizen rights, which Whitehall officialsbelieve means simultaneous talks arepossible if certainconditionsaremet.

Boris Johnson, the foreign secretary,reassured European colleagues at aNato summit in Brussels that Mrs Mayhad not intended to “threaten” the EUwhen she linked security co-operationafterBrexitwithatradedeal.Reports & analysis page 3Jonathan Powell, Tim Harford &Man in the News: David Davis page 11Henry Mance page 12

Brussels takes tough stance onBrexitwith Spainhandedveto overGibraltar

About 2.3m people will benefit fromtoday’s increase in the national livingwage to £7.50 per hour. But the risewill pile pressure on English councils,which will have to pay care workers alot more. Some 43 per cent of caresta� — amounting to 341,000 peopleaged 25 and over — earn less than thenew living wage and the increase isexpected to cost councils’ care services£360m in the coming financial year.Analysis i PAGE 4

Living wage rise to pilepressure on care services

SATURDAY 1 APRIL / SUNDAY 2 APRIL 2017UK £3.80; Channel Islands £3.80; Republic of Ireland €3.80


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Censors and sensitivityWarning: this article may be upsetting — LIFE & ARTS

HOW DRIVERLESS TECHNOLOGY IS CHANGING AN AMERICAN WAY OF LIFE

THE END OF THE ROAD FT WEEKEND MAGAZINE

Escape the taper trapHow high earners can evade a pension headache — FT MONEY

The lure of the exoticRobin Lane Fox on the flair of foreign flora — HOUSE & HOME

How To Spend It

Chic new lodgings in ScotlandMAGAZINE

Art of persuasionMystery deepensover disputed painting of JaneAusten

Austen’s descendants insist the Rice portrait depicts her as a girl — seemagazine Bridgeman Art Library

RALPH ATKINS — ZURICHDUNCAN ROBINSON — BRUSSELS

Credit Suisse has been targeted bysweeping tax investigations in the UK,France and the Netherlands, settingback Switzerland’s attempts to clean upits imageasataxhaven.

The Swiss bank said yesterday it wasco-operating with authorities after itsoffices inLondon,ParisandAmsterdamwere contacted by local officials“concerningclient taxmatters”.

Dutch authorities said their counter-parts in Germany were also involved,while Australia’s revenue departmentsaid itwas investigatingaSwissbank.

The inquiries threaten to undermineefforts by the country’s banking sectorto overhaul business models and ensurecustomers meet international taxrequirements following a US-led clamp-down on evaders, which resulted inbillionsofdollars infines.

The probes risk sparking an interna-tional dispute after the Swiss attorney-general’s office expressed “astonish-ment” that it had been left out of theactions co-ordinated by Eurojust, theEU’s judicial liaisonbody.

Credit Suisse, whose shares fell 1.2 percent yesterday, identified itself as thesubject ofinvestigations in the Nether-lands, France and the UK. The bank said

it followed “a strategy offull client taxcompliance” but was still trying togather informationabouttheprobes.

HM Revenue & Customs said it hadlaunched a criminal investigation intosuspected tax evasion and money laun-dering by “a global financial institutionand certain ofits employees”. The UKtax authority added: “The internationalreach of this investigation sends a clearmessage that there is no hiding place forthoseseekingtoevadetax.”

Dutch prosecutors, who initiated theaction, said they seized jewellery, paint-ings and gold ingots as part of theirprobe; while French officials said theirinvestigation had revealed “severalthousand” bank accounts opened inSwitzerland and not declared to Frenchtaxauthorities.

The Swiss attorney-general’s officesaid it was “astonished at the way thisoperation has been organised with thedeliberate exclusion of Switzerland”. Itdemanded a written explanation fromDutchauthorities.

In 2014, Credit Suisse pleaded guiltyin the US to an “extensive and wide-ranging conspiracy” to help clientsevadetax. Itagreedtofinesof$2.6bn.Additional reportingbyLauraNoonan inDublin, Caroline Binham and VanessaHoulder in London, andMichael StothardinParis

Credit Suisseengulfed infresh taxprobe3UK, France and Netherlands swoop3Blow for bid to clean up Swiss image

FEBR

UARY

4 2017

THE RISE OF ECO-GLAM

390_Cover_PRESS.indd 1 19/01/2017 13:57

APRIL 16 2020 Section:World Time: 15/4/2020 - 18:48 User: john.conlon Page Name: WORLD1 USA, Part,Page,Edition: EUR, 2, 1


Thursday 16 April 2020 ★ FINANCIAL TIMES 3

CORONAVIRUS

ANDREW ENGLAND ANDJONATHAN WHEATLEY — LONDONJAMES POLITI — WASHINGTON

G20 nations have agreed to freeze bilat-eral government loan repayments forlow-income countries until the end ofthe year as part of a plan to tackle thehealth and economic threats triggeredby the pandemic and avert an emergingmarketsdebtcrisis.

Thegroupof theworld’s richestdevel-oped and developing nations also calledon private creditors “to participate inthe initiative on comparable terms” andasked multilateral development banks,

such as the IMF and World Bank, “tofurther explore the options for the sus-pension of debt service payments overthesuspensionperiod”.

“We support a time-bound suspen-sion of debt service payments for thepoorest countries that request forbear-ance,” the G20 said in a statement afterfinance ministers held an online meet-ingyesterday.

“We agreed on a co-ordinatedapproach with a common term sheetproviding the key features for this debtservicesuspensioninitiative.”

Mohammed al-Jadaan, finance minis-ter of Saudi Arabia — which is currentlychairing the G20 — said the debt assist-ance involved could be worth “north of$20bn”. He added that any assistancefrom private sector creditors would beon a voluntary basis, but said: “We

encourage them to consider it in sup-port of these countries and the people ofthesecountries.”

Mr Jadaan added: “Considering thespeed, the spread and the severity ofCovid-19 . . . this requires a very strong,bold and significant action by the G20andbytheworld.”

The moratorium on bilateral govern-ment debt repayments will begin onMay 1 and apply to the 76 countries thatare eligible to receive assistance fromthe World Bank’s International Devel-opment Association, which works withthe poorest countries as well as allnations defined as least developedcountries by the UN. Eligible countriesmust be “current” on any debt servicepayments totheIMFandthebank.

Concerns have mounted about thedebt sustainability of lower-income

countries that borrowed heavily in theyears after the 2008 global financial cri-sis and now lack the resources to dealwith the health and economic crisestriggered by the Covid-19 pandemic asthey grapple with high debts, fiscal defi-cits, plummeting revenues and weaken-ingcurrencies.

Many poorer nations have closedlarge parts of their economies, whilevital sources of employment, revenueand foreign currencies earnings havecollapsed, including tourism and remit-tances. Commodity exporters are alsoenduring the blow of the plunge in oiland metal prices as global demandfreezes,aswellas theclosureofmines.

Countries receiving bilateral develop-ment assistance are estimated to be dueto make repayments of about $40bn toexternalcreditors thisyear.

IMF officials say the fund’s currentresources are helping governmentsdeal with immediate needs, but greatersupportwasneededinthe longerterm.

The Jubilee Debt Campaign, a UK-based charity, said the G20 deal repre-sented an important step forward, butadded that “suspending paymentsrather than cancelling means countrieswill continue to pile up interest and faceevenbiggerdebt levelsnextyear”.

“We urgently need G20 governmentstocommittoengaging inaUNprocess toagree a comprehensive and enforceableway to cancel debts down to a sustaina-ble level, ready to be implemented in2021,” thegroupsaid inastatement.

The G20 said creditors would con-siderapossibleextensionof themorato-rium once they had taken into accountthe liquidityneedsofeligiblecountries.

International support

G20 seals debt relief deal for poor nationsLoan repayments put onhold and private creditorsare urged to follow suit

JAMES POLITI — WASHINGTON

The Trump administration is resistingappeals from European and Africanleaders for the IMF to create additionalreserve assets to help low-income em-erging economies cope with the pan-demic, creating a fresh division in theglobalresponsetothecrisis.

The expansion of the IMF’s “specialdrawing rights” has caused friction inmultilateral discussions ahead of theIMF and World Bank spring meetings,whicharebeingheldonlinethisweek.

A new allocation of SDRs would offera liquidity boost to many countries fac-ing a sudden depletion of foreign exch-ange reserves. The move is seen bymany governments as a key comple-ment to a debt relief package to supportstruggling emerging economies that theG20, including the US, was expected toendorseasearlyasyesterday.

In the Financial Times on Tuesday,European leaders including Germanchancellor Angela Merkel and Frenchpresident Emmanuel Macron joinedleading African figures such as AbiyAhmed, prime minister of Ethiopia, andCyril Ramaphosa, president of SouthAfrica, to urge the IMF to “decide imme-diately on the allocation of special draw-ing rights” to “provide additional liquid-ity fortheprocurementofbasiccommo-ditiesandessentialmedical supplies”.

“No region can win the battle againstCovid-19 alone,” they wrote. “This is notthe time for division or politics, but forunityandco-operation.”

But the US, the fund’s largest share-holder, has delayed backing the meas-ure, casting doubt on whether that partof the multilateral response to the pan-demicwillgetoff theground.

“The US response for now is no. I hadan opportunity to discuss this with USsecretary of the Treasury StevenMnuchin on two occasions,” Bruno LeMaire, France’s finance minister, toldreporters.

The US Treasury said Washington“supports a variety of efforts at the IMFto provide rapid, targeted assistance tocountries that need support to over-come the current challenges” but didnotexplain itspositiononnewSDRs.

“We support accelerating IMF proce-dures, higher access from the IMF’semergency lending facilities, and sup-port from donors for the IMF’s assist-ance to low-income countries, includinggrants to help these countries makedebtpayments totheIMF,” it said.

One person familiar with the talkssaid US scepticism was shared by someothercountries.

The G20 called on the IMF “to exploreadditional tools that could serve itsmembers’ needs as the crisis evolves”but fell short of calling for a new alloca-tion of SDRs. Earlier drafts of the G20statement seen by the FT included sucha call but it appears to have been with-drawnafteropposition ledbytheUS.

Kristalina Georgieva, IMF managingdirector, said no options had been ruledout in the global response to the down-turn triggered by the pandemic, sug-gesting the allocation of new reserveassetsremainedonthetable.

SDRs are an international reserveasset created by the IMF in 1969 to aug-ment members’ official reserves. Theirvalue is based on five currencies, includ-ing the US dollar. The stock of SDRsamounts to about $275bn, mostly issuedduringthe2008financialcrisis.

Reserve assets

US resists callfor additionalemergingeconomy aid

ANJLI RAVALSENIOR ENERGY CORRESPONDENT

Saudi Arabia’s oil minister said the pricewar it started last month that droveBrent crude to 18-year lows was an“unwelcome departure” from its strat-egytopursuecollectiveoil cuts.

Abdulaziz bin Salman, who is the sonof the king, said in an interview with theFT that the kingdom’s moves to escalateproduction and drastically cut exportprices were necessary to create a finan-cialbuffer for itseconomy.

“[Engaging in a price war] was anunwelcomedeparturefromourend,butwe had to because of a desire to capturesome revenues versus sitting on ourhandsanddoingnothing,”hesaid.

The kingdom, the world’s biggest oilexporter, pursued a shock-and-awestrategy after Russia was reluctant toenact deeper and more prolonged cuts.Itcoincidedwithademandfall triggeredby the coronavirus outbreak and causedwidespreadpainacross theoil industry.

PresidentDonaldTrumpputpressureon Saudi Arabia to engage with Russiaand end the price war, ultimately secur-ing a diplomatic victory that also bene-fitedtheUSshale industry.

The world’s largest supply cut deal,struck on Sunday between Opec andRussia with broad backing from the USand other G20 nations, was an indica-tion “we are not changing ourapproach”,PrinceAbdulazizsaid.

The so-called Opec+ group will cut9.7mbarrelsadayfromMay.

Prince Abdulaziz emphasised thatcuts could amount to 20m b/d or higheronce they took into account contribu-tions from other countries such as theUSthatwerenotpartof thecurbsdeal.

“If prices stay within the border of$35-$40 a barrel . . . I wouldn’t be sur-prised if natural declines are even moresevere as we move into the next fewmonths,”hesaid.

Yet oil traders had little faith in pro-ducers’ ability to reach the 20m b/d tar-get and doubted the cuts were close tooffsetting the demand collapse amidglobal lockdowns and travel bans. Brentcrude dipped below $30 a barrel onTuesdaybeforerecoveringslightly.

Despite Saudi Arabia acceleratingsupply to record levels of 12.3m b/d andofficials talking the market down atevery opportunity over the past month,Prince Abdulaziz said: “We don’t have

some sadistic approach of killing com-petition.” He added: “As a long-termproducer,wecaremoreaboutaprosper-ous world economy that brings a pros-perous level of demand. We are notengagedinanytypeofzero-sumgame.”

Prince Abdulaziz sought to patch overthe dispute that collapsed a three-yearoil alliance with rival Russia last month,saying that “we don’t need divorce law-yers yet”. “We could have weathered thesituation and stayed for a long, longwhile, but it would have been extremelydestructive,”headded,notingthe finan-cial pain for producer economies. Asstorage tanks have filled up, Saudi Ara-bia has also struggled to sell its extra oil,according to people familiar with thematter.

Prince Abdulaziz said the kingdomhad always sought a cut as long as it was“equitable”. Yet, the oil production dealachieved in recent days almost unrav-elled over a squabble with Mexico,which wanted to curb output by lessthan other countries. “Pragmatism”, hesaid, ultimately prevailed, despite thekingdom’s persistent concerns thatother nations might ask for exemptionsof theirown,underminingthealliance.

In May, the kingdom will cut its pro-ductionto justunder8.5mb/d.

Prince Abdulaziz said oil would con-tinue to be a major energy source fordecades. “I’m not willing, yet, to forfeitthat,”hesaid.

Middle East. Shock-and-awe strategy

Oil price war ‘unwelcome departure’, say SaudisEnergy minister claims move

necessary to capture revenues

for kingdom’s economy

In the pipeline:a worker at anoil processingfacility run bySaudi Aramcoat the Abqaiqoilfield inEasternProvinceStanislav Krasilnikov/Tass/Getty Images

‘The US response for nowis no. I discussed this withSteven Mnuchin [twice]’Bruno Le Maire of France

Washington’s success in pushing Russiaand Saudi Arabia to end their oil pricewar marked a “fundamental shift” inglobal oil politics, which had been madepossible by US self-sufficiency, accordingto the Trump administration’s energysecretary.

Dan Brouillette told the FinancialTimes in an interview that the shaleenergy revolution had “dramatically”elevated US negotiating powercompared with its position in dealingwith previous global crises.

“That doesn’t make us . . . an 800-pound gorilla but it does fundamentallychange the politics,” he said.

“When we were wholly dependentupon oil being imported into the country,we could not have brought these twomajor oil producers to the table toresolve their dispute.”

Moscow and Riyadh agreed on Sundayto the biggest oil cut deal in history. TheOpec+ group will remove almost 10mbarrels a day from supply.

Donald Trump, US president, saidpreviously he could put tariffs on oilimports after lobbying from shaleexecutives, including his friend, HaroldHamm, head of Continental Resources,to encourage Moscow and Riyadh toagree a deal.

Asked if the threat had subsided, MrBrouillette said tariffs were always anoption. “Every nation will keep every

option on the table when you’reattempting to protect one of your moreimportant or most important domesticindustries. If you want access to thenumber one economy . . . you’re going toagree to terms and conditions that aregoing to be set by that economy.

“Because we’re able to cover our ownenergy needs . . . we can by inferencemake the point that . . . hey, you know,we maybe don’t need as much as weused to need from you.”

Mr Trump spoke several times toCrown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ofSaudi Arabia and Russian presidentVladimir Putin to try to secure the deal.His intervention also helped iron out adispute between Riyadh and Mexico.

Asked what Saudi Arabia got in returnfor easing its demand that Mexico agreeto larger cuts, Mr Brouillette said the UShad convinced the parties not to “holdup this . . . deal over this small amount ofoil, and that argument won the day”.

Oil prices have fallen since the deal, astraders doubt it can make up for the lossof up to 30 per cent of global demand.Asked if the cuts were enough, MrBrouillette said: “They are more thanzero, which is a positive thing.”

He said they could end up being asmuch as 20m barrels because of the fallin demand.Demetri Sevastopulo in Washington andDerek Brower in London

US rolemarks‘shift’ inenergypolitics

Opec deal

AMY KAZMIN — NEW DELHI

India yesterday set out plans for thegradual reopening of its economy, per-mitting some manufacturing, agricul-tural work and other activities toresumenextweek.

But the lockdown — imposed on March24 with little warning and sinceextended until May 3 — will remain oneof the strictest in the world, with alldomestic and international flights,trains, buses, metros, taxi services, rick-shaws and other public transport serv-icesstill suspended.

India has reported 11,438 cases ofcoronavirus and 377 deaths. However,many doctors believe that the countryis severely under-testing and thatmany deaths from the pathogen have

gone unrecognised and uncounted.In a lengthy document released yes-

terday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’sgovernment outlined measures thatattempted to balance controls on publicmovement with the need to revive aneconomythathadgroundtoahalt.

“India isessentiallydebatingbetweenepidemiological gain versus economicpain,” said Aurodeep Nandi, an econo-mist at Nomura, which forecastthat India’s economy would shrink 0.5per cent this year as a direct result ofcoronavirus.

“While the aim is to nudge the econ-omy from lockdown atrophy, the open-ing will ultimately be on a wing and aprayer that the number of cases doesnot escalate as India makes its way backtowork,”hesaid.

The limited reopening of the econ-omy will begin after April 20, providedbusinesses in the sectors chosen torestart are not in designated coronavi-rushotspots.

India’s schools and educational insti-tutes will stay closed, as will publicspaces such as religious sites, malls, cin-emas, sports facilities and most hotels,unless they provide emergency shelter.Gatherings such as weddings remainbanned.

The popular Indian Premier Leaguecricket tournament, which was due tostart yesterday, has been “indefinitelypostponed”, given the restrictions onpublicgatherings.

However, some activities intended tohelp ease the plight of India’s poorestand most vulnerable, whose incomeshave collapsed, and to ensure the conti-nuity of essential services will beallowedtoresume.

Ports, clogged with uncollected goodsand unloaded containers, can resume

operations. Rural manufacturing unitsand factories in designated industrialareas can also operate, as long asemployers provide accommodation forworkersonsite,ornearby.

Construction can resume, usinglabourers who have been trapped atbuilding sites since the lockdown began,although no additional people can bebrought intoworkused.

Agricultural activities — whichaccount for 15 per cent of India’s grossdomestic product but still employnearly half of the country’s workforce —can restart. This includes the opening ofagricultural supply shops and process-ing units. Self-employed car mechanics,electricians, plumbers and other repairpeople can resume work, except in des-ignatedcoronavirushotspots.

Shilan Shah, India economist at Capi-talEconomics, said therelaxationmeas-ureswereunlikelytohaveanymeaning-ful impact on India’s growth prospectsfor the year. But he said they would helpalleviate the humanitarian crisis as peo-plestruggle to findmoneytobuyfood.

“We don’t think it’s going to have amajor impact on growth,” Mr Shah said.“There are still enormous parts of theeconomy that are going to remainclosed. We’re more positive on the long-termhumanitarianbenefitsof this.”

Investors were initially upbeat aboutthe economic plan. But the BombayStock Exchange Sensex benchmarkmarket gave up its gains and at its closewasdownnearly1percent.Additional reporting by Benjamin ParkinSee Notebook

Business activity

India outlines tentative steps back to work while ensuring strict curbs remain

Taking a break: India will allowsome labourers to resume work

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CORONAVIRUS

NEIL MUNSHIWEST AFRICA CORRESPONDENT

African scientists and health officialsare taking on coronavirus by adaptingtechnology and systems developed tofight diseases such as tuberculosis andpolio, an effort they hope will help com-pensate for the continent’s lack of criti-calcare infrastructure.

“Technically, Africa is not betterprepared,” said Christian Happi, direc-tor of the African Center of Excellencefor Genomics of Infectious Diseases atRedeemer’sUniversity inNigeria.

“But in terms of understanding dis-eases and combating outbreaks withlimited resources, Africa is much betterprepared because they deal with out-breaksonapermanentbasis.”

Mr Happi is one of Africa’s leadingscientists.HehelpedsequencetheEbolaand coronavirus genomes and last yeardeployed a test for Lassa fever usingCrispr gene-editing technology at hislaboratory in rural Nigeria. The deadlydisease killed 161 Nigerians betweenJanuary1andMarch15.

Now he is using the same technologyto develop a rapid diagnostic test forcoronavirus. “We want to take thatsame approach for Sars-Cov-2,” he said,

adding the test would find the virus’sRNA — the cellular information thatwould identify whether it is Covid-19 —and deliver a positive or negative resultinabout30minutes.

He said key materials needed to pro-duce the test, including reagents, werenot available in Africa and would beslow to be delivered amid the globalshutdown, but the first prototype wasexpectedtobereadyina“fewweeks”.

Across Africa, government officialsand other scientists are drawing on sim-ilar experiences to develop coronavirussolutions, despite weak health infra-structureandshortageofequipment.

South Africa has increased Covid-19testing using a network of over 200 pub-lic laboratoriesdeveloped inresponsetopast HIV and tuberculosis outbreaks. Ithasconductedmorethan70,000tests.

Meanwhile World Health Organiza-tion Africa has said it will use a data col-lection system originally set up to fightpolio to track infections. Avadar, as thesystem is known, uses a network ofroughly 6,000 community membersfrom traditional healers to village chiefsacross 11 countries who can reportsymptomatic patients to the WHO viatheirmobilephones.

Since its first application to track

polio, the system has also been used tohunt tuberculosis and Lassa fever. TheWHO maintains periodic contact withcommunity members in the networkandsendsexplanatoryvideoswhennewdiseases arise, helping officials to spot potentialoutbreaksearly.

“Things we never used to noticebefore they became an epidemic, wenowseetheones turn into twos into tensand we can respond faster,” said Godwin

Akpan, a technical officer who works ondata collection initiatives and polioeradication at WHO Africa. This weekthe system will start to send messages toits network of informants asking “haveyou seen someone with a cough, or diffi-culty breathing” or displaying otherCovid-19 symptoms, said Mr Akpan.“We just push it from the server on totheirmobileataverygrassroots level.”

In west Africa, countries are deploy-ingskillsdevelopedinthe2014-15Ebolaoutbreak, which infected 28,000 and

killed 11,000. “I think the Ebola experi-ence has really prepared Nigeria in away because it means we have goodalert systems,” said Sani Aliyu, nationalco-ordinator for the country’s presiden-tial taskforceonCovid-19.

Dr Aliyu said Nigeria was working toadapt its network of roughly 400 rapidTBtestingmachinestotest forcoronavi-rus and that teams deployed to traceLassa fever would now investigateCovid-19 cases too. But contact tracingstillneededtobe improved,hesaid.

The pandemic is in its early stages inAfrica but is following a similar trajec-tory to Europe. Nigeria had 373 con-firmed cases as of yesterday afternoonwhile thecontinenthadat least15,000.

“IfwedohaveabadspateofCovid likewhat’s happening in Europe . . . therewillbeproblemsbecauseour infrastruc-ture is really not prepared,” Dr Aliyusaid. “The health system is not strongenoughtowithstandamajorshock.”

That was one way most African gov-ernments had not learnt from past out-breaks, said Mr Happi. Few hadinvested seriously in permanent health-care infrastructure. “The unfortunatething is I’m just a laboratory and a teamworking with me . . . we can’t preparefor thewholecountry.”

Africa uses knowledge frompast diseases to tackle crisisScientists adapt skills fighting Ebola and polio to track and test for Covid-19

Leading the fight: Christian Happi with colleague Onikepe Folarin. Mr Happi helped sequence the Ebola and coronavirus genomes in Nigeria — Amy Maxmen

‘Things we never used tonotice before they becamean epidemic, we now see. . . and respond faster’

EDWARD WHITE — WELLINGTONSONG JUNG-A — SEOUL

South Korea is operating special flightsfor people with factories abroad in aneffort to reduce disruption to businessfromvisaandtravelrestrictions.

At least five flights have taken hundredsof engineers and executives since lateMarch to factories in China, Vietnamand eastern Europe owned by Samsungand LG, the tech companies, Hyundai,thecarmaker,andtheirsuppliers.

Park Ki-young, deputy trade minis-ter, said: “Our businessmen with over-seas plants are in trouble . . . we plan tocontinue to run these operations untilthe pandemic is brought under control.”

Theproblemisacute forcompanies inthe middle of plant expansion andrefurbishment, such as a Samsung,which has a memory chip project inChina.

South Korea, Asia’s fourth-largesteconomy and one of the top 10 out-bound investors, was for a time thecountry worst-hit by coronavirus out-side China. Despite Seoul’s success incontaining the outbreak, access to morethan 150 nations is limited. The flights,funded mostly by business, are possiblebecauseofone-offvisaapprovals.

The restrictions have also frustratedefforts by trade officials and diplomatsto build international support for a visasystemtoallowbusiness travel if there isnoriskofspreadingCovid-19.

“It is not easy for each country toagree and set such mechanisms in placeimmediately,” said Mr Park. “Approval

for businessmen could spark opposition[abroad] over virus protection becauseit could be seen as meaning all businesstripsareallowedunconditionally.”

One such proposal is based on theAsia-Pacific Economic Cooperationforum’s card that facilitates travel in theregion, thoughnotcurrently toChina.

The OECD club of mainly rich nations

and other groups have warned multilat-eral efforts to combat the risk to globalsupply chains have been insufficient,giventheseverityof theproblems.

Stephen Jacobi, a trade expert, said acommitment by Australia, Brunei, Can-ada, Chile, Myanmar, New Zealand andSingapore to keep supply chains openwas a positive development. But a wideragreement would be difficult because ofan “absence of leadership” at the likes oftheG20andG7.

“If something like a ‘trusted travellerscheme’ were to get off the ground, itwould require much greater co-opera-tion between trading partners than weare seeing right now,” said Mr Jacobi,executive director of the New ZealandInternationalBusinessForum.

“It is about leadership, political willand trust. Trying to get everybody onthe same page would require a big diplo-maticeffort.”

South Korea

Seoul arranges flights toease business disruption

HUDSON LOCKETT — HONG KONG

China’s central bank has cut one of itsmost important lending rates to arecord low as Beijing seeks to increaseliquidity in the financial system andcushion the hit to the economy fromthecoronaviruspandemic.

The move by the People’s Bank of Chinayesterday to boost monetary easingcomes days before it will release first-quarter gross domestic product figures.Analysts expect the data to reveal thecountry’s first official year-on-yeardecline ineconomicoutputsince1976.

The central bank cut the one-yearmedium-term lending facility by0.2 percentage points to 2.95 per cent —its lowest level since it was introduced in2014. The PBoC also injectedRmb100bn ($14bn) into the financialsystemviathefacility.

The MLF rate is the benchmarkagainst which the PBoC lends to com-mercial banks. The measure shouldreduce funding costs for banks andencouragethemtolendat lowerrates.

China has restarted large parts of itseconomy after putting the countryunder lockdown in an attempt to con-tain the outbreak. But analysts expectgrowth is likely to remain under pres-sure because of the rising probability ofaglobalrecession.

Economists polled by Reuters haveforecast that China’s GDP shrank 6.5 percent year on year in the first quarter as aresult of industrial lockdowns to con-tain the spread of Covid-19. Some biginternational banks, including UBS andDeutsche Bank, have predicted thatGDP fell between 10 and 15 per centbetweenJanuaryandMarch.

“With external headwinds mountingand domestic demand struggling tofully recover from the outbreak even asmost companies have resumed opera-tions, the PBoC appears to be rampingup the pace of monetary easing,” saidJulian Evans-Pritchard, senior ChinaeconomistatCapitalEconomics.

“But more will be needed to ensuretheeconomygetsbackontrack.”

Economists said that moves by theFederal Reserve to support the US econ-omy had given Beijing breathing roomtofollowsuit.

China’s state media have reported inrecent days that more economic sup-portmeasurescouldbecoming.

Monetary easing

China cuts crucial rate aheadof data likely to show GDP fall

LEILA ABBOUD — PARIS

Notre-Dame will reopen within fiveyears, Emmanuel Macron has insisted,even though work has been suspendedbecauseof theCovid-19outbreak.

The French president said on the firstanniversary of the fire that almostdestroyed the Paris cathedral: “We willdoeverythingtomakethatdeadline.

“I don’t think that waiting or beingstuck in disarray are the answers to thechallenges of our times . . .” he said in avideomessage.

“We must set ourselves proactivegoalsandrally togethertoachievethem,to live up to the examples of the greatprojects thatmadeourhistory.”

Experts following the project say it isstill possible to meet the target of 2024,when Paris is due to host the OlympicGames. Options include using a tempo-rary cover while the roof is repaired andopeningonlyasmall section.

Little progress has been made onreconstruction because work has so farfocused on shoring up the structure andwaiting for the interior todryout.

Health concerns about lead from thespire and roof mean protective gearmust be worn at all times and strict pre-

cautions taken. Another challenge hasbeen removing the hundreds of tonnesof scaffolding — in place for restorationwork before the fire broke out — thatwasreducedtoatangledmess.

Complaints about bureaucracy havealso been aired. Rémi Desalbres, head ofthe association of architects who work

on historical monuments, told Le Pointmagazine that safety rules and precau-tionswereaproblem.

“The time has come to do a full analy-sis of the project, set a timetable andestimated cost for the restoration, andmake companies compete for thework,”hesaid.

“It is urgent that we put some com-mon sense back in the project and learnhowtoworktogethermoreeffectively.”

The cathedral bells, silent since thefire, were to be rung at 8pm last night tocoincide with daily applause sessions tothankhealthcareworkers.

France

Macron stands firm on 2024target to reopen Notre-Dame

‘Trying to get everybodyon the same pagewould require a bigdiplomatic effort’

The People’s Bankof China hopes itsmove yesterdaywill encouragebanks to lendat lower rates

‘We must set ourselvesproactive goals and rallytogether to achieve them’Emmanuel Macron

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RYAN MCMORROW — BEIJING

ByteDance, the Chinese start-upbehind the TikTok video app, is torecruit 10,000 more employees, defy-ing a chill that has forced many tech-nology companies around the world tolayoffworkers.

The Beijing company has benefited as the coronavirus pandemic has trappedmanyof its1.5bnmonthlyusersathomewith extra time to spend on its stable ofmorethanadozenapps.

Outside China, the popularity of Tik-Tok has soared as everyone from nursesto celebrities uploads short clips ofthemselves lip-syncing to music towhileawaythetime.

Inside China, ByteDance has beefedup its ecommerce platform to monetisethe extra traffic to its Douyin short-video platform, which has 400m dailyusers. It has begun selling goods in live-streams that have drawn tens of mil-lions of viewers and raked in millions ofrenminbi.

The start-up has 60,000 employeesand is advertising more than 10,000jobs around the globe for everythingfrom a Beijing-based data analyst for itsLatin America business to a Shenzhen-based operations manager for its gam-ing platform. In addition, its internalhiring board indicates that it is lookingfor3,000internsandgraduatetrainees.

The company is known for its gener-ous pay and benefits that closely mimicSilicon Valley start-ups. Employeesreceive three free meals a day and“unlimited snacks”, as well as gymmemberships, according to the recruit-mentadverts.

Zhang Yiming, ByteDance founder,said in March that the eight-year-oldcompany would have 100,000 employ-ees by year-end, which would take itsheadcount well beyond that of Tencent,its chief rival, which had 62,000employeesat theendof2019.

InvestorsvaluedtheSoftBank-backedcompany at $75bn two years ago in a$3bn funding round led by the Japanesetech conglomerate. More recently,ByteDance’s valuation has risen tobetween $90bn and $100bn in transac-tionsonsecondarymarkets.

In China, Douyin has stepped up hir-ing as companies including Tesla andPoly Real Estate have turned to its lives-treaming function to tout cars andapartments.Additional reporting by Nian Liu inBeijing

TikTok ownerByteDance tohire another10,000 staff

LAURA NOONAN ANDROBERT ARMSTRONG — NEW YORK

Bank of America, Citigroup and Gold-man Sachs took $12.8bn of charges inthe first quarter for loan losses, andwarned there could be more to come,heightening investor fears about the tollthatcoronaviruswill takeonthesector.

The sobering figures from three of thebiggest US banks came the day afterJPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargoreported a combined $12.3bn of creditcharges for the first three months of theyear, as they ramped up reserves to dealwithcorporateandconsumer loanrisks.

“You have to be planning on anassumption that we’re going to be oper-ating into a recession through 2020 andinto 2021,” David Solomon, Goldman’s

chief executive, said as the bankrevealed that it would scale back someplanned investments to cope with the“terriblepandemic”.

Shares in BofA were down 6.3 per centby early afternoon, while Wells Fargowas off 5.4 per cent, JPMorgan 5.26 percent and Citi 3.99 per cent. MorganStanley and Goldman, which have lessexposure to consumer and small busi-ness credit risk, were down 3.7 per centand0.12percent, respectively.

Marty Mosby, analyst at ViningSparks, said the provisions were onlyabout 15 per cent of the loan losses theywere subjected to over a two-year time-frame in Federal Reserve stress tests.But he added: “These are big numbers,peoplegetshockedandthrownoff.”

Citi and Goldman both reported 46per cent falls in first-quarter income,

while the decline at BofA was 45 percent.

BofA’s results included $4.8bn ofcredit losses, versus $1bn a year earlier,including $2.3bn at its consumer bankand $2.1bn for investment banking cli-ents. “Given the rise in unemploymentclaims, we do expect consumer losses toincrease later this year, and potentiallyinto 2021,” Paul Donofrio, chief finan-cialofficer, said.

Headdedthat theultimate loan losseswould depend on how well the US gov-ernment’s support plans work, and thefate of clients that temporarily suspendtheir payments, as 16 per cent of BofA’ssmall business customers have done,along with 5 per cent of mortgage clientsand3percentofcardcustomers.

“The biggest unknown is how longeconomic activities . . . will beimpacted by the virus,” Mr Donofriosaid.

At Citi, provision charges took a $7bnchunk out of quarterly earnings, includ-ing $4.9bn for loans likely to go bad inthe future, and $2.1bn for charge-offsrelatedtoactual losses intheperiod.

“Even as we have closed out this quar-ter the variables we look at continue toshift,” saidMarkMason, thebank’sCFO.“I would expect we would see additional[reserve] builds in the second quarter. . . but it is way too early to give a sense

ofwhat thatnumbermaybe.”Goldman took $937m of provisions in

the first quarter, mostly related to loansto investmentbankingclients.

The Wall Street powerhouse was alsohit with $500m of markdowns to its pri-vate equity portfolio and $500m to itspublic equity holdings, including a$180m hit to the value of its holding inlistedhealthcarecompanyAvantor.

“Unless people feel safe and secureand confident around the virus, the eco-nomic impact will continue in some wayshapeor form,”saidMrSolomon.

Wall St bankshares dive asprovisions forloan losses soar3 Three lenders take $13bn in charges3 More virus fallout to sector expected

‘We do expect consumerlosses to rise later this year,and potentially into 2021’Paul Donofrio, BofA

Derek Brower Traders decide Opec’s record cut was undercooked as Covid-19’s hit to demand is just too big y MARKETS INSIGHT, PAGE 9

ALICE HANCOCK — LONDON

City dwellers have sharply extendedholiday rentals as they hunt for bolt-holes to escape coronavirus hotspotssuchasLondonandNewYork.

The average length of a holiday let hasjumped from 4.5 days to nine days,according to data from Guesty, whichprovides software to short-termrentalowners in80countries.

AirDNA, a data analytics group thattracks listings from companiesincluding Airbnb and Expedia-ownedrival Vrbo, found that 50 per cent ofnew bookings in recent weeks hadbeenfortwoweeksormore.

“Length of stay is increasing dra-matically,” said Vered Raviv Schwarz,chief operating officer of Guesty, add-ing that there had been “a rural uptickinsomecases”.

She said that the trends were downto “cityscapers” looking to get awayfrom places where the virus had been

spreading rapidly. However, sheadded that booking volumes weredownwithafewspecificexceptions.

Airbnb, Booking.com and Vrbohave seen bookings drop about 50 percent in urban areas in the US but, inrural locations and suburbs bookingswere down only 10-20 per cent,Guesty has found. It said places suchas the Hamptons and Napa Valley,which are within a two to three-hourdrive of large cities, were among themostresilientdestinations.

Owners and managers of short-term rentals have responded to thedemand by advertising discountedrates for longerstays.

Airbnb, which has been battered bythe crisis with bookings down asmuch as 90 per cent in some areas,said about half its active listings nowoffered discounts for stays of a monthor longer. Searches for Airbnb homesto rent during the restrictions bringup properties advertising as open for

lockdown stays — from a one-bedroom flat in Queensland, Aus-tralia, promoting itself as “perfect forself-quarantine”, to a cottage in Flor-idatouting“quarantine inparadise”.

The picture is similar in the UK,despite government warnings thatcity dwellers should not travel to sec-ond homes for fear of spreading thevirus. Airbnb last week banned alllistings except those open to frontlineworkersuntilApril 18.

Guesty said that in the final week ofMarch, smaller cities such as Liver-pool and Nottingham had receivedmore bookings as customers huntedforLondongetaways.

“If [you] are going to work fromhome for an extended period of timethen why would you do it from a600sqftLondonflatwhenyoucangetthe connectivity in a nice place by thecoast?” said Martin Luen, a travelindustry specialist at investmentbankBaird.

Great escape Length of holiday rentals doubleas city dwellers take evasive action from virus

I taly, if you are to believe some of itsrightwing politicians, is not onlyunder siege from coronavirus but isalso being targeted by a cabal of for-eign speculators trying to profit

from the country’s worst crisis since thesecondworldwar.

Last month, as some of the darkestdays of Italy’s outbreak were unfolding,Matteo Salvini, leader of the anti-migration League party, called for animmediate ban of short selling — thepractice of borrowing stock to sell it on,in the hope of profiting from a fall in theprice — arguing that malign outsideforces should not be allowed to makebetsonthecountry’smisfortune.

“We remember the case of Soros in1992 who built his fortune with a down-ward speculation against Italy,” Mr Sal-vini said, in only the most recent ofmany attempts by the League leader tocast the Hungarian-born investor as thepersonificationof shadowyforeignplotsagainst Italy. “It is not tolerable thatsomeone takes advantage of a nationalemergency by speculating to the detri-mentof Italiansavings.”

SFM UK, which manages money onbehalf of George Soros and his family,held two small short positions in Italiancompanies according to the most recentregulatorydisclosures inMarch.

Mr Salvini was joined by his alliesGiorgia Meloni, leader of the far-right

Salvini’s anger at short sellers would be better aimed at banks

Brothers of Italy, and Antonio Tajani,number two in Silvio Berlusconi’s ForzaItalia, who called on Consob, the Italianstock market regulator, to immediatelyprohibit, in the words of Ms Meloni,“financial speculation from bringing thenationto itsknees”.

Consob obliged. Last month it bannedshort selling. Other European regula-tors did the same, including France,Spain and Belgium. Esma, the EU finan-cial market watchdog, said that it sup-portedthebans.

Opponents of short-selling bans saythat banning bets against stocks doesnothingtochangethe financial realityofcompanies, and instead reduces liquid-ity when it is needed most. Others,deem any type of profiteering during apandemic that is killing tens of thou-sandsasgruesome.

There is anotherless understoodreason why thosewho have arguedfor a ban on “spec-ulating againstItaly” are mis-taken. Selling shortmany listed Italiancompanies is, in fact, very often anextremely imprecise way of expressinga bearish view on the Italian economy.Those who try to do so may end up bet-ting on something completely unrelatedas many large companies in Italy’s FTSEMIB benchmark stock index generatethemajorityof theirsalesoutsideItaly.

If one of the speculators that Mr Sal-vini so despises is trying to profit fromItaly’s misfortune, a short position inshares of luxury-goods company Salva-tore Ferragamo, which sells more of itsproducts in the Asia-Pacific region thaninEurope, isunlikelytodothetrick.

Carmaker Fiat will suffer a painfulperiod during a global recession, but not

because of its roots in Italy. It sells morecars in North American than any otherregion. ProfitsatEni, the Italianoil com-pany, will tumble this year, but becauseof the slump in energy prices, notbecause it is Italian. Ferrari sales do notebb and flow with the domestic Italianeconomyintheslightest.

An effective way of betting againstItaly would be to take a short position inits banks, which were already strugglingto turn a profit in the years before thecoronavirus outbreak. The irony of MrSalvini calling for a short-selling ban toprotect Italian savers is that there is nosingle sector that has done more directdamage to these savings than the coun-try’sownlenders.

The FTSE Italian bank index is down68 per cent over five years, excludingdividends, while the broader FTSE MIBis down 25 per cent over the sameperiod. Banks have not only draggeddown the overall performance of Italy’sstock market. Numerous Italian lendersalso directly sold their securities to theirown retail clients, meaning when theywere rescued or raised additional capi-tal this inflicted losses on unsophisti-cated investors who had been encour-aged to park their savings in these prod-uctsby localbanksthat theytrusted.

Many Italian businesses that are alsoglobal brands have done well during adifficult decade for the country and,when the crisis passes, are likely to con-tinuetodoso.

Italian politicians should recognisethat the ongoing value destruction bythe country’s banks is a far more termi-nal threat to Italian savings than foreign“speculators”. But persuading Italianbanks to take more care of their share-holders’ money requires a lot moreeffort thansimplybanningshortselling.

[email protected]

INSIDE BUSINESS

EUROPE

MilesJohnson

The value destruction bythe country’s banks is a farmore terminal threat toItalian savings thanforeign ‘speculators’

Urban retreat: destinations such as the Hamptons, New York, have proved popular — Alamy

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APRIL 16 2020 Section:Companies Time: 15/4/2020 - 18:57 User: nick.miller Page Name: COMP&MKTS1, Part,Page,Edition: USA, 5, 1



COMPANIES & MARKETS

KANA INAGAKI — TOKYO

The coronavirus crisis is still weighingon demand for vehicles a month afterproduction resumed in China, accord-ing to Akihiko Shido, chief executive ofYorozu, a significant supplier to theworld’sbiggestcarmakers.

After weeks of factory closures in China,the motor industry is now grapplingwith shutdowns elsewhere in Asia aswellas inEuropeandtheUS.

While supply chain disruptions andparts shortages are an issue, Mr Shidowarned that the bigger challenge wasthe lack of demand, despite the pan-demic increasingtheappealofusingpri-vatecarsoverpublic transport.

“Originally, we couldn’t producebecause of supply chain issues, but we[resolved] that through back-up plans,”he said. “Now consumer sentiment isdepressedandthat’scausingproductiontobereducedinplaces like Japan.”

Yorozu supplies suspension systems

to carmakers including Nissan, Toyota,Honda, Daimler, General Motors andVolkswagen. Output has also been cur-tailed at its factories in Thailand andIndonesia, while all its plants in the US,Mexico,BrazilandIndiaareshut.

However, the company’s two facilitiesin China’s Wuhan, where the outbreakstarted, are running at 80 per cent capa-city and more than 90 per cent of its 580workers are back. That is mainly to re-cover lost inventoryandhasnotspurred“actualdemand”,MrShidosaid.

Car dealerships in China have mostlyresumed operations. Analysts at Gold-man Sachs projected that dealer trafficmighthavealreadyreturnedtopreviousyear levels on the back of new car pur-chase subsidies from regional govern-ments, noting that declines in weeklysaleshadnarrowedinMarch.

But Tang Jin, an analyst at MizuhoBank and an expert on the Chinese carindustry, forecast a fall of 10 per cent fornew sales in China for 2020 compared

with last year. “Coronavirus has not yetleft themindsofconsumers,”hesaid.

Mr Shido said Yorozu would speed upstandardisation of its parts in responseto the crisis. Already, 91 per cent of its152 components made in Wuhan can beproduced at its plants elsewhere but theother 9 per cent proved critical duringtheChinafactoryshutdown.

In February, while its plants in Wuhanwere closed, Yorozu covered for the lostproduction by having staff from Daim-ler and Nissan visit its factories to retrie-ve in-stock components. The companysaid had the shutdown lasted longer, itwas considering importing parts intoChinafromMexico.

With China production restored, thecompany is shipping some parts madetheretoUScarmakers.

Mr Shido said Yorozu did not face anyimmediate funding shortage. “We’vemade sure to make our balance sheetstrong since you never know when thecompanycouldfall intoacrisis.”

Automobiles

Poor vehicle sales squeeze components groupNEIL HUME — LONDON

Zambia has threatened to strip Glen-core of its licence to operate in a sharpescalation of a dispute over the minerand commodity trader’s decision toclose its localcopperbusiness.

Glencore announced last week the clo-sure of lossmaking Mopani for threemonths because of low commodityprices and the coronavirus pandemic.Richard Musukwa, Zambia’s miningminister, denounced the decision asunjustifiedandillegal.

The southern African country has alarge debt burden to service and earnsmost of its foreign exchange from cop-perexports.

In a letter dated April 14, Zambia’sMining Licensing Committee toldNathan Bullock, Mopani chief execu-tive, that it would revoke operating per-mits for the Nkana and Mufulira sites inseven days unless Glencore could showwhytheyshouldnotbecancelled.

Glencore owns 73.1 per cent ofMopani. The other shareholders areFirst Quantum Minerals with a 16.9 percent stake and government-controlledZambia Consolidated Copper MinesInvestmentHoldings,with10percent.

“The Mining Licensing Committee isin receipt of an investigation report bythe Director of Mines which has estab-lished that you have proceeded to placethe Nkana and Mufulira mines on careand maintenance without giving suffi-cient notice as required by law,” said theletter, seenbytheFinancialTimes.

Glencore said it was in discussionswith the government on the way for-ward. It has invested more than $4bn inthecountrysince2000.

Zambia’s threat to revoke Glencore’smining licence comes as the govern-ment of Edgar Lungu, president, strug-gles toservice itsdebt load.Formermin-isters and officials yesterday urgedLusaka to seek a loan from the IMF. Thecountryhas$11bnofexternaldebt.

Mr Lungu has taken a tough lineagainst international mining compa-nies. Last year the government placedKonkola Copper Mines into liquidation,accusing Vedanta Resources, its owner,of breaching the terms of its licence.Vedanta has taken its case to interna-tionalarbitration.

Nick Branson, senior Africa analyst atVerisk Maplecroft, said Zambia’s ulti-matum to Glencore was the latest in along line of “populist threats” from aheavily indebtedgovernment.

“We see scope for compromise giventhe state’s weak hand and the miner’sdeep pockets,” he said. “Zambia runsthe risk of another busted flush if itmoves to expropriate Mopani, since ithas still yet to secure a new buyer forVedanta’sKonkolaCopperMines.”

MrBransonexpectedthegovernment“to push for tax advances from Glencorerather than pursue expropriation andend up with a second unprofitable mineonitsbooks”.

Mining

Zambia threatens to revoke Glencore licence

TABBY KINDER — LONDON

The UK accounting industry wasplunged into its worst crisis in morethan a decade as the Big Four firms cutpartners’ pay by up to a quarter andtheir mid-tier rivals furloughed juniorstaff tocopewiththepandemicfallout.

KPMG, PwC, Deloitte and EY havereduced the amount of profits that aredistributed to their partners each

month by between 20 per cent and 25per cent to build up cash reserves andhelp survive a downturn in work. Part-ners at the firms, which between thememploy about 74,000 people in the UK,earnedanaverageof£720,000lastyear.

The blow follows years of corporatefailures and accounting scandals thathave hurt their reputations. Despitethis, their revenues have soared duringthe past decade as they have expandedbeyond their roots in audit, resulting inincreasingly large sums being paid totheirhighestearners.

EY told its 17,000 UK staff yesterdaythat partners’ pay would be cut 20 per

cent, adding that it would “do every-thing possible” to navigate the crisiswithout redundancies, furloughs orreducingemployeesalaries.

Richard Houston, Deloitte chief exec-utive, also announced a 20 per cent hitto partner profits for 2020. Distribu-tions to partners would be “deferred”and pay rises, bonuses and promotionsput on hold. “The measures align withour commitment that the highest earn-ers in our firm — our partners — shouldshoulder the greater proportion of thefinancialburden.”

The measures by EY and Deloitte fol-low similar moves by Big Four rivals

PwC and KPMG, which last weekannounced cuts in partner pay of 20 percentand25percentrespectively.

BDO, the fifth-largest accounting firmby revenues, announced it had fur-loughed its first-year trainees, appren-tices and some support staff — about700 employees. It said monthly pay-ments to partners would be cut as muchas 25 per cent until the end of the year. Ithas forecast a drop in revenues this yearofupto15percent.

Paul Eagland, managing partner,warned its 5,500 staff yesterday that“normal trading conditions will notreturn until early 2021”. The firm,

whose partners earned an average of£602,000 last year, has also offered staffareduction inworkinghoursandpay.

Grant Thornton may be forced to fur-lough staff after just 150 of its 4,500employees agreed to reduce their hoursand pay by up to 40 per cent, accordingtoapersonclosetothefirm.

Its partners have agreed to take a paycut “when we need to”, according toDavidDunckley,chiefexecutive.

Mazars has furloughed 200 of its staffin teams whose workload has declinedsince the beginning of the pandemic,and said its partners’ pay would be cutbyaquarter.

Financial services

UK auditors suffer worst crisis in a decadeBig Four cut partners’pay by up to a quarterto boost cash reserves

FT REPORTERS

When Germany’s top car executivesdialled in to a crisis call with ChancellorAngela Merkel this month, they werenot just concerned with their rapidlyevaporatingrevenues.

The heads of Volkswagen, BMW andDaimler discussed the dire effects of thecoronavirus pandemic on their thou-sands of smaller suppliers, whose sur-vival is key to restarting productiononce the outbreak that shut their plantsacross Europe and the Americas finallyeases.

Although some of the biggest carmak-ers — including Toyota, Renault,Hyundai, Volkswagen and Volvo — arepreparing to reopen some plants inEurope, car sales have shuddered to anear-halt and the more immediateproblem is that parts of the vulnerableand long supply chain that underpinsthe industryaregoingbankrupt.

“We are very worried about [suppli-ers’ liquidity],”FrankWitter,VW’schieffinancial officer, told the FinancialTimes.

With VW contractors in northernItaly, Spain and around the globe goingout of business, the world’s largest car-maker was working on “individual solu-tionswherewecanhelp”,hesaid.

The pace of the disintegration of autosupply chains has surprised even thosewhoreinforcedtheirprocurementplansafter the previous financial crash andthe Fukushima nuclear disaster byidentifying back-up contractors foreverycrucialcomponent.

Continental, which, as one of theworld’s largest car parts makers, makeseverything from brakes to radios to aug-mented reality windscreens, said doz-ens of its 2,300 suppliers were on thebrinkofcollapse.

Within days of widespread shut-downs coming into force across Europeand the Americas, the effect on thelabour market also became apparent, ascar suppliers, which employ more than1m people in the US, Germany andFrance alone, furloughed workers andcutpay.

Parts manufacturers employ morepeople in the US than companies thatbuild vehicles: 592,000 compared with403,000. Many of the largest parts mak-ers are clustered in Michigan, a statecritical to the outcome of November’spresidentialelection.

Superior Industries International, analuminium wheel maker in the state,has closed factories and furloughed a

portion of its 8,000-strong workforce,while tyremaker Goodyear, in the swingstate of Ohio, has furloughed or cut payfor4,000employees.

In France and Germany, supplierssuch as Continental, Valeo, and Miche-lin put tens of thousands of staff on par-tialemploymentschemes.

While car manufacturers and theirlargest component providers haveaccess to multibillion-euro credit lines,capital markets and government loans,the network of smaller, often family-owned, companies that feed into theindustry cannot afford to take on largeamountsofdebt.

“The situation is tough,” said Dräxl-maier Group, a German supplier thatmakes bespoke electronics, instrumentpanels and interior lighting for pre-miumcarbrandsaroundtheworld.

The company had to close its factoriesimmediately when the manufacturers’shutters came down, and send tens ofthousands of workers home, whileabsorbing the enormous fixed costs ofkeepingtrainedstaffon itsbooks.

“In a lot of the countries in which weproduce, such as Tunisia, Hungary andMexico, Kurzarbeit [Germany’s statefurlough scheme] is not available, and

we have to pay staff costs ourselves,” itsaid.

Even once lockdowns are lifted, it islikely to take months for the supplychain behind the roughly 30,000 com-ponents inacartobefully functional.

“One little company can really messup the supply chain for several auto-makers,” said Kristin Dziczek, vice-president of industry, labour and eco-nomics at the Center for AutomotiveResearchinMichigan.

Industry executives warn that replac-ing a single supplier could delay the reo-pening of a car plant for weeks, while anew provider is located, equipped andcertified.

“We know that we are as weak as theweakest link in our supply chain,” saidJacques Aschenbroich, chief executiveof Valeo, one of the largest French partssuppliers, which specialises in sensorsand high-end equipment, including forself-drivingcars.

“We produced 8m products a daybefore the crisis, using 3bn componentsinour191plants,”headded.

The industry-wide shift towardsemissions-free vehicles, which threat-ens to wipe out much of the network ofcombustion engine suppliers over the

next two decades, has further compli-catedthesituation.

In one of the first signs of suppliers’vulnerability to the pandemic, Moll, aGerman battery maker that counts VWamong its main clients, began insol-vency proceedings last month. It wasleft with little cash reserves after invest-ing heavily in the development of lithi-um-iontechnologyforelectricvehicles.

“This crisis is simply worse,” said Ger-hard Wolf, an analyst at Stuttgart-basedLBBW. “It comes at a time when compa-niesareundergoingatransformation.”

Although the easing of lockdowns insome parts of the world offers hope forlarge manufacturers, any restart in pro-duction would depend on a simultane-ous reopening of several large econo-mies, many of which are only now feel-ingthefull impactof thevirus.

Henrik Henriksson, chief executive ofSwedish truckmaker Scania, said Euro-pean authorities needed to co-ordinate.“Even if we have good co-operation inSweden, we still need France, Italy, Ger-many,Spaintoo.”Reporting by Joe Miller in Frankfurt, DavidKeohane and Victor Mallet in Paris, ClaireBushey in Chicago, Peter Campbell inLondon and Richard Milne in Oslo

Automobiles. Shutdown

Supply chain weakness threatens car sector revivalSurvival of thousands of small

parts makers is vital to the

fortunes of big manufacturers

Manufacturerssuch asMercedes-Benzparent Daimlerrely on partsfrom around theglobe to keeptheir productionlines movingAndrey Rudakov/Bloomberg

JAMIE SMYTH — SYDNEY

Lynas Corp, one of the only rare earthsproducers outside China, has warnedthat a protracted shutdown of itsMalaysian processing plant will under-mine security of supply for criticalindustries including medical devicesandautomotiveproducers.

The Australian group said yesterdaythat it had asked the Malaysian govern-ment for an exemption to reopen itsfacility, which Kuala Lumpur closed lastmonthaspartofa lockdown.

Lynas added that the extent ofdisruption — production fell 18 percent in the March quarter from thesame period a year ago — and weakprices could force it to seek governmentsupport to complete a separateA$500m ($317m) capital project vital toitsoperation.

Amanda Lacaze, chief executive, saidthe company was considering tappingfunds from Japan, Australia or the US —which consider Lynas’s non-China facil-ity to be strategically important — tocomplete an ore processing plant in Kal-goorlie,Australia.

“We have always proposed to self-fund that [plant] on the basis ofcash flow generated by the business.Now if there is a sustained downturnacross the industry this may affect ourability to do that,” Ms Lacaze told theFinancialTimes.

Kuala Lumpur has told Lynas that tomaintain its operating licence it mustbuild a facility overseas by 2023 to han-dle radioactive waste produced during

the processing of rare earths at its plantinMalaysia.

MsLacazesaidshewasoptimistic thatLynas would win approval toreopen the Malaysia plant, which sup-plies more than 10 per cent of theworld’s rare earths — a group of17 minerals widely used by theelectronics and oil and gas industriesand critical for magnets used in windturbinesandelectriccars.

But she said the disruption caused bythe pandemic again highlighted theneed to diversify the supply chain awayfrom China, which accounts for almost90 per cent of the world’s rare earthsproduction.

“This is a wake-up call to many of theend users in the west, some of whichhave a single geography reliance ontheirsupplychain,”shesaid.

“Diversity in supply is reallyimportant.”

Last year, escalating trade tensionbetween the US and China sparked con-cerns that Beijing could use its rareearth dominance to increase pressureonWashington.

Ms Lacaze said supply chain diversifi-cation was beginning to happen, notingthat Japanese magnet makers wereinvestingathomeandinsouth-eastAsiaaided by funding from the Japanese andUSgovernments.

“This is a recognition that if yousource all your products from one areajust because it is cheap, if you can’t getthe product it no longer looks cheap,”shesaid.

In the March quarter, Lynas suppliedjust a tenth of its rare earths products tocustomers in China, down from 38 percent twoyearsearlier.

Mining

Lynas Corpwarns overrare earthsavailability

‘We knowthat we areas weak asthe weakestlink in oursupplychain’

The Australian group hasasked Kuala Lumpur foran exemption so that it canreopen its Malaysia facility

APRIL 16 2020 Section:Companies Time: 15/4/2020 - 18:28 User: cathy.pryor Page Name: CONEWS1, Part,Page,Edition: USA, 6, 1



COMPANIES & MARKETS

RICHARD WATERS — SAN FRANCISCO

There is nothing like an economic crisistobringhighlyvaluedtechnologystocksback to earth. The flight to quality thatfollows usually hurts companies withstretched valuations the most, as inves-tors worry about a collapse in thegrowth rates that have supported theirhighprices.

But for software companies at least,the coronavirusshutdownisnot turningout to be one of those crises. Already atsky-high levels, software shares haveproved more resilient than the overallstock market and in some cases are ris-ingtorecordhighs.

Investors accustomed to looking tohistory as a guide have had to thinkagain. Inthemeltdownthat followedthe2008 financial crisis, the revenue multi-ples on software stocks contracted by 75per cent. This time, according to Gold-man Sachs, they had fallen back onlyabout 30 per cent by the time the mar-ket bottomed in the middle of March,before a rebound over the next threeweeks that sawthemexpandagainby18percent.

Software executives such as BillMcDermott, former chief executive ofSAP and now head of ServiceNow, claimthe remarkable resilience reflects a fun-damental change in the importance ofsoftware, making it more central to howbusinesses are run and the way workersdotheir jobs.

“This is not that,” he said, comparingthe shutdown to the 2008-09 crisis.“This is now a different way of working,amorevirtualwayofworking.”

Even after a 20 per cent correction,ServiceNow’s shares are still trading at12 times analysts’ most recent estimatesof 2020 revenues, valuing it at about$54bn.

To Wall Street sceptics, however,investors have failed to grasp how hardthe downturn will hit a group of compa-

nies that have not faced a sharp contrac-tionbefore.

“I think we’re absolutely in the denialphase,” said Alex Zukin, an analyst atRBC Capital Markets. “We haven’t had acrisis for a long time — and these [cloudcompanies] weren’t around for the lastone.”

The resilience of the cloud softwarestocks owes much to Wall Street’s faithin a fundamental change in the indus-try’s business model. Instead of sellingone-off licences — a form of revenuethat can quickly dry up in a downturn —many software companies now rely onregular subscriptions, which customershave to keep paying to maintain accesstothetechnology.

Other cloud businesses charge cus-tomers based on the amount of comput-ing power or storage capacity they con-sume.

“There’s no denying that some indus-tries are in absolute survival mode —there’s going to be a knock-on effect foreverybody when the tide is runningout,” said Frank Slootman, a longtimesoftware executive and head of privateclouddatabasecompanySnowflake.

But he added that, even if some cus-tomers were suffering, consumption ofhis company’s services was runningahead of expectations as businesses pri-oritise IT spending on new technologiesthat help them reap value from theirdata.

Asecondfactorbehindthestrengthofsoftware stocks has been a surge indemand for the technologies needed tosupportworkingfromhome.

That has reached beyond companiessuch as videoconferencing concernZoom, whose shares are up 30 per centsince the crisis struck, to others whosetechnologiessupportremotework,suchas Citrix (up 15 per cent) and Equinix(25percent).

Shares have also rebounded stronglyin a wide range of software companieswhose services are geared towards help-ing businesses operate virtually, reflect-ing a belief that the pandemic will accel-erate a shift that was already under wayin the way business is done. They

include remote electronic agreementcompany DocuSign, identity manage-ment concern Okta and cyber securitycompanyFortinet.

To sceptics, though, such confidenceignores the inevitable damage that willcome from an economy in sharp con-traction.

“Just because they have a subscrip-tion model doesn’t mean they’re goingto be able to close deals,” said WalterPrice, a portfolio manager at AllianzGlobal Investors. New sales tied to“digital transformation” — one of thehottest buzzwords in business — willinevitably suffer, he said: “Near-term,it’s hard to get meetings, and it’s hard toget consultants to work on transforma-

tion. I see a lot of these projects gettingpostponed.”

Most investors appear to be countingon any fall-off in new contracts like thisbeing shortlived, said RBC’s Mr Zukin.German software maker SAP last weeksaid new software licence revenue hadfallen off 31 per cent in the first quarter,but predicted a recovery later in theyear. The optimistic predictionextended a rebound in which its shareshaverisen30percentsincemid-March.

Asked whether new contract signingswere likely to dry up, Mr McDermottpredicted customers were likely tomaintain their spending in the currentcrisis to try to protect their revenuesandensurebusinesscontinuity.

Critics counter, however, that predic-tions like these are made without theexperience of previous downturns. “Ithink they have rose-coloured glasseson,” said Mr Zukin. “You can’t believewhat the companies tell you, becausethey don’t know, and they don’t want toseetheirmultiples impacted.”

Even optimists such as Snowflake’sMr Slootman admit it is impossible topredict how well sales will hold upbecause most software companies are

heavily dependent on signing new busi-ness in the final days of their fiscal quar-ters.

Another risk is that seeminglydependable subscription income willevaporate as some cash-strapped cus-tomers seek to renegotiate paymentterms. “If you sell to an airline, or to ahotel, they’re going to ask you for help,”saidAllianz’sMrPrice.

Any temporary dent to revenue, how-ever, might not be significant as long asthecoronaviruscollapsedoesnot leadtowidespreadcustomerbankruptcies.

Cloud software companies managedtheir businesses to maximise the life-time value of their customers, said TienTzuo, chief executive of Zuora, whosetechnology is used by other companiesto support subscription operations. As aresult, he added, helping a financiallystrapped customer through a difficultperiod might not have much impact onthe longer-termvalueof thatcustomer.

Even many of those wary about thesector’s stock prices, meanwhile, agreethat the upheaval to business from thepandemic is likely to accelerate thelonger-term shift to cloud software, ascompanies look for more flexible waysofworking.

“There’s no doubt in our minds thatthecloudwillbecomeevenmore impor-tant” as a result of the crisis, said BradZelnick at Credit Suisse. The only ques-tion is how much pain the coronavirusshutdownwill inflict inthemeantime.

Software stocks look like downturn winnersShares in cloud groups prove more resilient than most other sectors but sceptics believe this confidence is misplaced

US tech stocks have largely fared betterthan the wider marketIndices rebased

Source: Refinitiv

Software Hardware

70

80

90

100

110

Jan 2020

S&P 500

S&P 500 Info Tech

Apr

-40 -20 0 20DocuSignCitrix Sys

OktaMicrosoft

ServiceNowVerisign

AdobeOracle

Salesforce.comAlphabetFacebook

Hewlett Packard EntDXC Technology

40-60Nvidia

Advanced Micro DevicesIntel

AppleQualcomm

Texas InstrumentsSeagate Tech

Microchip TechHP

CDWTE Connectivity

CorningXerox

-40 -20 0 20 40-60S&P 500

Share price change, year to date (%)

Airbnb has been hit hard by a waveof cancellations due to the pandemic

‘This is not [the 2008-09crisis]. This is a differentway of working, a morevirtual way of working’

Softwarecompanies thathelp businessesoperatevirtually haveseen their shareprices reboundas the pandemicchanges the waypeople workErik Isakson/Getty

‘I think they have rose-coloured glasses on. Youcan’t believe what thecompanies tell you’

30%Increase in Zoomshare price sincethe crisis struck

25%Rise for Equinix insame period, whileCitrix is up 15%

NIKOU ASGARI AND ATTRACTA MOONEY

Ferguson, the FTSE 100 plumbing andheating supplies merchant, will stickwith its main listing in the UK aftersoundingout investors.

The group said it was unlikely to meetthe 75 per cent investor thresholdneeded to switch its main listing to theUS after consulting with 70 per cent ofits shareholders.

Instead, the £12bn-valued group, for-merly Wolseley, will seek approval foran additional listing in the US, which ithopes to complete next year, once thecoronaviruscrisis subsides.

The loss of a large British companywould be a blow to many UK-based fundmanagers whose investment mandateprevents them from holding overseas-listedstocks.

Rupert Krefting, head of corporatefinance at M&G Investments, said theUK asset manager had held discussionswith the group about the proposedplans.

“We are very supportive of what theyare doing. We were very against themmoving their primary listing to the US,”he said, adding that many of its UKfunds would have been forced sellers atmarket price without a premium to off-setpotential tax issues.

“This is the best of both worlds, Theycreate access for US shareholders andthey keep the UK shareholders as well,”hesaid.

However, the company remainsfocused on moving entirely to the US.Within12 monthsofaUSadditional list-

ing, the board intends to put forwardanother vote to relocate Ferguson’smain listingtoAmerica.

“We believe that ultimately achievinga US primary listing remains the rightoutcome for our business,” said GeoffDrabble, chairman. “We believe thisprocess presents the most orderly andequitablepathtoachievingthisaim.”

Ferguson’s perseverance to list in theUS is a victory for US hedge fund andactivist investor Trian Partners, run byNelson Peltz, one of the company’s larg-est shareholders, with a 6 per cent stake.

Last year, Trian said the plumbingand heating products supplier was “anattractive business that trades at a dis-counttocomparableUSpeers”.

Aynsley Lammin, equity analyst atCanaccord Genuity, said: “It’s a shamefor the UK market, but when you look atwherethebusiness ispositioned, they’rereporting in dollars . . . it makes senseforFergusontobe listed intheUS.”

As the pandemic continues to hitbusiness, Ferguson joined a growingnumber of companies in scrapping itsdividend, and has suspended the$500m share buyback announced inearlyFebruary.

The group said it had tapped the UKgovernment for funds through theCovid Corporate Financing Facility andhad $2.5bn in available liquidity to helpitget throughthecoronaviruscrisis.

In September, Ferguson announced itwould separate its UK business andfocus on North America, whichaccounts for more than 90 per cent ofearnings.

Industrials

Ferguson keeps main listing inUK after investor soundings

MILES KRUPPA — SAN FRANCISCO

Airbnb is raising $1bn of senior debt, just one week after announcing anequal-sized funding round from theinvestment firms Silver Lake and SixthStreet, further bolstering the propertyrental company’s reserves as it faces asteepdrop-off inbusiness.

Apollo Global Management, Owl RockCapital, Silver Lake and Sixth Streetwere among the investors that partici-pated in the new offering, said peoplebriefedonthematter.

Airbnb has raced to shore up its bal-ance sheet as the coronavirus outbreakbrings travel to a halt, inflaming ten-sions with rental hosts and throwingdoubts on the company’s timeline for apublic listing.

The wave of cancellations hasweighed on finances that for years hadstood out compared with cash-burningprivate tech peers such as Uber. Lastyear, the company produced positivecash flows in all four quarters and hadabout$3bnincashandequivalentsat itsdisposal, people briefed on its financeshavesaid.

Airbnb is now projecting it can returnto 2019 levels of revenue by next Janu-ary, theFinancialTimesreported.

The new five-year loan carries aninterest rate of 7.5 percentage pointsabove the risk-free rate and is senior tothe debt Airbnb raised last week, saidpeople familiar with the deal. The com-pany attracted about $2.5bn of interestfrom investors for the offering, one ofthepeoplesaid.

The investors and Airbnb declinedtocomment.

The debt and equity funding roundannounced last week followed discus-sions with more than a dozen investorsas Airbnb’s business came under pres-sure inMarch.

People briefed on that deal said Air-bnb agreed to pay interest rates of morethan 10 per cent and granted investorsequity warrants valuing the company atabout$18bn.

Airbnb, which had been valued at$31bn during a funding round in 2017,was expected to complete one of thisyear’s largest public listings, but theplan has been thrown into doubt by thepandemic. The company had at onepoint been leaning toward a direct list-ing, inwhichnonewmoneyisraised.

Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanleyadvised Airbnb on the latest debtoffering.

Technology

Travel woes prompt Airbnbto raise another $1bn in debt

SIMEON KERR — DUBAI

Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank said ithad launched a criminal complaint inthe United Arab Emirates in relation toNMC Health, the group that was putinto administration in the UK last weekandwhichowesthebanknearly$1bn.

The individual suspects, who have beenaccused of fraud and forgery in the com-plaint to the attorney-general in AbuDhabi, comprise a number of thegroup’s previous management as wellas certain current and former share-holders, two people briefed on the com-plaint said. Most of them are no longerbelievedtobe intheUAE.

The bank, the people added, hadaccused them of using forged or inaccu-rate documents to misstate NMC’s lia-bilities, as well as giving false valuationsthat fraudulently induced ADCB to pro-vide lending facilities. The criminalcomplaint also included a call to freezeassetsof theaccused, theyadded.

“They’ve gone for the company itselfvia the administration, and [some ofthe] shareholders and former manage-ment via the criminal proceedings,” saidonepersonbriefedontheaction.

“This action is consistent with thebank’s objective to protect its interests,”the bank said in a statement, withoutnamingthose involved.

Nochargeshaveyetbeenbrought.ADCB, which is owed almost $1bn by

NMC, has moved forcefully against it,applying successfully to appointrestructuring consultancy Alvarez &Marsalasadministrators intheUK.

The administrators on Tuesday dis-solved the previous board and formed acreditor committee led by ADCB toliaisebetweenlendersandthegroup.

NMC’s problems spilled into the openin December when a short seller pub-lished a report questioning the com-pany’s finances. An independent probediscovered off balance sheet financingonthesamedaythatPrasanthManghat,the former chief executive, was dis-missed. NMC later confirmed evidenceof suspected fraud and reported that itsdebt pile was $6.6bn, much higher thanpreviouslydisclosed.

NMC, which is based in Abu Dhabiand listed in the UK, was founded byIndian entrepreneur BR Shetty. Itreceivedamajor investmentfromEmir-atis Saeed al-Qebaisi and Khalifa al-Mu-hairi in 2011 ahead of its initial publicoffering on the London Stock Exchangein 2012. All three have since sold most,orall,of theirshareholdings.

Messrs Shetty, Qebaisi and Muhairideclined to comment. Mr Manghatcouldnotbereachedforcomment.

At last week’s online administrationhearing in London, the court heardADCB’s concerns the previous boardhad not investigated the suspectedfraud with any urgency. The bank alsoargued that administrators would havethe power to launch an independentprobe into the suspected fraud and seektorecoveranymisappropriatedfunds.

NMC stated in a letter to the HighCourt in London last week that neitherthe company nor the board acceptedanyallegationsofwrongdoing.

Healthcare

Abu Dhabi bank files criminalcomplaint against NMC Health

APRIL 16 2020 Section:Companies Time: 15/4/2020 - 18:46 User: cathy.pryor Page Name: CONEWS2, Part,Page,Edition: USA, 7, 1


8 ★ † FINANCIAL TIMES Thursday 16 April 2020

COMPANIES & MARKETS

CHRISTIAN SHEPHERD — BEIJINGHUDSON LOCKETT — HONG KONG

Trading in a bond issued by China’sHNA Group was suspended in a sign ofhow liquidity problems at the heavilyindebted conglomerate have worsenedafter the coronavirus pandemicbuffetedcapitalmarkets.

The Shanghai stock exchange said in astatement yesterday that trading in theseven-year, Rmb3bn ($425m) bond —issued by the company in 2015 — wasinitially halted shortly after the marketopeneddueto“abnormal fluctuations”.

After a brief resumption, trading wasagain stopped after the bond fell below30percentof itsparvalue.

ThevolatilitycameafterHNAcalledalast-minute teleconference on Tuesdaynight to tell its investors of its intentionto delay by a year both principal andinterest payments for a separate bondissued in 2013 that had been due onApril 15. HNA publicly apologisedyesterday for failing to give advancedwarningof themeeting.

HNA, based in southern China’sHainan province, is best known for itshigh-profile debt spree in 2015 and 2016

in which it spent billions of dollars onassets including stakes in DeutscheBank and Hilton Worldwide. It also con-trols Hainan Airlines, China’s fourth-largestcarrier.

HNA’s fortunes soured after Beijingbegan blocking big outbound invest-ments four years ago on concerns overcapital outflows and the substantialdebts being accrued by it and other so-called“greyrhino”conglomerates.

Insurer Anbang was placed undergovernment control in 2018 and its

chairman Wu Xiaohui was sentenced to18years inprisonfor fraud.

The director of one Shanghai-basedbrokerage said investors may also havebeen using HNA’s bonds to speculate onthefateofHainanAirlines.

Like elsewhere in the world, the virushas piled enormous pressure on China’sairlines. The country’s aviation regula-tor said yesterday that carriers had suf-fered a record loss of Rmb33.62bn in thefirstquarterof theyear.

The coronavirus has rattled capitalmarkets in China and elsewhere overthepast twomonths.Datatomorrowareexpected to show a historic contractioninChineseeconomicgrowth.

“There’s always some hot moneythat’s going in and out of these bonds,”the brokerage director said. HNA wouldprobably receive a government bailoutto prevent its collapse as Beijing doesn’twant “to see a high-profile issue in thisenvironment”.

In February, two senior Chinese stateexecutives were appointed to manage-ment roles at HNA, prompting talk thatthe company could be taken over by theChinesegovernment.See Lex

Fixed income

HNA bond suspended as liquiditycrunch strikes Chinese conglomerate

PHILIP STAFFORD ANDLAURENCE FLETCHER

Five European countries haveextended bans on the short selling ofshares, despite pressure from hedgefunds to scrap the restrictions put inplace after a sharp market sell-off lastmonth.

The bans in France, Spain, Austria, Bel-gium and Greece had been scheduled toexpire in coming days but regulatorssaid late yesterday that they wouldextendthemuntilmid-May.

Authorities had argued that restric-tions were necessary to stabilise stockprices after fears over coronavirusknocked about 30 per cent off Europeanshares inMarch.

Equities have since recovered asmuch as 15 per cent, prompting hedgefunds to claim that extending banswould be damaging, pushing up theall-incostsof trading.

“These decisions are bad for inves-tors, bad for markets and bad for theeconomy as a whole,” said Bryan Cor-bett, chief executive of the ManagedFunds Association, which representshedge funds such as DE Shaw, Renais-

sance Technologies, Citadel, Two SigmaInvestments and Third Point. “We urgeother nations to follow the evidence andavoid any further restrictions on short-selling.”

France’s markets regulator, the AMF,said it had taken the decision tolengthen the ban because of “the spreadof the coronavirus epidemic and thepersistence of its consequences on the

economy and the financial markets inFrance”.

Restrictions in Spain, Austria and Bel-gium were due to end after the close ofbusiness tomorrow while a ban inGreece expires next week. Italy’s banwill continue until mid-June. Other reg-ulatorsacrossEurope,notably intheUKandGermany,didnot imposebans.

Short selling is a practice widely usedby hedge funds and involves managersborrowing shares and then selling them,

hoping to buy them back later at a lowerpricebeforereturningthemandpocket-ingthedifference.

Hedge funds argue that investorsshould be able to make negative bets onmarket moves, just as other fund man-agers routinely make bets on pricesgoing up. Critics argue that short sellingcan magnify periods of panic and canmean that funds profit while people suf-fereconomichardship.

“To suggest that hedge funds exacer-bated the sell-off [by] short selling isabsurd,” said Jack Inglis, chief executiveof AIMA, a European hedge fund indus-try body, speaking before the AMF andothersextendedtheirbans.

“As a small part of the investmentfunds industry, hedge funds cannot andshould not be held responsible for mar-ket declines,” he added. “There is clearevidence that much larger traditionalfunds were heavily selling stocks andthat short sales were just a small part ofoverallmarketactivity.”

This week, the IMF struck a cautiousnote on bans, saying that authoritiesshould consider the potential negativeimpacts on liquidity and investors’ abil-ity toagreeprices.

Equities

European nations extend short-sellingbans despite pressure from hedge funds

‘These decisions are badfor investors, bad formarkets and bad for theeconomy as a whole’

HNA’s fortunes soured after Beijingblocked big outbound investments

EMIKO TERAZONO — LONDONANDRES SCHIPANI — SÃO PAULO

The pandemic set off a scramble for cof-fee beans last month as roasters workedflat out to meet demand from stockpil-ing consumers while shutdowns dis-ruptedsupply.

José Marcos Magalhães, head ofBrazil’s second-largest coffee co-opera-tive Minasul, watched shipments toEuropeandNorthAmericasurge.

Minasul had been expecting to ship400,000 bags (each containing 60kg ofbeans) for the whole of 2020 but itsorders rose past that level in March. MrMagalhães expects international salesfor the year to top 800,000 bags — morethandouble lastyear’s360,000.

“We are having very high demand,mainly from Europe . . . consumptionhas increased a lot in supermarkets inthe USA, and they want to replenishstocks,”hesaid.

Having fallen at the start of the crisisas China’s cafés shut their doors, coffeeprices have rebounded as large coffeeroasters suchasNestlé, JABandLavazzarushedtosecurebeans.

The futures benchmark for the higherqualityarabicabeantraded inNewYork

has risen 20 per cent since the start ofFebruary to $1.20 a pound, making itoneofthetop-performingcommodities.Over the same timeframe, oil is down bymore than 40 per cent while copper hasdroppedabout8percent.

So far this month, prices have movedsideways but supply risks are cominginto focus as inventories shrink ahead ofthe harvests in key arabica-producingcountries inLatinAmerica.

Persistently low prices in 2018 and2019 saw many growers abandon theirfarms while exports from countriesincluding Honduras and Colombia fell becauseof loweryields.

Certified arabica stocks at the ICEexchange, the market of last resort forbuyers of physical beans, have fallen11 per cent since the start of February toatwo-year low.

“There isashortageofwashedarabicacoffee,” said Roberto Vélez, chiefexecutive of the Colombian CoffeeGrowers Federation, referring to thepremium-grade beans processed for amildercleanertaste.

Analysts at Rabobank expect thesluggish pace of exports from manycountries tocontinuethroughout2020.

Even in Brazil, the largest producerand exporter, some buyers havenot been able to source as much astheywant.

“The stock is low and we were unableto fulfil all requests,” saidMrMagalhães.“As a result, I am having to nitpick

orders but that is because I don’t haveenoughcoffee.”

Producers’ hopes rest with Brazil’sharvest, which starts in May, andColombia’s second harvest, its mitaca,whichstarts later thismonth.

Analystsexpectprices tobevolatileastraders try to second-guess whetherBrazil’s crop, which is forecast to be nearrecord highs, can be picked, processedandtransported.

With many workers in the countryunwilling to travel far, there could be ashortage of migrant labour, according toCarlosMera,analystatRabobank.

“What will happen to the harvest is abig question mark,” he said, noting thatthe peak of the pandemic is estimated tohit thecountry in lateApril toearlyMay.

In Colombia, travel restrictionsimposed by the national and localauthorities pose a challenge to coffee-picking, saidMrVélez.

Even if the cherries are picked, headded, there will be logistical challengesateverystage fromfarmtoport.

There is also uncertainty overconsumption. Consumer demand forpackaged coffee jumped in March, withUS weekly sales up as much as 73 percent from the previous year, accordingtoconsumerdata firmNielsen.

But commodity brokers Marex Spec-tron expect overall demand to decreaseas at-home drinking fails to compensatefor a lack of consumption in chains suchasStarbucksandinrestaurants.

Rabobank has pencilled in a demandfall of 0.4 per cent in 2020 comparedwitha2.5percent increase in2019.Sucha drop would be similar to levels seenafter the2008financialcrisis.

The industry is taking heart fromreopenings of cafés in areas first hit bythevirus.

Stephen Hurst, head of Mercanta,which specialises in supplying high-grade coffee to artisanal roasters andcoffee shops, said he had seen his Asianbusinessrebound.

Although sales in Europe and the USdried up, activity in the Singaporeoffice was “pretty much back tonormal”,hesaid.

“[Asian countries] are at a differentstage of the crisis and are coming out oftheothersideof it,”hesaid.

Back in Brazil, Mr Magalhães ishopeful that continued demand willkeep prices at current levels, andthat Minasul can overcome logisticalchallenges.

There are reasons to be cheerful.Roads and ports have remained openwhile shipping groups such as Maerskare trying to resolve the scarcity of con-tainers forexporters.

Moreover, the bulk of the co-opera-tive’s 8,000 growers on smallholderfarms are already in a “natural quaran-tine”, Mr Magalhães said. “They liveon the farm, isolated, which isanother thing that would allow coffeeagriculturetocontinuerunning.”

Bean growers wrestle with

uncertainty over inventories,

labour and long-term demand

‘I am havingto nitpickordersbut that isbecause Idon’t haveenoughcoffee’

Braziliangrowers areworking hard tomeet increaseddemand, whichhas made coffeeone of theworld’s top-performingcommoditiesVictor Moriyama/Bloomberg

Commodities. Sales surge

Coffee climbs as locked-downconsumers seek caffeine fix

TOMMY STUBBINGTON

Italian government bonds are comingunder pressure despite the EuropeanCentral Bank’s huge asset-purchaseprogramme as investors worry aboutthe enormous debt load Italy and othereurozone members are taking on tocombatthecoronaviruscrisis.

A sell-off in Italy’s government debtextended to a second day yesterday,pushingthe 10-yearyield toa four-weekhigh of more than 1.8 per cent. Bondsissued by Greece, Portugal and Spainalsoweakened.

The gap between Italian and Germanyields — a measure of risk in eurozonebond markets — widened to more than2.2 percentage points, reversing morethanhalfof thenarrowingseensince theannouncement of the ECB’s €750bnPandemic Emergency Purchase Pro-grammeonMarch18.

Theshake-upunderlines thatwithouta way to pool risk across all euro mem-bers, investors will be forced to focus onthe financial risk each country is takingontofight thepandemic.

“What matters to markets is the sensethat we are not seeing solidarity at atime of crisis. Instead, it’s every man forhimself,” said Mark Dowding, chiefinvestment officer at BlueBay AssetManagement. “That is going to fuelEuroscepticism, which eventually sees

fears of a break-up getting priced in. Asan investor, I think that dynamic ismore important than the finer points ofanyeurozonedeal.”

Fears over debt sustainability haveintensified since eurozone finance min-isters last week failed to include jointlyissued so-called “corona bonds” in theircrisis-fighting package. An Italian pushfor shared debt was squashed by Ger-many and the Netherlands, which pre-fer to see relief efforts channelledthroughtheeurozone’sbailout fund.

Italy’s debt burden will rise to morethan 150 per cent of gross domesticproduct this year, up from 134 per centlast year, Rabobank is projecting. Debtwill climb to 108 per cent of output inSpain and 128 per cent in Portugal whileGermany will see a much more modestrise to63percent, says thebank.

Some are reluctant to buy into Italy’srelatively high-yield debt despite theECB’s backing, fearing a political back-lash to the crisis that could reawakenquestions about eurozone membershipandweakenthebondsfurther.

“[The] creditworthiness of memberstates is back at the centre of themarket’s radar,” said Richard McGuire,a rates strategist at Rabobank. “It’s notjust an Italy issue, it’s right across south-ern Europe. We are moving back to atwo-speedcontinent,”hesaid.

Yields in Italy are still well short of thepeak of almost 3 per cent hit a monthago and far below the heights reachedduringtheeurozonedebtcrisis.

Fixed income

Italian debtslides despiteECB purchaseprogramme

‘What matters to marketsis the sense that we are notseeing solidarity. Instead,it’s every man for himself ’

FastFTOur globalteam gives youmarket-movingnews and views,24 hours a dayft.com/fastft

Co�ee rallies on consumerand corporate stockpiling

Sources: Refinitiv; International Co�ee Organization

Top co�ee exportersExport volumes in 2018 (million 60kgbags)

0 10 20 30 40

Brazil

Vietnam

Colombia

Honduras

India

ICE arabica (cents per lb)

100

105

110

115

120

125

130

Jan 2020 Apr

APRIL 16 2020 Section:Markets Time: 15/4/2020 - 18:44 User: stephen.smith Page Name: MARKETS1, Part,Page,Edition: USA, 8, 1



COMPANIES & MARKETS

Derek BrowerMarkets Insight

Oil stocks headed the US fallers, withNoble Energy leading the sector lowerafter withdrawing 2020 guidance andannouncing cost-saving measures,including a dividend cut.

LyondellBasell dropped after the fuelrefinery and chemicals group cutearnings targets and warned that tradinghad been tougher than expected.

Solid demand for food and medicalpackaging had been eclipsed by pressureon fuel markets and falling demand forpolymers from carmakers, forcing costsavings and debt management toimprove liquidity, the company said.

JC Penney fell on reports that it wasconsidering filing for bankruptcyprotection to cope with upcoming debtrepayments.

The fears stoked pressure on brandsreliant on department-store sales such asGap and Calvin Klein owner PVH, and onmall operators including Simon Property.

Tesla extended recent gains, helped bypositive Chinese car-registration data.

Morgan Stanley said “a scarcity of high-growth names” had made investors “evenmore attracted to the simplicity andsingle-mindedness of Tesla’s long-termgrowth story”, while Barclays said thatthe company “may have levers to pull” tobeat first-quarter expectations inpreparation for a tranche of managementshare options to vest in May. Bryce Elder

Wall Street LondonEurozone

DiaSorin of Italy hit a record high for asecond day, the diagnostics developerhaving said on Tuesday that its Covid-19blood serum test could be authorised foruse as early as next week.

Berenberg said the high-capacity testwas “a meaningful new opportunity forthe business and a potential turning pointto combat the virus”.

Demand both from governments andthe private sector, in addition togenerating sales in excess of €100m thisyear, will strengthen negotiation leveragewith key customers, the broker said.

Adidas slid after the Germangovernment approved the sportswearmaker’s request for a €3bn crisis loan,which required it to cancel dividends.

The group said it was still unable togive any guidance for the full year 2020.

Hotel group Accor dropped afterMorgan Stanley turned cautious.

This recession is likely to be worse thanprevious cycles for hoteliers, given thegrowing presence of industry disruptersand post-crisis behavioural changes,meaning that investors should not expectroom rates to recover to 2019 levels foranother six years, Morgan Stanley said.

While Accor has enough liquidity tosurvive for more than four years, itsrestructuring has stalled and, as a result,the business is more operationally gearedthan asset-light peers, it said. Bryce Elder

Fears of reputation damage weighed onHiscox even after the insurer said itsexposure to business interruption claimsfrom Covid-19 was “limited” in Europe and“negligible” in the US retail market.

Threats of legal action from customersrefused payouts had earlier led theFinancial Conduct Authority adviceinsurers to settle valid claims quickly.

“If the company is able to defend itswording . . . the new business franchise islikely to suffer substantially fromnegative sentiment in the UK at least,”said RBC Capital Markets.

UK aerospace engineers includingMeggitt, Senior, Rolls-Royce and MelroseIndustries were the day’s sharpest fallersafter Boeing said it had lost 150 orders forits 737 Max jet last month.

Retail and leisure stocks includingHammerson, the shopping centre owner,and JD Sports slid awaiting confirmationthat the UK was extending lockdownrestrictions into May.

JD Wetherspoon fell after CanaccordGenuity said it may have to raise up to£250m to “survive the liquidity crisis”.

With the pub group’s net debt edgingtowards £1bn, investors should not ignorethe risk of an equity fundraise, it said.

Dilution fears meant Hyve, the eventsgroup, slumped for a second day —having confirmed on Tuesday that it wasweighing up a fundraising. Bryce Elder

3 Wall Street retreats after the release ofpoor retail and industrial data3 Weak oil and gas groups weigh onEuropean equities3 Core government debt and dollarin demand

The recent rally in global stocks came toan end yesterday as earnings results andeconomic data left investors digestingthe financial damage being wrought bythe pandemic.

Wall Street retreated after US retail andindustrial data revealed the scale of theeconomic hit to the domestic economybecause of Covid-19.

US retail sales fell 8.7 per cent in March,the biggest one-month decline sincerecords began in 1992.

Meanwhile, US industrial output sankby the most in more than 70 years, areminder that “while coronaviruscontainment measures are primarilyslamming the brakes on service sectoractivity, the manufacturing sector is alsoset for a significant downturn”, saidAndrew Hunter, senior US economist atCapital Economics.

On the earnings front, Goldman Sachsand Bank of America yesterday preparedfor more pain among their clients bysetting aside billions of dollars to coverloan losses as they reported poor first-quarter numbers.

By midday, the S&P 500 was down 2.3per cent while the tech-heavy NasdaqComposite was 1.7 per cent lower.

Some analysts said the slide in stockswas overdue, Rabobank noting: “Howmuch further can we take the dichotomyof bull markets as we head to 10 per cent,

15 per cent or perhaps 25 per centunemployment?”

Across the Atlantic, figures from Franceshowed retail sales had sank 24 per centin March during the country’s lockdown.Paris’ CAC 40 sank 3.8 per cent.

Elsewhere, Frankfurt’s Xetra Dax fell 3.9per cent while the region-wide StoxxEurope 600 index slid 3.3 per cent,dragged lower by oil and gas companies.

Groups such as BP and Shell tumbledmore than 6 per cent yesterday after theprice of crude slid further following areport by International Energy Agency,which said global oil demand would fall

by 9.3m barrels a day this year versus2019 even if lockdowns and travel banswere lifted.

Europe’s oil and gas stocks fell 6.3 percent alongside a 5 per cent slide in Brentcrude, the international benchmark.

Haven assets such as core governmentbonds were back in favour as stocks soldoff. The yield on the 10-year US Treasuryslipped 10 basis points to 0.65 per cent.

The US dollar, which is also seen as ahaven in times of market stress, gained.The Dollar index, which tracks thegreenback against a basket of peers, roseas much as 1.1 per cent. Ray Douglas

.

What you need to know

Oil groups tumble after crude prices slide furtherIndices rebased

Source: RefinitivMarkets closed for holiday break

90

92

94

96

98

100

102

104

Wed Tue Wed

Stoxx Europe 600 Oil & Gas

Stoxx Europe 600

The day in the markets

Markets update

US Eurozone Japan UK China BrazilStocks S&P 500 Eurofirst 300 Nikkei 225 FTSE100 Shanghai Comp BovespaLevel 2768.07 1268.07 19550.09 5597.65 2811.17 79119.34% change on day -2.74 -3.17 -0.45 -3.34 -0.57 -1.00Currency $ index (DXY) $ per € Yen per $ $ per £ Rmb per $ Real per $Level 99.725 1.091 107.415 1.250 7.063 5.255% change on day 0.847 -0.547 0.182 -0.794 0.031 1.259Govt. bonds 10-year Treasury 10-year Bund 10-year JGB 10-year Gilt 10-year bond 10-year bondYield 0.638 -0.467 0.016 0.300 2.536 7.256Basis point change on day -10.210 -8.400 0.470 -3.600 -1.400 -14.400World index, Commods FTSE All-World Oil - Brent Oil - WTI Gold Silver Metals (LMEX)Level 307.37 27.78 19.69 1741.90 15.51 2391.80% change on day -2.41 -7.65 -5.29 3.64 2.21 2.15Yesterday's close apart from: Currencies = 16:00 GMT; S&P, Bovespa, All World, Oil = 17:00 GMT; Gold, Silver = London pm fix. Bond data supplied by Tullett Prebon.

Main equity markets

S&P 500 index Eurofirst 300 index FTSE 100 index

| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |

Feb 2020 Apr1920

2560

3200

3840

| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |

Feb 2020 Apr960

1280

1600

1920

| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |

Feb 2020 Apr3840

5120

6400

7680

Biggest movers% US Eurozone UK

Ups

Netflix 3.77Unitedhealth 3.12Centene 2.12Take-two Interactive Software 2.00Abbott Laboratories 1.87

Orkla 3.84Carlsberg 2.65Ses 2.64Telenor 1.95Lindt 1.31

Ocado 3.91Flutter Entertainment 2.12United Utilities 1.07Severn Trent 0.97Sainsbury (j) 0.65

%

Dow

ns

Noble Energy -16.10Pvh -14.01Helmerich & Payne -13.79Nordstrom -13.07Technipfmc -12.72

Prices taken at 17:00 GMT

Seadrill -12.46Thyssenkrupp -12.45Omv -10.29Amadeus It -10.01Commerzbank -9.67Based on the constituents of the FTSE Eurofirst 300 Eurozone

Melrose Industries -12.29Easyjet -9.94Royal Bank Of Scotland -9.26Int Consolidated Airlines S.a. -8.53Jd Sports Fashion -8.41

All data provided by Morningstar unless otherwise noted.

T he oil market has spent thepast few days sniffingaround an Opec deal thatpromised the biggest cuts toproduction in history — and

has decided it was undercooked. Thepandemichit todemandis just toobig.

Even the almost 10 per cent reductionin global supply — far more than the car-tel removed from the market during theprevious financial crisis — is not enoughto compensate for a 30 per cent collapsein consumption as economies are shutdowntostopthevirus’s spread.

Nor do traders accept the assurances— from Opec’s de facto leader Saudi Ara-biaandthepresidentof theUS,no less—that the cuts will, in fact, be twice thoseagreedonSundaynight.

Brent, the international crude bench-mark, has fallen back below $30 a barrelfrom a high of almost $34 after tradingbeganthisweek.

Those claims of much bigger thanpublished cuts surfaced on Monday inprivate briefings from Abdulaziz binSalman, the Saudi energy minister, andthen through the method usually guar-anteed to move oil prices in recent years—aPresidentDonaldTrumptweet.

“Having been involved in the negotia-tions, to put it mildly, the number thatOPEC+ is looking to cut is 20 MillionBarrels a day, not the 10 Million that isgenerallybeingreported,”hewrote.

Opec’s communiqué on Sunday saidthe cuts would be 9.7m b/d, for May andJune, and then get smaller until theyended in 2022 — hence the 10m that wasgenerally reported. But as traders andanalysts studied the fine print, theyhavegrownmorebearish.

Start with the 9.7m b/d announced inthe communiqué. This included 2.5mb/d to be cut by Russia. In past deals

with Opec, Moscow has struggled todelivercutsbarelya10thof thatsize.

Russia previously blamed its poorrecord of compliance on the long leadtime needed to start adjusting produc-tion. Now it pledges to deliver record-breaking cuts, lasting just two months,starting intwoweeks’ time.

Iraq, another producer with a patchyrecord, isbeingcalleduponfor1mb/dofthesupplyreduction.

Saudi Arabia can be relied on todeliver its 2.5m b/d of pledged cuts infull. But it negotiated a baseline of 11mb/d from which to begin its cuts. That is

about 1.3m b/d more than it was pro-ducing inthefirstquarterof theyear.

Energy Aspects, a consultancy, thinksthe agreed production deal will be about7m b/d less than countries’ first-quarterproduction. Investment bank GoldmanSachs reckons it might be just 4.3m b/dbelow first-quarter output, once non-compliance is factored in.

That is a long way from the 20m b/dshortfallproclaimedbyMrTrump.

The US president was probablyreflecting the same number that Opecproducers have been spinning to a scep-tical market. It involves some ingeniousbarrel counting and stretches the defini-tionof theword“cut”.

The big number includes extra supplycuts of about 2.7m b/d volunteered bySaudiArabiaanditsGulfneighbours.

These are Opec’s core countries and

their commitments can be taken at facevalue. But they will make these cutsfrom record current output, not fromthe lower volumes they were producingin the first quarter, before the previousOpecdealdissolvedintoapricewar.

Also included in that 20m figure, sayofficials, are supply reductions thathave already happened — like those inLibya, which has lost almost 1m b/d ofproduction because of fighting, or insanctions-hit IranandVenezuela.

Declines in supply from oil producersoutside the Opec+ orbit, like the US,Canada, Brazil and Norway, are said toaccount for almost 4m b/d of the 20m.This isastretch.

First, these are estimates of howmuchoutputwill fallatagivenprice,notcommitmentsbymembersofacartel.

Second,noonecansaywhenthis free-market oil will disappear from supply —or come back. These “cuts” depend oncompanies making decisions to chokebacksupplybasedonavarietyof factors—fiduciaryduties toshareholders,exec-utive compensation targets, covenantswith creditors, hedging obligations and,aboveall,movements inprices.

A cut enforced by a falling price is justthe market rationing supply, not thecollectiveactionofacartel.

Lastly, the 20m also includes pur-chases made by consumer countries fortheir strategic crude stockpiles. Stock-ing up at low prices is a good move. Itmay have happened anyway. But a “cut”tosupply it isnot.

As Amrita Sen of Energy Aspects saidin a note to clients, the 20m includesmuch “double counting, creativeaccounting and obfuscation”. The mar-ketdidnot take longtoworkthisout.

[email protected]

Record Opec cut isno match for virushit to demand

The number involvessome ingenious barrelcounting and stretches thedefinition of the word ‘cut’

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APRIL 16 2020 Section:Markets Time: 15/4/2020 - 18:55 User: stephen.smith Page Name: MARKETS2, Part,Page,Edition: USA, 9, 1



MARKET DATA

WORLD MARKETS AT A GLANCE FT.COM/MARKETSDATA

Change during previous day’s trading (%)S&P 500

-2.74%

Nasdaq Composite

-1.98%

Dow Jones Ind

-2.62%

FTSE 100

-3.34%

FTSE Eurofirst 300

-3.17%

Nikkei

-0.45%

Hang Seng

-1.19%

FTSE All World $

-2.41%

$ per €

-0.547%

$ per £

-0.794%

¥ per $

0.182%

£ per €

0.230%

Oil Brent $ Sep

-5.07%

Gold $

3.64%

Stock Market movements over last 30 days, with the FTSE All-World in the same currency as a comparisonAMERICAS EUROPE ASIAMar 16 - - Index All World Mar 16 - Apr 15 Index All World Mar 16 - Apr 15 Index All World Mar 16 - Apr 15 Index All World Mar 16 - Apr 15 Index All World Mar 16 - Apr 15 Index All World

S&P 500 New York

2,386.13

2,768.10

Day -2.74% Month 2.11% Year -4.73%

Nasdaq Composite New York

6,904.59

8,346.77

Day -1.98% Month 5.99% Year 4.65%

Dow Jones Industrial New York

20,188.52

23,323.38

Day -2.62% Month 0.64% Year -11.56%

S&P/TSX COMP Toronto

12,360.40

13,973.26

Day -2.00% Month 1.77% Year -15.48%

IPC Mexico City

36,636.7034,169.69

Day -1.66% Month -10.32% Year -23.46%

Bovespa São Paulo

74,617.2479,119.34

Day -1.00% Month -4.45% Year -15.13%

FTSE 100 London

5,366.115,597.65

Day -3.34% Month 4.34% Year -24.71%

FTSE Eurofirst 300 Europe

1,167.941,268.07

Day -3.17% Month 8.51% Year -16.87%

CAC 40 Paris

4,118.364,353.72

Day -3.76% Month 5.71% Year -20.97%

Xetra Dax Frankfurt

9,232.0810,279.76

Day -3.90% Month -0.51% Year NaN%

Ibex 35 Madrid

6,629.60 6,839.50

Day -3.79% Month -11.28% Year -27.98%

FTSE MIB Milan

15,954.2916,719.07

Day -4.78% Month 5.39% Year -23.20%

Nikkei 225 Tokyo

17,002.04

19,550.09

Day -0.45% Month 12.16% Year -10.61%

Hang Seng Hong Kong

23,263.7324,145.34

Day -1.19% Month 0.27% Year -19.43%

Shanghai Composite Shanghai

2,789.25 2,811.17

Day -0.57% Month -2.64% Year -11.84%

Kospi Seoul

1,672.44

1,857.08

Day 1.72% Month 4.83% Year -16.85%

FTSE Straits Times Singapore

2,495.772,605.56

Day -1.10% Month -1.46% Year -22.10%

BSE Sensex Mumbai

35,697.40

30,379.81

Day -1.01% Month -10.92% Year -21.64%

Country Index Latest Previous Country Index Latest Previous Country Index Latest Previous Country Index Latest Previous Country Index Latest Previous Country Index Latest Previous

Argentina Merval 31063.20 30781.55Australia All Ordinaries 5523.30 5542.50

S&P/ASX 200 5466.70 5488.10S&P/ASX 200 Res 3939.00 3983.30

Austria ATX 2048.04 2201.41Belgium BEL 20 2920.82 3057.66

BEL Mid 7138.12 7277.00Brazil IBovespa 79119.34 79918.36Canada S&P/TSX 60 847.85 864.47

S&P/TSX Comp 13973.26 14258.43S&P/TSX Div Met & Min 361.68 337.02

Chile S&P/CLX IGPA Gen 19482.82 19594.81China FTSE A200 10009.48 10079.67

FTSE B35 9000.71 8988.96Shanghai A 2946.18 2963.04Shanghai B 215.95 217.94Shanghai Comp 2811.17 2827.28Shenzhen A 1816.64 1826.38Shenzhen B 834.39 831.94

Colombia COLCAP 1211.06 1193.98Croatia CROBEX 2013.05 2011.29

Cyprus CSE M&P Gen 68.46 68.68Czech Republic PX 825.11 849.38Denmark OMXC Copenahgen 20 1102.69 1110.11Egypt EGX 30 10458.16 10353.72Estonia OMX Tallinn 1084.70 1083.89Finland OMX Helsinki General 7908.32 8253.78France CAC 40 4353.72 4523.90

SBF 120 3424.67 3562.63Germany M-DAX 21722.09 22374.20

TecDAX 2793.80 2879.94XETRA Dax 10279.76 10696.56

Greece Athens Gen 607.57 628.19FTSE/ASE 20 1472.14 1527.83

Hong Kong Hang Seng 24145.34 24435.40HS China Enterprise 9724.70 9847.47HSCC Red Chip 3720.12 3793.19

Hungary Bux 32710.55 33849.13India BSE Sensex 30379.81 30690.02

Nifty 500 7344.35 7360.35Indonesia Jakarta Comp 4625.91 4706.49Ireland ISEQ Overall 4970.39 5183.34Israel Tel Aviv 125 1320.74 1333.48

Italy FTSE Italia All-Share 18312.13 19179.27FTSE Italia Mid Cap 29900.15 30761.76FTSE MIB 16719.07 17558.43

Japan 2nd Section 5557.46 5561.83Nikkei 225 19550.09 19638.81S&P Topix 150 1198.86 1195.69Topix 1434.07 1433.51

Jordan Amman SE 1668.18 1675.47Kenya NSE 20 1967.13 1968.19Kuwait KSX Market Index 6633.44 6603.51Latvia OMX Riga 995.96 978.53Lithuania OMX Vilnius 667.12 667.12Luxembourg LuxX 915.13 938.71Malaysia FTSE Bursa KLCI 1387.79 1371.66Mexico IPC 34169.69 34746.39Morocco MASI 9326.70 9300.27Netherlands AEX 491.13 507.73

AEX All Share 691.55 712.46New Zealand NZX 50 10409.94 10159.02Nigeria SE All Share 20925.19 20669.38Norway Oslo All Share 805.47 828.21Pakistan KSE 100 31242.19 31222.74

Philippines Manila Comp 5946.05 5780.88Poland Wig 44685.87 46092.44Portugal PSI 20 4137.91 4231.02

PSI General 2849.27 2886.91Romania BET Index 7964.04 8296.19Russia Micex Index 2497.26 2631.83

RTX 1051.11 1133.23Saudi-Arabia TADAWUL All Share Index 6874.64 6804.54Singapore FTSE Straits Times 2605.56 2634.57Slovakia SAX 327.80 320.14Slovenia SBI TOP 873.85 -South Africa FTSE/JSE All Share 48301.28 49874.51

FTSE/JSE Res 20 41858.95 43967.35FTSE/JSE Top 40 44202.90 45580.91

South Korea Kospi 1857.08 1825.76Kospi 200 247.45 243.40

Spain IBEX 35 6839.50 7108.60Sri Lanka CSE All Share 4571.63 4874.73Sweden OMX Stockholm 30 1478.93 1535.84

OMX Stockholm AS 564.99 586.92Switzerland SMI Index 9320.20 9538.61

Taiwan Weighted Pr 10447.21 10332.94Thailand Bangkok SET 1236.10 1256.35Turkey BIST 100 95854.92 98549.80UAE Abu Dhabi General Index 4178.69 4135.45UK FT 30 2108.00 2208.50

FTSE 100 5597.65 5791.31FTSE 4Good UK 5150.63 5338.13FTSE All Share 3087.44 3200.14FTSE techMARK 100 4705.57 4858.46

USA DJ Composite 7607.80 7830.89DJ Industrial 23323.38 23949.76DJ Transport 7902.46 8177.69DJ Utilities 800.73 825.10Nasdaq 100 8541.25 8692.16Nasdaq Cmp 8346.77 8515.74NYSE Comp 10785.39 11172.20S&P 500 2768.07 2846.06Wilshire 5000 27688.77 28477.37

Venezuela IBC 249098.83 227597.09Vietnam VNI 777.22 767.41

Cross-Border DJ Global Titans ($) 328.84 335.63Euro Stoxx 50 (Eur) 2808.20 2917.74Euronext 100 ID 857.04 888.88FTSE 4Good Global ($) 6966.17 7128.53FTSE All World ($) 307.37 314.95FTSE E300 1268.07 1309.52FTSE Eurotop 100 2459.34 2535.09FTSE Global 100 ($) 1806.38 1841.53FTSE Gold Min ($) 2146.20 2066.07FTSE Latibex Top (Eur) 4440.00 4432.20FTSE Multinationals ($) 1972.01 1918.05FTSE World ($) 546.21 560.26FTSEurofirst 100 (Eur) 3303.46 3423.41FTSEurofirst 80 (Eur) 3827.50 3977.84MSCI ACWI Fr ($) 477.70 466.37MSCI All World ($) 2006.81 1956.75MSCI Europe (Eur) 1356.80 1350.95MSCI Pacific ($) 2357.26 2301.53S&P Euro (Eur) 1276.28 1325.18S&P Europe 350 (Eur) 1299.69 1342.51S&P Global 1200 ($) 2174.81 2235.05Stoxx 50 (Eur) 2739.81 2818.64

(c) Closed. (u) Unavaliable. † Correction. ♥ Subject to official recalculation. For more index coverage please see www.ft.com/worldindices. A fuller version of this table is available on the ft.com research data archive.

STOCK MARKET: BIGGEST MOVERS UK MARKET WINNERS AND LOSERSAMERICA LONDON EURO MARKETS TOKYOACTIVE STOCKS stock close Day's

traded m's price changeAmazon.com 83.3 2291.03 7.71Apple 41.6 282.96 -4.09Microsoft 32.1 171.64 -2.06Netflix 27.9 429.13 15.58Advanced Micro Devices 23.9 54.52 -0.41Boeing 18.9 135.10 -5.90Facebook 13.6 174.44 -3.73Nvidia 12.5 279.11 -4.84Jpmorgan Chase & Co 11.7 90.90 -4.60Delta Air Lines 11.3 23.47 -1.07

BIGGEST MOVERS Close Day's Day'sprice change chng%

UpsNetflix 429.13 15.58 3.77Unitedhealth 278.95 8.45 3.12Centene 67.81 1.41 2.12Take-two Interactive Software 125.24 2.46 2.00Abbott Laboratories 90.81 1.67 1.87

DownsNoble Energy 6.09 -1.17 -16.10Pvh 41.24 -6.72 -14.01Helmerich & Payne 15.81 -2.53 -13.79Nordstrom 17.43 -2.62 -13.07Technipfmc 7.38 -1.08 -12.72

ACTIVE STOCKS stock close Day'straded m's price change

Barclays 285.5 87.00 -6.55Astrazeneca 230.3 7615.00 9.00Hsbc Holdings 172.9 408.10 -19.35Bp 170.9 299.70 -21.40Glaxosmithkline 169.9 1570.00 0.00Royal Dutch Shell 162.4 1315.80 -105.20British American Tobacco 142.9 2922.00 3.50Reckitt Benckiser 140.6 6320.00 -128.00Royal Dutch Shell 131.1 1346.00 -99.00Diageo 128.6 2620.00 -4.00


UpsHastings Holdings 190.30 7.80 4.27Ocado 1542.50 58.00 3.91Watches Of Switzerland 239.50 7.50 3.23Flutter Entertainment 7600.00 158.00 2.12Genus 3502.00 72.00 2.10

DownsCineworld 49.67 -13.33 -21.16Hyve 21.10 -5.10 -19.47Hammerson 66.66 -14.76 -18.13Airtel Africa 37.75 -6.65 -14.98Wetherspoon ( J.d.) 822.00 -139.00 -14.46


Bbva 689.4 2.73 -0.20Sap Se O.n. 465.3 108.30 -3.70Allianz Se Na O.n. 438.0 161.36 -6.34Asml Holding 400.9 254.85 -8.40Royal Dutch Shella 382.9 15.65 -1.25Total 342.8 30.69 -1.98Siemens Ag Na O.n. 311.1 78.56 -4.23Lvmh 254.4 342.00 -10.00Iberdrola 254.1 8.90 -0.18Santander 250.6 2.00 -0.12


UpsOrkla 8.38 0.31 3.84Carlsberg B A/s 108.96 2.81 2.65Ses 5.98 0.15 2.64Telenor 14.18 0.27 1.95Lindt Ps 7712.59 118.73 1.56

DownsSeadrill 0.54 -0.08 -12.46Thyssenkrupp Ag O.n. 5.33 -0.76 -12.45Omv Ag 27.54 -3.16 -10.29Amadeus It 45.84 -5.10 -10.01Commerzbank Ag 3.04 -0.33 -9.67


Softbank . 2865.3 4333.00 -87.00Fast Retailing Co., 561.4 48440.00 -350.00Sony 451.3 6767.00 151.00Toyota Motor 354.9 6738.00 -12.00Tokyo Electron 346.2 22355.00 -300.00Mitsubishi Ufj Fin,. 330.5 417.00 -10.90Recruit Hldgs Co Ltd 270.1 2800.00 110.50Kddi 253.5 3176.00 28.00Fujifilm Holdings 217.5 5383.00 -89.00Mizuho Fin,. 204.0 124.00 -3.60


UpsFujitsu 10805.00 510.00 4.95Nec 4335.00 185.00 4.46Recruit Hldgs Co Ltd 2800.00 110.50 4.11Toho Co.,ltd 3550.00 120.00 3.50Tobu Railway Co., 3710.00 105.00 2.91

DownsToyo Seikan Kaisha, 1059.00 -82.00 -7.19Mitsui Eng & Shipbuilding Co., 544.00 -39.00 -6.69Familymart Co., 1757.00 -96.00 -5.18Suzuki Motor 3039.00 -155.00 -4.85Citizen Holdings Co., 348.00 -17.00 -4.66

Based on the constituents of the S&P500 Based on the constituents of the FTSE 350 index Based on the constituents of the FTSEurofirst 300 Eurozone index Based on the constituents of the Nikkei 225 index

Apr 15 %Chg %ChgFTSE 100 price(p) week ytdWinnersJust Eat Takeaway.com N.v. 7764.00 17.1 -Ocado 1542.50 13.8 22.5Astrazeneca 7615.00 9.2 -0.6M&g 146.00 9.0 -40.1Polymetal Int 1510.50 6.9 26.8Pennon 1098.50 6.3 7.0Fresnillo 695.80 6.0 8.0Next 4457.00 5.7 -35.9United Utilities 888.20 5.6 -6.9Severn Trent 2299.00 4.7 -8.6Glaxosmithkline 1570.00 4.7 -11.7Tesco 232.60 4.4 -9.1

LosersInt Consolidated Airlines S.a. 217.80 -12.8 -65.8Intermediate Capital 938.00 -11.0 -42.8Evraz 232.70 -10.9 -42.7Barratt Developments 433.30 -10.8 -42.4Bp 299.70 -10.6 -37.7Melrose Industries 84.38 -10.6 -65.2Standard Chartered 394.00 -9.9 -45.3Royal Dutch Shell 1346.00 -9.8 -40.4Royal Bank Of Scotland 104.30 -9.5 -57.3Meggitt 243.40 -9.3 -62.8Royal Dutch Shell 1315.80 -9.3 -41.7Persimmon 1839.00 -9.2 -32.6

Apr 15 %Chg %ChgFTSE 250 price(p) week ytdWinnersElementis 64.00 24.3 -65.3Bakkavor 74.90 10.8 -48.6Capita 36.58 10.7 -78.3Network Int Holdings 399.00 7.8 -37.2Plus500 Ltd 1175.00 7.5 35.2Petropavlovsk 22.35 7.2 76.0Puretech Health 260.50 6.3 -17.8National Express 236.80 6.1 -50.0Biffa 185.40 5.9 -31.2Go-ahead 1187.00 5.6 -46.2Playtech 208.60 5.3 -48.6Dunelm 825.50 5.2 -28.8

LosersHiscox Ltd 730.00 -23.0 -49.0Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings 57.05 -22.2 -67.5Senior 56.40 -18.3 -69.7Cineworld 49.67 -18.1 -77.4Apax Global Alpha 113.00 -15.9 -36.7Tui Ag 327.70 -15.9 -66.9Wood (john) 177.20 -15.8 -54.2Wetherspoon ( J.d.) 822.00 -15.2 -51.0Mitchells & Butlers 174.80 -14.9 -61.7Ninety One 158.00 -14.8 -Cairn Energy 94.25 -14.3 -53.8Hammerson 66.66 -14.1 -78.5

Apr 15 %Chg %ChgFTSE SmallCap price(p) week ytdWinnersCostain 91.00 135.1 -44.8Funding Circle Holdings 75.90 38.0 -21.4Mears 169.00 32.0 -44.8Aa 21.75 31.8 -62.5Intu Properties 6.02 25.7 -81.6Low & Bonar 8.50 18.1 -32.3Clipper Logistics 206.00 16.6 -29.5Porvair 662.00 16.5 -5.2Sdl 448.00 13.7 -22.0Urban&civic 235.00 10.8 -31.7Norcros 158.00 10.5 -43.2Connect 21.25 10.4 -40.2

LosersPurecircle 86.00 -34.5 -Tullow Oil 16.57 -31.7 -72.2Pharos Energy 13.88 -24.9 -74.2Premier Oil 22.23 -23.2 -77.7Gulf Marine Services 2.60 -20.8 -64.6Foxtons 37.70 -18.2 -55.5Menzies(john) 95.00 -16.7 -79.8Restaurant 50.85 -15.1 -69.4Enquest 9.50 -15.0 -56.9Hunting 178.50 -14.7 -56.1Georgia Capital 453.00 -14.4 -49.9Petra Diamonds 2.42 -13.6 -72.6

Apr 15 %Chg %ChgIndustry Sectors price(p) week ytdWinnersPharmaceuticals & Biotech. 16926.69 7.0 -5.1Food & Drug Retailers 3950.80 4.9 -5.9Beverages 20485.60 3.3 -General Retailers 1780.20 2.7 -Gas Water & Multiutilities 4814.83 2.5 -Chemicals 9694.75 1.6 -Electronic & Electrical Equip. 7508.73 0.4 -Personal Goods 34253.79 0.4 -Tobacco 30816.50 0.0 -Electricity 6869.60 -0.1 -Real Estate & Investment Servic 2237.44 -0.7 -Health Care Equip.& Services 6239.35 -1.0 -

LosersOil Equipment & Services 3829.44 -14.4 -Oil & Gas Producers 4891.20 -10.2 -Industrial Metals 2345.63 -9.8 -Nonlife Insurance 2368.32 -7.0 -Industrial Transportation 1468.75 -6.7 -Construction & Materials 4899.40 -5.8 -General Industrials 4314.91 -5.4 -Forestry & Paper 14364.57 -5.2 -Life Insurance 5211.19 -4.9 -Banks 2247.80 -4.3 -40.4Travel & Leisure 5770.28 -4.3 -Index - Technology Hardware & Equipment 1770.68 -4.3 -

Based on last week's performance. †Price at suspension.

CURRENCIES

DOLLAR EURO POUNDClosing Day's Closing Day's Closing Day's

Apr 15 Currency Mid Change Mid Change Mid Change






Apr 15 Currency Mid Change Mid Change Mid ChangeArgentina Argentine Peso 65.6170 0.1178 71.5554 -0.2906 82.0049 -0.5106Australia Australian Dollar 1.5794 0.0221 1.7223 0.0142 1.9739 0.0120Bahrain Bahrainin Dinar 0.3771 - 0.4112 -0.0024 0.4712 -0.0038Bolivia Bolivian Boliviano 6.9100 - 7.5354 -0.0442 8.6358 -0.0694Brazil Brazilian Real 5.2547 0.0653 5.7302 0.0381 6.5670 0.0295Canada Canadian Dollar 1.4076 0.0187 1.5350 0.0115 1.7591 0.0094Chile Chilean Peso 859.4350 8.9950 937.2145 4.3667 1074.0790 2.6990China Chinese Yuan 7.0627 0.0022 7.7019 -0.0428 8.8266 -0.0682Colombia Colombian Peso 3927.8200 66.8900 4283.2918 48.2360 4908.7946 44.8134Costa Rica Costa Rican Colon 566.7100 -3.0000 617.9976 -6.9174 708.2459 -9.4719Czech Republic Czech Koruna 24.8116 0.3549 27.0570 0.2305 31.0082 0.1979Denmark Danish Krone 6.8424 0.0388 7.4616 -0.0012 8.5513 -0.0199Egypt Egyptian Pound 15.7910 0.0333 17.2201 -0.0645 19.7348 -0.1167Hong Kong Hong Kong Dollar 7.7506 -0.0013 8.4520 -0.0510 9.6863 -0.0794Hungary Hungarian Forint 322.1871 2.2262 351.3452 0.3801 402.6534 -0.4317India Indian Rupee 76.4375 0.1625 83.3551 -0.3109 95.5278 -0.5631

Indonesia Indonesian Rupiah 15600.0000 -30.0000 17011.8368 -132.7348 19496.1037 -194.5173Israel Israeli Shekel 3.6073 0.0222 3.9338 0.0012 4.5083 -0.0083Japan Japanese Yen 107.4150 0.1950 117.1361 -0.4735 134.2419 -0.8333..One Month 107.4149 0.1948 117.1361 -0.4735 134.2418 -0.8335..Three Month 107.4147 0.1945 117.1361 -0.4735 134.2417 -0.8338..One Year 107.4139 0.1928 117.1361 -0.4736 134.2418 -0.8346Kenya Kenyan Shilling 105.9000 - 115.4840 -0.6777 132.3485 -1.0637Kuwait Kuwaiti Dinar 0.3118 0.0005 0.3400 -0.0014 0.3897 -0.0025Malaysia Malaysian Ringgit 4.3375 0.0025 4.7300 -0.0250 5.4208 -0.0404Mexico Mexican Peso 24.0430 0.4965 26.2189 0.3907 30.0477 0.3840New Zealand New Zealand Dollar 1.6639 0.0212 1.8145 0.0126 2.0794 0.0100Nigeria Nigerian Naira 387.5000 -1.2500 422.5690 -3.8509 484.2782 -5.4671Norway Norwegian Krone 10.4840 0.1628 11.4328 0.1115 13.1023 0.0998Pakistan Pakistani Rupee 166.9500 0.1000 182.0591 -0.9587 208.6458 -1.5510Peru Peruvian Nuevo Sol 3.4223 0.0345 3.7320 0.0160 4.2770 0.0091Philippines Philippine Peso 50.6130 -0.0270 55.1935 -0.3535 63.2536 -0.5424

Poland Polish Zloty 4.1632 0.0305 4.5400 0.0068 5.2030 -0.0035Romania Romanian Leu 4.4326 0.0258 4.8338 -0.0001 5.5396 -0.0120Russia Russian Ruble 74.8857 2.1056 81.6629 1.8305 93.5883 1.9005Saudi Arabia Saudi Riyal 3.7595 - 4.0997 -0.0241 4.6984 -0.0378Singapore Singapore Dollar 1.4235 0.0087 1.5523 0.0004 1.7790 -0.0033South Africa South African Rand 18.6800 0.3920 20.3706 0.3104 23.3453 0.3062South Korea South Korean Won 1217.4000 - 1327.5755 -7.7907 1521.4459 -12.2284Sweden Swedish Krona 10.0165 0.0598 10.9230 0.0015 12.5181 -0.0253Switzerland Swiss Franc 0.9655 0.0047 1.0528 -0.0010 1.2066 -0.0038Taiwan New Taiwan Dollar 29.9980 -0.0400 32.7128 -0.2358 37.4900 -0.3517Thailand Thai Baht 32.6400 -0.1050 35.5939 -0.3241 40.7918 -0.4601Tunisia Tunisian Dinar 2.9018 0.0181 3.1644 0.0013 3.6265 -0.0063Turkey Turkish Lira 6.8977 0.0897 7.5220 0.0543 8.6205 0.0438United Arab Emirates UAE Dirham 3.6732 - 4.0056 -0.0235 4.5905 -0.0369United Kingdom Pound Sterling 0.8002 0.0064 0.8726 0.0019 - -..One Month 0.8002 0.0064 0.8725 0.0019 - -

..Three Month 0.8002 0.0064 0.8724 0.0019 - -

..One Year 0.8003 0.0063 0.8718 0.0019 - -United States United States Dollar - - 1.0905 -0.0064 1.2498 -0.0100..One Month - - 1.0904 -0.1693 1.2498 -0.0101..Three Month - - 1.0903 -0.1693 1.2498 -0.0101..One Year - - 1.0894 -0.1692 1.2499 -0.0101Venezuela Venezuelan Bolivar Fuerte - - - - - -Vietnam Vietnamese Dong 23442.5000 -31.5000 25564.0712 -184.5705 29297.3328 -275.1672European Union Euro 0.9170 0.0053 - - 1.1460 -0.0025..One Month 0.9169 0.0054 - - 1.1460 -0.0025..Three Month 0.9168 0.0054 - - 1.1459 -0.0025..One Year 0.9159 0.0054 - - 1.1453 -0.0025

Rates are derived from WM Reuters Spot Rates and MorningStar (latest rates at time of production). Some values are rounded. Currency redenominated by 1000. The exchange rates printed in this table are also available at www.FT.com/marketsdata

FTSE ACTUARIES SHARE INDICES UK SERIESwww.ft.com/equities

Produced in conjunction with the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries£ Strlg Day's Euro £ Strlg £ Strlg Year Div P/E X/D TotalApr 15 chge% Index Apr 14 Apr 09 ago yield% Cover ratio adj Return

FTSE 100 (101) 5597.65 -3.34 5004.54 5791.31 5842.66 7469.92 5.51 1.48 12.27 69.86 5230.11FTSE 250 (250) 15347.56 -4.57 13721.39 16082.57 16407.92 19923.38 4.18 2.01 11.89 89.04 12006.76FTSE 250 ex Inv Co (187) 15537.09 -5.40 13890.84 16423.93 16777.05 21076.46 4.58 1.48 14.73 77.95 12418.49FTSE 350 (351) 3123.81 -3.55 2792.82 3238.74 3273.60 4149.10 5.29 1.55 12.21 35.54 5824.67FTSE 350 ex Investment Trusts (287) 3063.31 -3.61 2738.73 3178.14 3212.34 4103.46 5.41 1.48 12.47 35.45 2946.98FTSE 350 Higher Yield (107) 2553.14 -4.10 2282.62 2662.30 2717.37 3728.60 8.06 1.33 9.36 40.46 5187.60FTSE 350 Lower Yield (244) 3481.82 -3.04 3112.90 3591.07 3596.98 4201.77 2.77 2.14 16.85 25.38 4068.73FTSE SmallCap (265) 4490.70 -2.72 4014.88 4616.31 4607.06 5598.83 4.99 1.28 15.63 36.65 7007.92FTSE SmallCap ex Inv Co (146) 3441.85 -3.69 3077.17 3573.57 3566.44 4594.09 6.41 0.64 24.23 19.69 5639.35FTSE All-Share (616) 3087.44 -3.52 2760.31 3200.14 3233.24 4092.04 5.28 1.54 12.29 34.77 5815.95FTSE All-Share ex Inv Co (433) 3001.33 -3.61 2683.32 3113.88 3146.72 4020.03 5.43 1.47 12.57 34.40 2932.88FTSE All-Share ex Multinationals (542) 905.29 -3.92 670.82 942.22 955.86 1196.91 4.70 1.54 13.81 4.49 1778.47FTSE Fledgling (96) 7076.28 -1.13 6326.50 7156.87 7067.07 9279.02 5.07 0.50 39.79 63.85 14299.44FTSE Fledgling ex Inv Co (42) 7769.52 -1.71 6946.30 7904.93 7735.02 10878.13 9.05 -0.58 -19.18 56.28 15420.67FTSE All-Small (361) 3103.06 -2.63 2774.27 3186.93 3178.66 3880.15 5.00 1.24 16.19 25.49 6212.62FTSE All-Small ex Inv Co (188) 2560.71 -3.62 2289.38 2656.91 2649.90 3422.72 6.50 0.59 26.23 14.77 5314.98FTSE AIM All-Share (736) 733.94 -2.70 656.17 754.29 745.61 951.05 1.91 1.38 37.95 1.85 837.70

FTSE Sector IndicesOil & Gas (12) 5042.71 -7.10 4508.40 5427.85 5664.19 9608.83 10.48 1.33 7.18 127.00 5453.53Oil & Gas Producers (8) 4906.75 -7.05 4386.85 5278.75 5505.96 9286.69 10.43 1.34 7.15 125.00 5499.67Oil Equipment Services & Distribution (4) 3886.63 -11.11 3474.81 4372.21 4742.33 11768.72 14.04 0.60 11.96 0.00 3340.82Basic Materials (23) 4619.02 -5.17 4129.61 4870.65 4866.78 6968.11 7.51 2.15 6.19 130.20 5439.69Chemicals (7) 10527.53 -6.06 9412.08 11206.87 10832.60 15590.37 3.32 1.99 15.14 33.37 9964.03Forestry & Paper (1) 15674.38 -4.46 14013.59 16405.28 16583.40 21607.55 1.97 5.96 8.50 0.00 18546.21Industrial Metals & Mining (2) 2526.62 -7.46 2258.91 2730.37 2851.14 6813.96 21.84 1.06 4.34 261.34 3225.81Mining (13) 13237.85 -5.07 11835.22 13944.85 13966.09 19864.79 8.08 2.15 5.76 417.29 8237.04Industrials (99) 4293.10 -4.62 3838.22 4500.84 4561.69 5439.16 3.39 1.38 21.46 16.24 4718.13Construction & Materials (14) 5148.48 -5.97 4602.96 5475.18 5762.26 6287.70 3.77 0.56 47.48 95.82 5914.79Aerospace & Defense (9) 3620.76 -4.16 3237.12 3778.03 3863.62 4986.46 3.42 1.16 25.11 2.61 4107.86General Industrials (7) 3478.42 -6.40 3109.86 3716.31 3821.26 4676.08 4.69 0.93 22.84 0.00 4284.23Electronic & Electrical Equipment (10) 8836.80 -3.11 7900.48 9120.15 8961.44 9087.18 1.56 2.15 29.86 0.00 8412.32Industrial Engineering (12) 10556.41 -4.14 9437.89 11012.86 11196.90 14466.85 3.25 1.65 18.70 0.97 13617.01Industrial Transportation (6) 2387.98 -6.33 2134.96 2549.41 2620.44 3747.46 10.13 0.81 12.21 0.00 2415.76Support Services (41) 6616.61 -4.24 5915.54 6909.87 6910.29 8170.76 2.98 1.87 18.01 19.92 7287.28Consumer Goods (42) 17064.22 -1.57 15256.16 17335.77 17488.63 19650.54 4.85 1.69 12.18 185.33 14096.18Automobiles & Parts (2) 2933.55 -4.18 2622.72 3061.38 3101.69 6356.72 3.22 2.34 13.30 0.00 2999.08Beverages (6) 20510.69 -0.49 18337.46 20611.26 20708.44 24851.27 2.76 2.12 17.08 195.72 15500.21Food Producers (10) 6307.19 -4.55 5638.90 6607.62 6502.60 7725.43 2.93 2.08 16.40 12.57 5788.12Household Goods & Home Construction (14)12396.25 -3.37 11082.79 12828.75 12907.84 13591.44 4.47 2.04 10.97 21.70 9770.50Leisure Goods (2) 12521.90 -4.99 11195.12 13179.84 12628.93 11289.82 4.06 1.48 16.69 109.33 12983.48Personal Goods (6) 29602.99 -1.63 26466.37 30092.34 29714.99 32761.02 3.42 2.72 10.73 220.67 21689.34Tobacco (2) 30816.56 -0.30 27551.36 30908.45 31939.58 35858.03 8.12 1.12 10.97 710.53 23910.75Health Care (17) 11928.22 -0.24 10664.35 11957.00 11518.28 10721.79 3.59 0.99 28.23 193.60 10203.46Health Care Equipment & Services (8) 6295.79 -2.87 5628.71 6481.54 6576.65 7066.22 2.29 1.89 23.09 77.97 5763.55Pharmaceuticals & Biotechnology (9) 16809.33 0.03 15028.28 16804.29 16098.70 14731.35 3.72 0.93 28.87 279.28 12905.67Consumer Services (86) 3890.22 -3.49 3478.02 4031.05 4094.32 5198.35 3.93 1.57 16.22 21.58 3935.73Food & Drug Retailers (5) 4104.10 -0.02 3669.25 4104.96 4014.29 4360.11 2.65 0.99 38.16 0.00 5064.28General Retailers (27) 1655.16 -5.18 1479.78 1745.61 1729.99 2247.03 3.52 1.70 16.70 2.90 2062.69Media (18) 6629.82 -4.15 5927.35 6916.64 7008.41 8337.80 4.02 1.59 15.61 18.76 4399.28Travel & Leisure (36) 5677.27 -3.85 5075.73 5904.83 6238.63 9026.46 4.88 1.69 12.12 78.84 5822.82Telecommunications (6) 1593.00 -3.86 1424.21 1657.01 1674.56 2328.82 8.32 0.02 527.33 0.00 2105.04Fixed Line Telecommunications (3) 1493.06 -4.33 1334.86 1560.62 1581.82 2740.97 11.95 1.45 5.76 0.00 1631.90Mobile Telecommunications (3) 2441.91 -3.68 2183.18 2535.16 2559.01 3225.02 6.88 -0.95 -15.22 0.00 2890.00Utilities (8) 6754.38 -0.91 6038.72 6816.27 6895.77 6686.32 6.35 0.51 31.01 33.74 9024.01Electricity (3) 6854.00 -1.61 6127.78 6966.45 7112.07 6904.00 7.63 -0.36 -36.42 129.12 12055.70Gas Water & Multiutilities (5) 6363.29 -0.71 5689.06 6408.87 6467.12 6270.14 5.99 0.81 20.52 7.47 8407.13Financials (308) 3546.80 -4.18 3171.00 3701.69 3773.93 5044.54 4.76 2.04 10.30 24.09 3640.51Banks (10) 2217.75 -5.47 1982.77 2346.04 2398.46 3982.87 5.94 2.24 7.50 0.02 1826.56Nonlife Insurance (8) 2711.00 -4.41 2423.75 2836.09 2995.43 3794.86 5.28 1.63 11.65 6.45 5211.49Life Insurance/Assurance (7) 5316.51 -5.51 4753.19 5626.58 5785.67 8329.00 6.94 1.74 8.26 68.76 5860.17Real Estate Investment & Services (18) 2151.81 -4.19 1923.81 2245.92 2288.68 2576.75 2.69 2.28 16.32 5.28 6113.71Real Estate Investment Trusts (41) 2198.53 -4.14 1965.58 2293.43 2349.65 2691.30 4.58 -0.25 -88.80 25.00 3074.78General Financial (41) 7761.57 -3.75 6939.18 8064.13 8171.44 9268.70 3.78 1.80 14.71 95.13 9799.51Equity Investment Instruments (183) 9442.37 -2.11 8441.90 9646.02 9716.33 10509.66 2.98 3.63 9.27 77.41 5549.16Non Financials (308) 3751.62 -3.30 3354.11 3879.46 3907.43 4850.23 5.45 1.39 13.16 47.91 6203.12Technology (15) 1724.18 -3.12 1541.49 1779.63 1756.28 2155.18 3.92 0.84 30.43 13.03 2382.01Software & Computer Services (13) 1860.68 -3.22 1663.53 1922.61 1897.32 2401.63 4.12 0.77 31.71 13.43 2718.29Technology Hardware & Equipment (2) 3961.28 -1.91 3541.55 4038.57 3987.06 3051.22 1.73 2.76 20.92 43.15 4894.44

Hourly movements 8.00 9.00 10.00 11.00 12.00 13.00 14.00 15.00 16.00 High/day Low/dayFTSE 100 5767.09 5695.14 5677.42 5671.79 5664.77 5656.95 5617.86 5629.50 5623.51 5784.40 5576.94FTSE 250 15904.38 15549.86 15450.23 15505.09 15531.49 15513.79 15461.03 15452.61 15408.27 15904.38 15334.51FTSE SmallCap 4613.38 4569.93 4541.92 4524.81 4523.41 4517.20 4503.87 4495.20 4481.06 4613.38 4472.55FTSE All-Share 3183.56 3139.15 3127.42 3126.29 3123.98 3119.79 3100.38 3105.10 3100.69 3189.65 3077.61Time of FTSE 100 Day's high:07:11:00 Day's Low15:25:15 FTSE 100 2010/11 High: 7674.56(17/01/2020) Low: 4993.89(23/03/2020)Time of FTSE All-Share Day's high:07:11:00 Day's Low15:25:00 FTSE 100 2010/11 High: 4257.93(17/01/2020) Low: 2727.86(23/03/2020)Further information is available on http://www.ftse.com © FTSE International Limited. 2013. All Rights reserved. ”FTSE®” is a trade mark of theLondon Stock Exchange Group companies and is used by FTSE International Limited under licence. † Sector P/E ratios greater than 80 are not shown.For changes to FTSE Fledgling Index constituents please refer to www.ftse.com/indexchanges. ‡ Values are negative.

FT 30 INDEX

Apr 15 Apr 14 Apr 13 Apr 10 Apr 09 Yr Ago High LowFT 30 2108.00 2208.50 2247.10 2172.20 2170.00 0.00 3314.70 1337.80FT 30 Div Yield - - - - - 0.00 3.93 2.74P/E Ratio net - - - - - 0.00 19.44 14.26FT 30 since compilation: 4198.4 high: 19/07/1999; low49.4 18/02/1900Base Date: 1/7/35FT 30 hourly changes

8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 High Low2208.5 2150.7 2147.6 3120.5 2145.2 2140.7 2124.5 2125.6 2123.2 2208.5 2102.9

FT30 constituents and recent additions/deletions can be found at www.ft.com/ft30

FX: EFFECTIVE INDICES

Apr 14 Apr 09 Mnth Ago Apr 15 Apr 14 Mnth Ago

Australia - - -Canada - - -Denmark - - -Japan - - -New Zealand - - -Norway - - -

Sweden - - -Switzerland - - -UK 78.82 78.19 77.02USA - - -Euro - - -

Source: Bank of England. New Sterling ERI base Jan 2005 = 100. Other indices base average 1990 = 100.Index rebased 1/2/95. for further information about ERIs see www.bankofengland.co.uk

FTSE SECTORS: LEADERS & LAGGARDS

Year to date percentage changesTobacco -7.38Food & Drug Retailer -7.96Tech Hardware & Eq -8.36Pharmace & Biotech -9.03Gas Water & Multi -9.33Personal Goods -10.30Health Care -10.52Utilities -10.69Electronic & Elec Eq -12.41Consumer Goods -13.15Equity Invest Instr -13.59Household Goods & Ho -14.27Electricity -15.21Beverages -18.44Nonlife Insurance -19.21Food Producers -19.47NON FINANCIALS Index -21.58

Construct & Material -21.99Real Est Invest & Se -22.07Real Est Invest & Tr -22.08Health Care Eq & Srv -22.18Technology -22.40FTSE 100 Index -22.54FTSE SmallCap Index -22.58FTSE All{HY-}Share Index -22.95Mining -23.18Mobile Telecomms -23.25Basic Materials -23.33Software & Comp Serv -23.43Chemicals -23.67Forestry & Paper -23.84Industrials -23.90Leisure Goods -24.06Industrial Eng -24.06Support Services -24.21

Media -24.53FTSE 250 Index -25.02Financial Services -25.02Aerospace & Defense -25.91Telecommunications -26.33Financials -26.66Consumer Services -27.94General Retailers -28.16Life Insurance -29.56Industrial Metals & -29.95Oil & Gas Producers -31.98Oil & Gas -32.19Fixed Line Telecomms -33.08Industrial Transport -33.38Banks -35.80Travel & Leisure -38.34Automobiles & Parts -43.58Oil Equipment & Serv -45.31

FTSE GLOBAL EQUITY INDEX SERIES

Apr 14 No of US $ Day Mth YTD Total YTD Gr DivRegions & countries stocks indices % % % retn % Yield

Apr 14 No of US $ Day Mth YTD Total YTD Gr DivSectors stocks indices % % % retn % Yield

FTSE Global All Cap 8916 531.49 2.4 5.7 -16.5 807.61 -15.9 2.8FTSE Global All Cap 7079 462.39 0.3 7.3 -0.3 624.68 0.2 2.5FTSE Global Large Cap 1772 486.14 2.5 6.2 -14.3 760.42 -13.7 2.8FTSE Global Mid Cap 2191 648.95 2.1 4.5 -21.7 928.65 -21.3 2.7FTSE Global Small Cap 4953 657.89 2.0 3.7 -23.9 906.50 -23.5 2.6FTSE All-World 3963 314.95 2.4 5.9 -15.6 506.34 -15.0 2.8FTSE World 2597 560.27 2.5 6.3 -15.7 1209.44 -15.1 2.8FTSE Global All Cap ex UNITED KINGDOM In 8613 559.49 2.5 5.5 -15.9 835.13 -15.3 2.6FTSE Global All Cap ex USA 7132 412.20 1.6 7.0 -20.5 681.29 -19.9 3.6FTSE Global All Cap ex JAPAN 7564 546.82 2.4 5.1 -16.6 838.50 -16.1 2.8FTSE Global All Cap ex Eurozone 8266 560.52 2.5 5.3 -15.8 834.57 -15.2 2.6FTSE Developed 2172 514.45 2.5 6.6 -15.1 788.51 -14.5 2.7FTSE Developed All Cap 5642 532.20 2.5 6.4 -16.0 804.49 -15.5 2.7FTSE Developed Large Cap 884 486.72 2.6 6.9 -13.7 759.01 -13.0 2.7FTSE Developed Europe Large Cap 234 303.06 1.2 11.1 -21.1 556.15 -20.4 4.2FTSE Developed Europe Mid Cap 355 477.59 0.7 9.1 -24.5 768.73 -24.2 3.6FTSE Dev Europe Small Cap 694 652.23 1.0 6.7 -27.4 1012.69 -27.1 3.6FTSE North America Large Cap 254 623.32 3.1 5.5 -10.6 898.62 -10.0 2.2FTSE North America Mid Cap 409 756.89 2.5 2.8 -20.0 1007.10 -19.6 2.2FTSE North America Small Cap 1310 727.39 2.3 2.3 -23.8 935.80 -23.4 2.1FTSE North America 663 402.47 3.0 5.0 -12.3 592.98 -11.8 2.2FTSE Developed ex North America 1509 217.75 1.6 10.0 -20.0 388.07 -19.2 3.8FTSE Japan Large Cap 181 341.07 2.7 13.1 -14.0 473.42 -13.0 2.8FTSE Japan Mid Cap 327 508.48 2.4 14.2 -19.1 670.69 -18.1 2.6FTSE Global wi JAPAN Small Cap 844 554.32 1.7 16.8 -20.3 757.32 -19.3 2.6FTSE Japan 508 142.00 2.6 13.3 -15.0 220.73 -14.0 2.7FTSE Asia Pacific Large Cap ex Japan 922 610.54 1.5 1.6 -16.0 1037.20 -15.6 3.2FTSE Asia Pacific Mid Cap ex Japan 852 660.76 1.9 -0.3 -23.7 1076.62 -23.4 3.7FTSE Asia Pacific Small Cap ex Japan 1814 435.09 2.5 2.4 -19.9 693.43 -19.5 3.6FTSE Asia Pacific Ex Japan 1774 473.49 1.6 1.4 -16.7 854.44 -16.2 3.3FTSE Emerging All Cap 3274 629.26 1.5 -0.1 -20.4 1014.61 -19.9 3.4FTSE Emerging Large Cap 888 612.75 1.4 0.5 -19.1 994.62 -18.7 3.2FTSE Emerging Mid Cap 903 701.20 2.2 -3.4 -28.0 1129.04 -27.5 4.3FTSE Emerging Small Cap 1483 585.39 2.1 -2.2 -22.6 903.33 -22.3 3.8FTSE Emerging Europe 75 307.97 1.0 9.2 -30.0 554.97 -29.8 8.0FTSE Latin America All Cap 242 562.47 1.4 -10.9 -42.9 945.70 -42.5 4.2FTSE Middle East and Africa All Cap 329 503.15 2.1 2.5 -27.1 858.72 -25.8 4.5FTSE Global wi UNITED KINGDOM All Cap In 303 257.95 -0.3 9.0 -27.9 482.38 -27.2 5.2FTSE Global wi USA All Cap 1784 685.35 3.0 4.7 -13.2 954.47 -12.7 2.1FTSE Europe All Cap 1432 352.62 1.1 10.4 -22.5 622.14 -21.9 4.2FTSE Eurozone All Cap 650 331.98 1.2 10.4 -23.7 583.19 -23.4 4.0FTSE EDHEC-Risk Efficient All-World 3963 350.78 2.3 5.5 -18.9 520.56 -18.4 2.9FTSE EDHEC-Risk Efficient Developed Europe 589 266.25 1.4 9.9 -21.2 437.10 -20.9 3.7Oil & Gas 150 221.49 -0.5 10.3 -39.1 398.55 -38.4 7.1Oil & Gas Producers 104 212.58 -1.0 12.3 -39.8 390.78 -39.0 7.3

Oil Equipment & Services 36 165.27 1.3 1.3 -38.3 268.33 -37.5 7.2Basic Materials 351 410.86 2.3 2.3 -20.1 683.80 -19.2 4.0Chemicals 159 600.73 2.2 2.2 -19.9 989.50 -19.4 3.5Forestry & Paper 20 217.10 1.1 1.1 -21.9 406.28 -20.7 4.0Industrial Metals & Mining 93 258.10 1.8 1.8 -31.7 431.89 -31.1 5.1Mining 79 628.15 2.7 2.7 -13.8 1071.52 -12.3 4.6Industrials 747 354.70 1.9 1.9 -21.0 540.06 -20.5 2.5Construction & Materials 148 430.06 1.0 1.0 -22.4 685.72 -22.0 2.8Aerospace & Defense 37 590.29 0.9 0.9 -34.1 885.44 -33.8 3.1General Industrials 64 177.75 1.5 1.5 -22.0 295.78 -21.3 3.2Electronic & Electrical Equipment 140 415.12 2.4 2.4 -18.5 573.08 -18.1 2.0Industrial Engineering 146 662.23 1.8 1.8 -20.1 1004.59 -19.4 2.8Industrial Transportation 126 612.42 1.9 1.9 -19.2 936.82 -18.7 2.7Support Services 86 429.75 2.6 2.6 -14.8 619.31 -14.4 1.7Consumer Goods 547 441.15 2.8 2.8 -13.5 700.60 -13.0 2.9Automobiles & Parts 132 296.17 2.8 2.8 -22.2 460.74 -21.5 4.0Beverages 66 605.29 3.3 3.3 -14.5 969.34 -14.0 2.7Food Producers 131 634.28 2.5 2.5 -7.0 1024.14 -6.6 2.4Household Goods & Home Construction 60 449.90 3.3 3.3 -11.2 709.48 -10.7 2.8Leisure Goods 43 223.91 2.5 2.5 -7.6 306.96 -7.0 1.3Personal Goods 102 772.43 2.7 2.7 -14.3 1137.70 -14.1 2.0Tobacco 13 862.86 1.8 1.8 -13.4 2081.73 -11.7 7.0Health Care 282 581.27 2.9 2.9 -4.8 885.93 -4.1 2.0Health Care Equipment & Services 96 1058.07 2.9 2.9 -9.8 1268.30 -9.5 1.0Pharmaceuticals & Biotechnology 186 400.72 2.9 2.9 -2.4 647.29 -1.3 2.5Consumer Services 452 498.71 3.3 3.3 -10.6 694.33 -10.2 1.5Food & Drug Retailers 66 254.71 3.0 3.0 -13.6 379.13 -13.0 2.7General Retailers 148 897.55 3.9 3.9 -0.8 1203.52 -0.6 1.0Media 88 324.46 2.8 2.8 -15.6 454.45 -15.3 1.7Travel & Leisure 150 372.83 1.9 1.9 -28.0 530.48 -27.5 2.6Telecommunication 94 140.35 2.2 2.2 -12.5 297.45 -11.1 4.8Fixed Line Telecommuniations 41 115.91 2.4 2.4 -14.4 275.39 -12.6 5.6Mobile Telecommunications 53 150.47 1.9 1.9 -9.8 279.32 -9.0 3.8Utilities 190 285.58 2.0 2.0 -10.1 610.58 -9.5 3.7Electricity 133 321.66 2.1 2.1 -9.7 678.34 -8.9 3.6Gas Water & Multiutilities 57 285.14 1.8 1.8 -11.2 628.58 -10.7 4.0Financials 861 197.45 1.1 1.1 -25.4 351.32 -24.7 4.0Banks 280 142.19 -0.2 -0.2 -33.4 276.81 -32.7 5.8Nonlife Insurance 73 246.83 2.2 2.2 -20.0 381.15 -19.5 2.6Life Insurance 58 175.17 0.5 0.5 -27.4 305.01 -26.8 4.4Financial Services 211 303.40 2.0 2.0 -18.1 440.24 -17.6 2.1Technology 289 343.97 3.8 3.8 -4.3 437.98 -4.1 1.3Software & Computer Services 149 595.15 3.7 3.7 -2.1 709.45 -2.0 0.7Technology Hardware & Equipment 140 258.64 3.9 3.9 -7.0 350.13 -6.5 2.1Alternative Energy 10 114.30 3.7 3.7 -9.7 161.21 -9.1 1.4Real Estate Investment & Services 158 298.35 1.2 1.2 -19.2 536.62 -18.6 3.6Real Estate Investment Trusts 81 415.51 2.5 2.5 -16.2 893.65 -15.2 4.4Real Estate Investment & Services 152 258.63 2.8 2.8 -30.0 463.40 -29.7 4.2

The FTSE Global Equity Series, launched in 2003, contains the FTSE Global Small Cap Indices and broader FTSE Global All Cap Indices (large/mid/small cap) as well as the enhanced FTSE All-World index Series (large/mid cap) - please see www.ftse.com/geis. The trade names Fundamental Index® and RAFI® are registered trademarks and the patented and patent-pending proprietary intellectual property of Research Affiliates, LLC(US Patent Nos. 7,620,577; 7,747,502; 7,778,905; 7,792,719; Patent Pending Publ. Nos. US-2006-0149645-A1, US-2007-0055598-A1, US-2008-0288416-A1, US-2010- 0063942-A1, WO 2005/076812, WO 2007/078399 A2,WO 2008/118372, EPN 1733352, and HK1099110). ”EDHEC™” is a trade mark of EDHEC Business School As of January 2nd 2006, FTSE is basing its sector indices on the Industrial Classification Benchmark - please seewww.ftse.com/icb. For constituent changes and other information about FTSE, please see www.ftse.com. © FTSE International Limited. 2013. All Rights reserved. ”FTSE®” is a trade mark of the London Stock ExchangeGroup companies and is used by FTSE International Limited under licence.

FTSE 100 SUMMARY

Closing Day'sFTSE 100 Price Change

Closing Day'sFTSE 100 Price Change

3I Group PLC 728.00 -18.00Admiral Group PLC 2142 -70.00Anglo American PLC 1354.6 -84.20Antofagasta PLC 741.00 -55.60Ashtead Group PLC 1788 -99.50Associated British Foods PLC 1884 -108.00Astrazeneca PLC 7615 9.00Auto Trader Group PLC 402.90 -22.10Aveva Group PLC 3498 -183.00Aviva PLC 243.10 -13.00Bae Systems PLC 518.60 -10.20Barclays PLC 87.00 -6.55Barratt Developments PLC 433.30 -31.00Berkeley Group Holdings (The) PLC 3680 -167.00Bhp Group PLC 1248.2 -64.40BP PLC 299.70 -21.40British American Tobacco PLC 2922 3.50British Land Company PLC 379.10 -20.20Bt Group PLC 118.65 -5.50Bunzl PLC 1636.5 -91.50Burberry Group PLC 1400.5 -36.50Carnival PLC 854.60 -55.60Centrica PLC 31.52 -1.64Coca-Cola Hbc AG 1900.5 -90.00Compass Group PLC 1243.5 -9.50Crh PLC 2091 -149.00Croda International PLC 4447 -238.00Dcc PLC 5258 -212.00Diageo PLC 2620 -4.00Easyjet PLC 603.20 -66.60Evraz PLC 232.70 -19.90Experian PLC 2213 -73.00Ferguson PLC 5070 -118.00Flutter Entertainment PLC 7600 158.00Fresnillo PLC 695.80 -53.80Glaxosmithkline PLC 1570 -Glencore PLC 134.44 -8.70Halma PLC 1983 -36.00Hargreaves Lansdown PLC 1475 -57.00Hikma Pharmaceuticals PLC 2242 -35.00HSBC Holdings PLC 408.10 -19.35Imperial Brands PLC 1588 -34.00Informa PLC 416.80 -9.40Intercontinental Hotels Group PLC 3260 -155.00Intermediate Capital Group PLC 938.00 -73.00International Consolidated Airlines Group S.A. 217.80 -20.30Intertek Group PLC 4760 -133.00Itv PLC 66.76 -5.74Jd Sports Fashion PLC 511.60 -47.00Johnson Matthey PLC 1860.5 -139.00Just Eat Takeaway.Com N.V. 7764 -90.00

Land Securities Group PLC 621.00 -38.60Legal & General Group PLC 193.00 -13.60Lloyds Banking Group PLC 29.75 -2.04London Stock Exchange Group PLC 7064 -180.00M&G PLC 146.00 -Meggitt PLC 243.40 -21.10Melrose Industries PLC 84.38 -11.82Mondi PLC 1276 -59.50Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets PLC 182.10 -0.95National Grid PLC 887.80 -10.00Next PLC 4457 -283.00Nmc Health PLC 938.40 -Ocado Group PLC 1542.5 58.00Pearson PLC 505.80 -33.00Pennon Group PLC 1098.5 -5.50Persimmon PLC 1839 -134.00Phoenix Group Holdings PLC 559.40 -30.00Polymetal International PLC 1510.5 -98.50Prudential PLC 958.20 -55.80Reckitt Benckiser Group PLC 6320 -128.00Relx PLC 1727 -47.00Rentokil Initial PLC 392.50 -11.70Rightmove PLC 477.40 -26.20Rio Tinto PLC 3668.5 -154.50Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC 310.00 -25.50Royal Bank Of Scotland Group PLC 104.30 -10.65Royal Dutch Shell PLC 1315.8 -105.20Royal Dutch Shell PLC 1346 -99.00Rsa Insurance Group PLC 359.00 -12.00Sage Group PLC 612.20 -12.40Sainsbury (J) PLC 201.20 1.30Schroders PLC 2410 -178.00Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust PLC 603.00 -23.50Segro PLC 808.20 -11.80Severn Trent PLC 2299 22.00Smith & Nephew PLC 1491.5 -46.00Smith (Ds) PLC 286.60 -13.40Smiths Group PLC 1167.5 -52.50Smurfit Kappa Group PLC 2162 -98.00Spirax-Sarco Engineering PLC 8230 -120.00Sse PLC 1206.5 -16.50St. James's Place PLC 790.60 -37.80Standard Chartered PLC 394.00 -30.20Standard Life Aberdeen PLC 205.00 -16.90Taylor Wimpey PLC 125.25 -1.95Tesco PLC 232.60 -2.50Unilever PLC 4136 -61.00United Utilities Group PLC 888.20 9.40Vodafone Group PLC 108.00 -3.98Whitbread PLC 2632 -130.00Wpp PLC 533.40 -40.00

UK STOCK MARKET TRADING DATA

Apr 15 Apr 14 Apr 09 Apr 08 Apr 07 Yr Ago- - - - - -

Order Book Turnover (m) 200.25 374.78 377.09 377.09 377.09 140.13Order Book Bargains 1367329.00 1456989.00 1456989.00 1456989.00 1456989.00 1454068.00Order Book Shares Traded (m) 2715.00 3145.00 3145.00 3145.00 3145.00 2853.00Total Equity Turnover (£m) 7840.09 7972.21 8015.75 8015.75 8015.75 5100.82Total Mkt Bargains 1628829.00 1715483.00 1715483.00 1715483.00 1715483.00 1708299.00Total Shares Traded (m) 6893.00 7030.00 7030.00 7030.00 7030.00 6539.00† Excluding intra-market and overseas turnover. *UK only total at 6pm. ‡ UK plus intra-market turnover. (u) Unavaliable.(c) Market closed.

All data provided by Morningstar unless otherwise noted. All elements listed are indicative and believedaccurate at the time of publication. No offer is made by Morningstar or the FT. The FT does not warrant norguarantee that the information is reliable or complete. The FT does not accept responsibility and will not beliable for any loss arising from the reliance on or use of the listed information.For all queries e-mail [email protected]

Data provided by Morningstar | www.morningstar.co.uk

UK RIGHTS OFFERS

Amount LatestIssue paid renun. closingprice up date High Low Stock Price p +or-There are currently no rights offers by any companies listed on the LSE.

UK COMPANY RESULTS

Company Turnover Pre-tax EPS(p) Div(p) Pay day TotalAmati AIM VCT Pre 15.516 16.671L 17.340 23.280L 4.25000 4.00000 Jul 24 7.750 7.500BMO Private Equity Trust Pre 29.567 32.031 39.990 43.320 3.92000 3.65000 Apr 30 15.330 14.370Brave Bison Group Pre 16.813 21.171 2.745L 0.103L 0.450L 0.010L 0.00000 0.00000 - 0.000 0.000Carr's Group Int 199.957 206.210 10.513 10.334 9.300 8.300 0.00000 1.12500 - 2.486 3.475Chesnara Pre 1407.651 13.872L 96.106 27.012 52.770 16.100 13.87000 13.46000 Jun 2 21.300 20.670Europa Oil & Gas (Holdings) Int 0.778 0.859 3.509L 0.437L 0.790L 0.130L 0.00000 0.00000 - 0.000 0.000LMS Capital Pre 4.471L 4.213L 5.500L 5.200L 0.00000 0.00000 - 0.000 0.000Mercantile Investment Trust (The) Pre 483.820 161.927L 61.010 20.220L 2.55000 2.55000 May 15 3.900 3.800Schroder Asian Total Return Investment Co Pre 46.945 25.740L 49.200 29.730L 6.50000 6.20000 May 22 6.500 6.200Sterling Energy Pre 0.000 0.534 1.600L 1.956L 0.007L 0.009L 0.00000 0.00000 - 0.000 0.000

Figures in £m. Earnings shown basic. Figures in light text are for corresponding period year earlier.For more information on dividend payments visit www.ft.com/marketsdata

UK RECENT EQUITY ISSUES

Issue Issue Stock Close Mktdate price(p) Sector code Stock price(p) +/- High Low Cap (£m)03/23 0.69 SYME Supply@ME Capital PLC 0.40 0.00 1.10 0.25 13102.003/06 80.00 AIM FRP FRP Advisory Group PLC 107.00 5.00 110.00 70.00 25412.603/06 3.00 MMM Mining Minerals & Metals PLC 3.50 0.00 4.00 4.00 111.6

§Placing price. *Intoduction. ‡When issued. Annual report/prospectus available at www.ft.com/irFor a full explanation of all the other symbols please refer to London Share Service notes.

APRIL 16 2020 Section:Stats Time: 15/4/2020 - 18:29 User: peter.bailey Page Name: MARKET DATA 1, Part,Page,Edition: USA, 10, 1



MARKET DATA

FT500: THE WORLD'S LARGEST COMPANIES52 Week

Stock Price Day Chg High Low Yld P/E MCap m52 Week





Stock Price Day Chg High Low Yld P/E MCap m

Australia (A$)ANZ 16.85 0.07 29.30 14.10 10.26 7.30 30258.07BHPBilltn 31.43 -0.23 42.33 24.05 6.28 11.33 58622.32CmwBkAu 62.07 -0.68 91.05 53.44 7.27 13.02 69569.93CSL 324.15 -1.82 342.75 189.14 0.86 48.94 93187.22NatAusBk 16.64 0.10 30.00 13.20 11.82 8.83 31439.95Telstra 3.12 -0.04 4.01 2.87 3.36 17.22 23494.38Wesfarmers 37.66 -0.15 47.42 29.75 4.95 20.47 27035.85Westpc 16.29 0.02 30.05 13.47 12.47 7.96 37251.06Woolworths 36.21 0.07 43.96 30.96 2.95 31.02 28915.25Belgium (€)AnBshInBv 41.90 -1.71 92.71 29.03 4.51 9.40 77367.59KBC Grp 43.01 -3.63 73.56 33.44 8.25 7.53 19529.92Brazil (R$)Ambev 11.87 -0.22 20.77 10.36 3.45 13.30 35544.84Bradesco 19.26 -0.52 32.63 14.05 2.17 7.36 14778.26Cielo 4.84 0.01 9.38 3.94 13.09 6.75 2502.43ItauHldFin 22.58 -0.25 32.79 19.46 6.98 6.87 21306.52Petrobras 16.57 -0.61 33.65 10.50 3.61 6.10 23469.03Vale 43.16 -1.37 57.36 32.45 - 11.41 43404.98Canada (C$)BCE 58.48 -0.07 65.45 46.03 5.78 16.39 37567.61BkMontrl 70.13 -2.86 106.51 55.76 5.93 7.94 31867.82BkNvaS♦ 54.34 -1.19 76.75 46.38 6.57 7.91 46783.77Brookfield 47.15 -0.39 60.48 31.35 1.91 8.88 52681.76CanadPcR♦ 308.05 -8.73 365.69 252.00 1.04 17.17 29844.56CanImp 81.22 -2.62 115.96 67.52 7.06 7.17 25661.77CanNatRs 17.10 -1.14 42.57 9.80 9.21 4.65 14357.35CanNatRy 107.10 -2.82 127.96 92.01 2.06 17.94 54193.95Enbridge 40.01 -0.96 57.32 33.06 7.56 14.85 57546.67GtWesLif 22.50 -0.56 35.60 18.88 7.52 8.81 14807.16ImpOil 16.53 -0.90 40.59 10.27 5.35 4.28 8660.84Manulife 16.81 -0.68 27.78 12.58 6.09 5.93 23161.68Nutrien 49.12 -0.09 73.25 34.80 5.06 15.36 19885.67RylBkC 85.67 -1.72 109.68 72.00 4.88 9.43 86663.15Suncor En 21.50 -1.12 46.00 14.02 8.12 6.27 23401.7ThmReut 99.33 -1.13 109.99 75.91 2.11 203.78 34932.83TntoDom♦ 57.23 -1.52 77.96 49.01 5.22 8.61 73719.25TrnCan 65.09 -1.55 76.58 47.05 4.87 14.07 43393.31ValeantPh 30.80 -1.06 36.02 14.01 - -4.62 8158.48China (HK$)AgricBkCh 3.11 -0.04 3.71 2.69 6.17 4.79 12334.26Bk China 2.98 -0.02 3.84 2.71 6.85 4.44 32151.93BkofComm 4.78 -0.06 6.73 4.20 6.92 4.38 21592.87BOE Tech 0.60 -0.03 1.05 0.47 - 23.73 15.40Ch Coms Cons 5.20 -0.13 8.20 4.73 5.02 4.04 2970.5Ch Evrbrght 3.05 -0.01 3.93 2.65 5.82 4.54 4989.34Ch Rail Cons 8.46 -0.28 10.18 7.30 2.73 5.78 2266.36Ch Rail Gp 4.38 -0.14 6.60 3.45 3.22 5.17 2377.68ChConstBk 6.21 -0.06 7.21 5.55 5.45 5.42 192629.57China Vanke 25.50 -0.75 34.75 21.65 4.53 6.76 5191.58ChinaCitic 3.74 -0.04 5.20 3.37 6.78 3.73 7181.39ChinaLife 15.64 -0.10 22.90 11.64 1.13 12.38 15015.7ChinaMBank 34.35 -0.65 42.75 29.80 3.02 8.86 20346.6ChinaMob 60.90 -1.10 77.15 45.20 5.12 10.41 160886.31ChinaPcIns 23.60 -0.60 34.75 17.90 4.68 6.87 8450.65ChMinsheng 5.72 -0.03 6.15 4.91 6.67 4.29 6140.46ChMrchSecs 17.80 -0.18 19.75 14.74 1.49 22.18 14413.5Chna Utd Coms 5.32 -0.09 7.48 5.00 1.01 33.75 16194.76ChShenEgy 14.12 -0.24 18.08 11.96 7.08 5.58 6191.57ChShpbldng 4.26 -0.01 6.88 4.05 0.21 223.44 11028.3ChStConEng 5.23 -0.05 6.72 4.93 3.22 5.67 30548.51ChUncHK 5.03 -0.19 9.90 3.84 3.00 12.58 19857.88CNNC Intl 4.45 -0.02 6.37 4.32 2.71 15.40 9807.32CSR 4.10 0.02 7.33 3.60 4.04 8.86 2312.25Daqin 6.85 -0.04 8.85 6.69 7.03 7.11 14419Gree Elec Apl 0.08 - 0.37 0.01 - -0.02 3.61GuosenSec 10.90 -0.11 14.28 10.38 1.10 17.81 12655.22HaitongSecs 7.10 -0.20 10.64 6.50 2.33 8.27 3123.37Hngzh HikVDT 30.03 -0.19 40.09 23.55 2.00 23.20 34399.11Hunng Pwr 2.74 -0.10 5.22 2.24 4.17 20.60 1661.68IM Baotou Stl 1.13 -0.02 1.87 1.10 0.62 23.19 5068.35In&CmBkCh 5.16 -0.05 6.11 4.81 5.35 5.45 57784IndstrlBk 16.00 -0.14 20.66 14.93 4.33 5.21 44436.78Kweichow 1189.6 4.50 1241.61 840.00 1.23 36.40 211586.67Midea 0.73 - 1.51 0.58 6.67 -2.63 20.25New Ch Life Ins 24.60 -0.40 46.95 20.45 3.45 5.27 3282.22PetroChina 2.78 -0.12 5.17 2.20 5.29 11.07 7567.75PingAnIns 76.80 -0.50 101.00 69.00 2.59 8.73 73797.82PngAnBnk 12.87 0.01 17.60 11.60 1.08 9.28 35362.13Pwr Cons Corp 3.71 -0.03 6.14 3.64 2.65 7.86 5854.04SaicMtr 18.59 -0.36 30.30 17.46 6.80 7.43 30752.51ShenwanHong 0.04 - 0.13 0.04 - -2.29 48.61ShgPdgBk 10.18 -0.07 13.33 9.82 3.45 5.00 40508.2Sinopec Corp 3.88 -0.16 6.23 3.20 11.02 9.06 12772.28Sinopec Oil 2.06 -0.02 3.16 1.90 - 93.36 3512.48Denmark (kr)DanskeBk 70.78 -3.68 130.80 68.04 11.64 4.14 8918.71MollerMrsk 6184 -416.00 10555 4976 2.35 41.65 9092.43NovoB 410.50 3.45 447.70 310.15 2.01 24.99 111741.86

Finland (€)Nokia 2.91 -0.17 5.18 2.08 3.48 -41.06 17969.52SampoA 27.02 -1.61 42.55 21.34 10.69 13.06 16328.27France (€)Airbus Grpe 54.80 -5.20 139.40 48.12 3.05 11.14 46801.99AirLiquide 120.50 -4.20 140.70 94.86 2.05 26.01 62191.71AXA 14.92 -0.57 25.62 11.84 9.21 23.18 39346.8BNP Parib 25.82 -1.99 54.22 24.51 11.86 4.30 35190.24ChristianDior 326.40 -9.60 498.20 252.40 1.84 20.66 64249.74Cred Agr 6.23 -0.55 13.80 5.70 11.22 4.94 19610.63Danone 62.00 0.74 82.38 50.26 3.21 18.10 46389.34EDF 7.64 -0.32 13.61 5.98 3.94 4.77 25850.8Engie SA 9.33 -0.39 16.80 8.63 8.24 27.58 24788.11EssilorLuxottica 105.10 -2.70 145.00 86.76 1.99 31.83 50151.95Hermes Intl 675.60 2.80 725.60 516.00 0.69 47.60 77777.45LOreal 245.90 -4.60 278.50 196.00 1.61 34.21 149735.27LVMH 342.00 -10.00 439.05 278.70 1.80 25.40 188350.56Orange 11.32 -0.34 15.38 8.84 6.34 15.54 32822.46PernodRic 135.15 -1.90 179.50 112.25 1.02 24.05 39118.14Renault 16.58 -1.45 64.20 12.77 21.96 1.90 5346.81Safran 74.00 -5.76 152.30 51.10 2.52 14.43 34476.68Sanofi 82.81 0.16 95.06 67.65 3.80 28.23 113227.77Sant Gbn 23.91 -1.20 39.57 16.41 5.70-116.58 14202.01Schneider 79.22 -3.08 105.50 61.72 3.04 18.87 50284.59SFR Group 34.50 - 34.56 21.87 - -23.02 17905.81SocGen 13.47 -1.20 32.23 12.80 16.56 4.27 12537.07Total 30.69 -1.98 51.44 21.12 8.79 9.19 87064.17UnibailR 190.00 0.35 236.45 177.35 5.80 17.44 22215.04Vinci 70.56 -6.48 107.35 54.76 3.73 12.48 46645.48Vivendi 20.60 -0.53 26.69 16.60 2.49 52.85 26629.76Germany (€)Allianz 161.36 -6.34 232.60 117.10 5.66 8.68 73407.06BASF 43.98 -2.57 74.61 37.36 7.38 16.01 44050.44Bayer 56.66 -2.23 78.34 44.86 5.01 -38.28 60701.79BMW 48.59 -2.77 78.30 36.60 7.30 6.37 31898.18Continental 69.06 -5.16 157.40 51.45 6.97 -63.66 15062.44Daimler 27.62 -1.78 60.00 21.02 11.43 12.81 32223.11Deut Bank 5.63 -0.58 10.37 4.45 1.98 -2.54 12693.5Deut Tlkm 12.20 -0.32 16.75 10.41 5.57 15.32 63321.02DeutsPost 25.34 -0.88 35.00 19.11 4.60 12.13 34168.75E.ON 8.65 -0.15 11.56 7.60 5.04 31.58 24903.6Fresenius Med 62.42 -1.64 81.10 53.50 1.82 16.23 20722.73Fresenius SE 36.39 -2.27 52.32 24.25 2.23 10.65 17940.48HenkelKgaA 67.40 -1.80 90.30 54.65 2.75 13.16 19094.93Linde 166.45 -5.20 208.60 130.45 1.93 16.21 96739.56MuenchRkv 191.40 -1.60 284.20 141.10 4.90 9.85 30122.29SAP 108.30 -3.70 129.60 82.13 1.34 40.12 145087.85Siemens 78.56 -4.23 119.90 58.77 4.70 12.66 72819.27Volkswgn 129.00 -5.20 185.00 99.16 3.77 4.77 41511.64Hong Kong (HK$)AIA 70.30 -1.60 88.50 60.05 1.17 19.26 109650.77BOC Hold 24.15 -0.35 35.90 20.30 5.92 8.27 32943.83Ch OSLnd&Inv 25.60 -0.80 31.00 21.80 3.42 6.17 36188.22ChngKng 47.20 -1.05 67.90 33.40 3.92 5.87 22492.41Citic Ltd 7.75 -0.14 11.98 7.40 5.15 4.35 29088.23Citic Secs 14.72 -0.28 18.72 12.60 2.63 12.85 4327.05CK Hutchison 57.45 -0.50 83.95 45.05 5.38 5.79 28583.92CNOOC 8.23 -0.45 15.06 6.24 8.26 5.76 47409.35HangSeng 137.10 -1.70 212.60 124.40 5.34 11.44 33818.72HK Exc&Clr 247.00 -2.40 283.60 206.00 2.76 33.43 40192.85MTR 42.75 -0.25 55.75 38.00 2.73 18.59 33967.7SandsCh 30.00 -0.20 45.45 25.15 6.43 16.23 31309.5SHK Props 107.40 -0.60 137.80 89.90 4.26 7.11 40154.77Tencent 395.00 - 420.00 312.20 0.25 39.98 486869.35India (Rs)Bhartiartl 510.50 -1.70 568.85 305.37 - -9.35 36435.81HDFC Bk 863.30 -32.05 1305.5 738.75 0.88 17.97 61929.28Hind Unilevr 2487.55 141.10 2614.3 1656 0.97 78.37 70451.78HsngDevFin 1596.3 -58.90 2499.9 1473.45 1.33 12.57 36171.71ICICI Bk 327.35 -3.30 552.20 268.30 0.31 22.42 27718.8Infosys 639.05 1.65 847.00 509.25 2.99 16.16 35607.01ITC 189.35 7.75 310.00 134.60 3.07 15.39 30450.19L&T 880.15 14.70 1607 661.00 2.07 12.70 16164.13OilNatGas 74.35 -0.70 178.90 50.00 9.51 4.33 12236.71RelianceIn 1149.85 -39.30 1617.55 875.65 0.57 16.00 95361.66SBI NewA 182.35 -1.15 373.80 173.55 - 12.11 21290.64SunPhrmInds 449.20 -13.15 488.50 312.00 0.62 26.67 14100.17Tata Cons 1735.15 -24.10 2296.2 1506.05 1.86 19.88 85180.07Indonesia (Rp)Bk Cent Asia 22300 200.00 24700 16800 - - 38879.26Israel (ILS)TevaPha 36.00 -0.34 56.60 21.75 - -11.73 11009.5Italy (€)Enel 6.21 -0.24 8.61 5.15 4.57 24.49 68815.61ENI 8.58 -0.59 15.86 6.26 9.92 12.27 34011.18Generali 12.60 -0.54 19.63 10.20 7.32 8.71 21569.17IntSPaolo 1.35 -0.06 2.63 1.31 14.81 5.32 25746.83Unicred 6.62 -0.48 14.44 6.42 4.13 3.03 16127.88

Japan (¥)AstellasPh 1782.5 13.00 1987 1375 2.04 16.30 30895.46Bridgestne 3293 -2.00 4734 2861.5 4.90 8.65 21879.7Canon 2272.5 16.50 3338 2035 7.10 14.78 28217.45CntJpRwy 18010 200.00 24780 14340 0.78 8.40 34539.5Denso 3745 3.00 5225 3021 3.49 15.68 27471.53EastJpRwy 8420 71.00 10830 7060 1.74 12.47 29625.2Fanuc 14760 -385.00 22060 12020 2.21 37.23 28036.22FastRetail 48440 -350.00 70230 39910 0.94 32.66 47835.11Fuji Hvy Ind 2074 16.50 3184 1671.5 6.47 12.06 14851.47Hitachi 3149 -12.00 4693 2524 2.66 16.24 28356.99HondaMtr 2371 -19.50 3259 2120 4.40 9.45 39984.15JapanTob 1989.5 15.50 2632 1862 7.70 9.52 37043.24KDDI 3176 28.00 3451 2440.5 3.23 12.35 69642.67Keyence 37280 190.00 40520 28905 0.25 47.48 84408.9MitsbCp 2237 -7.00 3090 2094.5 5.29 7.18 33114.57MitsubEst 1752 3.00 2283 1291 1.70 20.79 22690.85MitsubishiEle 1345.5 13.50 1658 1096.5 2.77 13.60 26896.23MitsuiFud 1837.5 -72.00 3035 1538 2.33 11.45 16751.59MitUFJFin 417.00 -10.90 603.00 380.00 5.68 6.86 52727.21Mizuho Fin 124.00 -3.60 177.50 108.40 5.64 43.04 29313.1Murata Mfg 5746 40.00 6920 4304 3.03 83.28 36150.39NipponTT 2586 26.00 2908 2153 3.43 12.29 93910.91Nissan Mt 369.20 -7.40 966.00 311.20 9.72 37.11 14507.19Nomura 424.80 -9.80 586.40 330.70 3.95 6.01 13816.17Nppn Stl 833.70 -29.90 2066 820.10 6.05 4.32 7375.91NTTDCMo 3261 -4.00 3475 2335 3.29 19.11 98017.6Panasonic 802.80 -1.10 1264 691.70 3.48 6.96 18335.72Seven & I 3665 - 4485 3113 2.69 14.71 30245.4ShnEtsuCh 11500 -30.00 13945 8751 1.70 16.40 44608.5Softbank 4333 -87.00 6045 2609.5 0.71 -8.61 84300.75Sony 6767 151.00 8113 5070 0.55 13.99 79441.32SumitomoF 2773.5 -59.50 4167 2507.5 6.22 7.76 35455.87Takeda Ph 3647 16.00 4562 2894.5 4.60 -56.64 53521.72TokioMarine 5075 -75.00 6317 4167 3.40 13.72 33167.16Toyota 6738 -12.00 8026 5771 3.04 8.36 204683.49Mexico (Mex$)AmerMvl 13.09 -0.20 16.82 12.69 1.70 11.54 24428.06FEMSA UBD 140.82 -0.71 192.50 127.25 2.20 11.36 12658.04WalMrtMex 55.80 -0.04 60.13 47.76 2.08 20.53 40525.12Netherlands (€)Altice 3.21 -0.23 6.86 2.26 - 2.86 3639.74ASML Hld 254.85 -8.40 294.40 165.04 1.20 42.67 118296.83Heineken 75.72 0.84 105.00 68.82 2.17 22.24 47562.1ING 4.67 -0.43 12.14 4.23 14.76 3.99 19868.07Unilever 45.99 -0.69 57.77 38.42 3.51 12.69 73257.94Norway (Kr)DNB 110.00 -5.65 178.10 94.26 8.78 5.79 16580.89Equinor 129.25 -5.40 203.90 95.20 8.04 7.41 41160.25Telenor 162.10 3.10 190.80 130.75 5.99 35.70 22302.9Qatar (QR)QatarNtBk 18.50 0.20 21.25 15.71 3.08 13.42 46930.48Russia (RUB)Gzprm neft 184.41 -5.70 272.68 157.62 10.54 2.35 58297.21Lukoil 4458 -386.00 6810 3663 6.56 3.90 41246.83MmcNrlskNckl 19472-1230.00 23656 13352 13.05 7.55 41147.48Novatek 950.60 -56.60 1382.2 682.80 3.21 2.83 38542.93Rosneft 306.30 -24.65 489.90 229.80 9.90 4.21 43349.09Sberbank 186.44 -10.93 270.80 172.15 10.05 3.94 53744.16Surgutneftegas 33.61 -2.05 54.89 24.06 2.26 2.76 16032.04Saudi Arabia (SR)AlRajhiBnk 54.20 0.70 76.90 51.00 6.59 14.01 36042.03Natnlcombnk 36.05 0.05 64.40 30.50 6.25 9.26 28767.12SaudiBasic 78.60 1.50 126.60 61.90 5.55 16.03 62721.12SaudiTelec 93.50 2.50 117.40 72.30 4.38 15.95 49740.66Singapore (S$)DBS♦ 19.50 -0.36 28.64 16.65 6.42 7.56 34782.98JardnMt US$ 52.53 1.03 66.69 42.59 3.18 11.99 38486.83JardnStr US$ 24.04 0.54 40.00 17.81 1.38 8.59 26639.55OCBC 8.90 -0.22 12.19 7.80 5.39 7.99 27495.12SingTel 2.80 -0.02 3.56 2.19 6.24 35.99 32119.32UOB 20.28 -0.42 27.97 17.28 5.17 7.99 23754.74South Africa (R)Firstrand 37.24 -3.99 71.79 31.13 9.92 5.32 11182.96MTN Grp 47.63 -4.21 114.43 26.25 13.66 7.61 4804.49Naspers N 2684.91 44.57 3750.01 1843.8 0.33 19.52 62596.79South Korea (KRW)HyundMobis 176500 2500 268500 126000 2.92 7.63 13781.14KoreaElePwr 21200 750.00 29500 15550 - -7.29 11179.27SK Hynix 82300 900.00 106000 62400 1.88 9.85 49215.21SmsungEl 49000 700.00 62800 40850 2.87 15.58 240282.02Spain (€)BBVA 2.73 -0.20 5.68 2.56 9.65 3.64 19858.03BcoSantdr 2.00 -0.12 4.68 1.93 8.36 6.19 36262.22CaixaBnk 1.60 -0.09 3.00 1.56 6.07 6.34 10439.7Iberdrola 8.90 -0.18 11.35 7.60 4.00 17.35 62635.08Inditex 25.76 -0.60 32.28 18.51 2.53 21.78 87550.81Repsol 7.44 -0.61 15.67 5.92 12.13 -3.08 12698.99Telefonica 4.14 -0.19 7.59 3.53 9.39 25.05 23412.46

Sweden (SKr)AtlasCpcoB 287.10 -13.90 350.40 223.20 1.13 19.41 11184.73Ericsson 80.88 -1.52 96.74 59.54 1.28 -29.43 24808.61H & M 133.50 -5.80 214.35 98.13 7.65 16.50 19467.85Investor 470.00 -14.30 568.60 370.10 2.86 15.55 21372.49Nordea Bk 54.97 -3.20 86.73 48.00 13.90 16.01 22225.89SEB 65.90 -3.34 104.90 59.80 9.19 7.03 14276.86SvnskaHn 77.18 -4.82 113.80 71.80 7.19 8.91 14985.07Swedbank 103.74 -6.88 162.70 103.66 13.82 5.85 11724.08Telia Co 35.13 -0.54 44.90 30.29 6.85 18.18 14763.74Volvo 117.25 -8.40 175.10 95.00 4.30 6.58 19337.89Switzerland (SFr)ABB 16.74 -0.87 24.69 14.11 4.59 37.98 37582.44CredSuisse 7.83 -0.58 14.14 6.18 3.29 7.31 20719.18Nestle 103.28 -0.18 113.20 83.37 2.23 25.54 318360.64Novartis 82.22 -0.58 96.38 65.09 3.16 29.31 215237.2Richemont 53.54 -2.04 87.44 44.64 3.68 20.28 28948.03Roche 311.00 -3.95 351.60 255.95 2.63 21.17 226316.23Swiss Re 75.26 -2.88 117.05 52.68 6.65 34.57 25522.27Swisscom 515.00 -7.00 577.80 446.70 4.02 16.96 27632.71Syngent 453.40 0.90 471.20 402.50 - 39.22 43035.76UBS 9.05 -0.43 13.81 7.00 7.43 8.89 36182.27Zurich Fin 302.10 -17.00 439.90 248.70 5.75 11.98 47080.65Taiwan (NT$)Chunghwa Telecom 109.00 - 123.50 103.00 4.03 24.38 28187.3Formosa PetChem 82.90 0.70 119.00 66.10 5.68 31.46 26325.18HonHaiPrc 74.10 -0.40 101.50 65.70 5.29 8.54 34243.81MediaTek 365.50 -4.00 464.00 273.00 2.41 28.28 19373.37TaiwanSem 287.50 0.50 366.00 227.00 3.28 22.87 248515.99Thailand (THB)PTT Explor 35.50 -0.50 50.25 23.60 6.08 10.79 31065.69United Arab Emirates (Dhs)Emirtestele♦ 15.38 0.36 17.80 11.04 5.32 14.47 36414.53United Kingdom (p)AscBrFd 1884 -108.00 2730 1554 2.41 16.96 18640.2AstraZen 7615 9.00 8227.88 5626 3.02 58.29 120526Aviva 243.10 -13.00 439.40 3.87 12.34 4.20 12192.79Barclays 87.00 -6.55 192.99 73.04 8.05 8.09 18553.09BP 299.70 -21.40 583.40 4.69 11.08 15.79 74650.27BrAmTob 2922 3.50 3507 34.85 6.81 10.88 68085.44BSkyB 1727.5 1.50 1740 893.50 0.76 36.60 38843.72BT 118.65 -5.50 231.50 102.90 12.98 5.44 14712.49Compass 1243.5 -9.50 2150 20.62 3.10 17.79 25557.98Diageo 2620 -4.00 3633.5 2050.6 2.62 20.42 82429.85GlaxoSmh 1570 - 1857 1328.19 5.10 17.20 96493.64Glencore 134.44 -8.70 343.90 109.76 11.68 24.44 24235.87HSBC 408.10 -19.35 687.70 387.65 9.42 18.02 102260.29Imperial Brands 1588 -34.00 2553 1258.2 12.18 15.01 18927.89LlydsBkg 29.75 -2.04 73.66 27.70 10.96 8.75 26791.38Natl Grid 887.80 -10.00 1073.8 8.90 5.33 20.79 37242.06Prudential 958.20 -55.80 1532.78 682.80 5.15 9.41 30982.98RBS 104.30 -10.65 266.10 2.23 5.27 4.03 15597.55ReckittB 6320 -128.00 8191.3 5130 2.70 19.69 55621.06RELX 1727 -47.00 2109 1382.86 2.51 22.46 41692.15RioTinto♦ 3668.5 -154.50 5039 2954 6.58 5.92 61490.9RollsRoyce 310.00 -25.50 945.60 249.00 3.77 -2.47 7205.45RylDShlA 1346 -99.00 2811.38 946.10 11.32 6.61 77331.37Shire# 4690 111.00 4780 2944 0.58 11.63 56567.13StandCh 394.00 -30.20 742.60 391.70 4.18 31.74 16233.42Tesco 232.60 -2.50 332.67 203.70 2.48 17.37 23801.04Vodafone 108.00 -3.98 169.46 92.76 7.37 -16.34 36002.43WPP 533.40 -40.00 1085.5 450.00 11.25 9.58 8440.11United States of America ($)21stC Fox A 25.51 -1.01 39.74 19.81 1.83 10.48 8794.353M 145.98 -4.16 219.75 114.04 3.72 19.81 83945.89AbbottLb♦ 90.81 1.67 92.45 61.61 1.33 46.73 160139.67Abbvie♦ 80.55 -1.58 97.86 62.55 5.01 16.17 118945.99Accenture 170.65 -6.65 216.39 137.15 1.28 23.58 112937.6Adobe 334.00 -6.77 386.75 255.13 - 57.62 160921.48AEP 83.98 -2.27 104.97 65.14 3.04 22.94 41556.05Aetna - - - - - - -Aflac 35.84 -1.94 57.18 23.07 2.84 8.58 25894.81AirProd♦ 212.59 -8.21 257.01 167.43 2.06 26.48 46912.94Alexion 97.53 -1.87 139.95 72.67 - 9.66 21661.41Allergan 185.21 -0.78 202.22 114.27 1.51 -12.25 60934.46Allstate 98.24 -4.20 125.92 64.13 1.92 7.42 31133.6Alphabet 1245.95 -19.28 1530.74 1008.87 - 26.87 373654.41Altria 40.58 -1.54 57.11 30.95 7.63 -61.45 75412.52Amazon 2291.03 7.71 2313.88 1626.03 - 105.541140601.53AmerAir 11.64 -0.31 35.24 9.09 3.24 3.25 4957.19AmerExpr 83.60 -4.79 138.13 67.00 1.85 11.09 67552.2AmerIntGrp 23.73 -2.05 58.66 16.07 5.09 6.82 20726.3AmerTower 244.79 -10.31 260.43 174.32 1.50 67.05 108552.58Amgen 219.65 -7.15 244.99 166.30 2.49 18.08 129100.28Anadarko 72.77 0.56 76.23 40.40 1.50 -63.37 36563.54Anthem 248.44 -3.57 312.48 171.03 1.22 14.26 62640.98Aon Cp 184.51 -9.52 238.19 143.93 0.88 30.70 42729.21Apple 282.96 -4.09 327.85 170.27 1.01 23.621238089.32ArcherDan 35.51 -1.73 47.20 28.92 3.72 15.43 19786.45

AT&T 30.18 -0.96 39.70 26.08 6.41 16.92 216750.21AutomData 137.45 -6.42 182.32 103.11 2.25 25.74 59344.62Avago Tech 256.71 -10.92 331.58 155.67 3.99 41.15 102630.4BakerHu 22.08 0.09 31.26 20.09 3.16 99.04 11412.93BankAm 22.25 -1.48 35.72 17.95 2.80 8.58 194125.29Baxter 87.42 -0.83 95.00 69.10 0.89 29.77 44345BB & T 54.24 0.75 55.66 40.68 3.26 12.85 41564.3BectonDick 249.85 0.32 286.72 197.75 1.17 95.96 67752.61BerkshHat 281754.54-7975.72 347400 239440 - 5.99 196981.08Biogen 328.78 -4.98 374.99 215.78 - 11.09 57228.77BkNYMeln 34.59 -1.75 53.61 26.40 3.22 8.13 30613.93BlackRock 444.27 -13.76 576.81 323.98 2.97 16.90 68533.67Boeing 135.10 -5.90 391.00 89.00 5.74-127.86 76081.86BrisMySq 59.20 -0.84 68.34 42.48 2.68 31.22 133634.71CapOne 52.26 -3.08 107.59 38.00 2.89 5.03 23904.84CardinalHlth 49.45 -1.24 60.69 39.05 3.66 -3.66 14428.7Carnival 11.73 -0.79 56.04 7.80 16.48 2.81 6188.66Caterpillar 110.34 -6.14 150.55 87.50 3.23 10.89 60696.12Celgene 108.24 0.11 110.70 58.59 - 12.71 77035.98CharlesSch 34.34 -1.87 51.65 28.00 1.89 12.49 44205.05Charter Comms 491.09 1.52 546.54 345.67 - 69.87 103116.05Chevron Corp 79.39 -5.23 127.00 51.60 5.66 54.64 148210.1Chubb 117.34 -5.17 167.74 87.35 2.40 12.81 52961.25Cigna 181.22 -4.40 224.64 118.50 0.02 14.29 67399.25Cisco♦ 41.31 -1.47 58.26 32.40 3.21 16.96 175208.57Citigroup 43.84 -1.58 83.11 32.00 4.13 5.78 91985.43CME Grp 184.98 -3.09 225.36 131.80 1.62 32.06 66310.98Coca-Cola 47.58 -1.34 60.13 36.27 3.17 24.36 204131.34Cognizant 51.63 -2.44 74.58 40.01 1.46 16.63 28326.13ColgtPlm 72.41 -0.70 77.41 58.49 2.23 27.91 61912.71Comcast♦ 36.79 -1.74 47.74 31.71 2.15 13.78 167135.97ConocPhil 30.98 -3.11 67.42 20.84 4.07 5.13 33355.74Corning 20.02 -0.68 35.34 17.44 3.77 19.83 15267.65Costco 307.82 -6.32 325.26 233.05 0.79 37.79 135927.14CrownCstl 164.12 -1.66 168.75 114.18 2.78 81.73 68396.92CSX 60.10 -2.44 80.73 46.81 1.51 15.28 46506.92CVS 60.03 -1.53 77.03 51.72 3.14 12.53 78288.71Danaher♦ 150.54 -1.60 169.19 119.60 0.43 48.95 104910.6Deere♦ 128.40 -9.73 181.99 106.14 2.24 13.23 40268.81Delphi 7.77 -0.62 26.82 5.39 - 43.35 668.78Delta 23.47 -1.07 63.44 19.10 6.05 3.41 15023.01Devon Energy 8.21 -0.91 35.39 4.70 4.02 -41.42 3152.94DiscFinServ 32.60 -2.93 92.98 23.25 5.10 3.64 10051.81Disney 103.49 -2.54 153.41 79.07 1.60 19.66 186844.85DominRes 80.04 -1.98 90.89 57.79 4.33 52.37 67076.65DowDupont 30.52 -0.65 48.38 30.06 6.73 -37.30 68559.76DukeEner 87.73 -2.69 103.79 62.13 4.03 18.34 64396.33Eaton 75.71 -4.13 105.78 56.42 3.74 13.28 31149.89eBay 35.62 -0.12 42.00 26.02 1.48 17.98 28356.4Ecolab 174.77 -6.03 211.24 124.60 1.07 33.08 50362.85Emerson 47.17 -3.32 78.38 37.75 4.21 12.54 28860.54EOG Res♦ 39.14 -2.72 107.89 27.00 2.46 7.49 22778.72EquityResTP 65.80 -3.12 89.55 49.62 3.25 26.83 24476.18Exelon 37.03 -2.04 51.18 29.28 3.69 13.04 36064.62ExpScripts 92.33 -3.47 101.73 66.93 - 11.10 52061.19ExxonMb 39.48 -2.95 83.49 30.11 8.68 11.32 167017.39Facebook 174.44 -3.73 224.20 137.10 - 28.76 419743.09Fedex 118.72 -6.36 199.32 88.69 2.12 351.09 31016.25FordMtr 5.02 -0.27 10.56 3.96 12.12 12.37 19607.29Franklin 15.32 -1.01 35.82 15.27 6.47 6.47 7609.99GenDyn 132.58 -5.92 193.76 100.55 2.84 11.73 38476.51GenElectric 6.36 -0.57 13.26 5.90 0.59-674.23 55610.51GenMills♦ 59.01 0.16 60.00 46.59 3.21 17.55 35768.26GenMotors 21.61 -1.37 41.90 14.33 7.13 3.47 30878.59GileadSci 74.71 -3.04 85.97 60.89 3.18 18.77 94058.51GoldmSchs 178.18 -0.05 250.46 130.85 2.20 8.98 61271.42Halliburton 6.99 -0.64 32.30 4.25 9.72 -5.74 6104.81HCA Hold 108.86 -3.68 151.97 58.38 1.39 11.46 36845.72Hew-Pack 15.18 -0.74 23.93 12.54 4.08 7.59 21703.82HiltonWwde 68.85 -1.17 115.48 44.30 0.82 24.01 19100.89HomeDep 197.36 -9.82 247.36 140.63 2.50 20.31 211982.19Honywell 132.98 -7.61 184.06 101.08 2.38 16.76 94761.52HumanaInc♦ 350.27 -1.94 385.00 208.25 0.59 18.47 46279.02IBM 117.25 -6.66 158.75 90.56 5.17 11.76 104164.51IllinoisTool 149.77 -6.29 190.85 115.94 2.61 20.51 47554.6Illumina 291.57 -6.31 380.76 196.78 - 45.86 42860.79Intcntl Exch 86.05 -0.95 101.93 63.51 1.21 26.67 47253.29Intel 58.77 -1.89 69.29 42.86 2.02 13.23 251566.37Intuit♦ 252.41 -8.92 306.89 187.68 0.75 43.08 65748.84John&John 145.62 -0.41 154.50 109.16 2.43 27.42 383905.61JohnsonCn 29.16 -1.65 44.65 22.78 3.37 22.89 22275.8JPMrgnCh 90.90 -4.60 141.10 76.91 3.53 8.99 276929.92Kimb-Clark 136.97 -3.12 149.23 110.66 2.84 23.27 46769.81KinderM 14.10 -1.02 22.58 9.42 6.36 15.57 31893.19Kraft Heinz 27.70 -0.76 33.78 19.99 5.45 18.58 33836.56Kroger 31.49 -0.61 36.84 20.70 1.78 16.55 24491.92L Brands 12.40 -1.68 28.02 8.00 11.69 9.80 3427.63LasVegasSd 47.02 -1.12 74.29 33.30 6.18 14.24 35906.75LibertyGbl 17.78 -0.77 28.62 15.24 - -27.39 3228.28Lilly (E) 150.73 -0.38 151.55 101.36 1.61 32.21 144254.41Lockheed 372.02 -8.01 442.53 266.11 2.28 17.97 104802.87

Lowes 93.40 -5.67 126.73 60.00 2.13 25.38 70512.2Lyondell 52.42 -6.22 98.91 33.71 7.47 5.79 17484.95Marathon Ptl 23.91 -2.39 69.65 15.26 8.70 5.08 15529.64Marsh&M 96.26 -3.18 119.88 74.34 1.71 29.92 48524.29MasterCard 256.80 -13.92 347.25 199.99 0.48 34.28 255331.44McDonald's 177.85 -6.14 221.93 124.23 2.65 23.01 132234.16McKesson 136.61 -1.05 172.18 111.71 1.17 -41.45 24170.47Medtronic 96.41 -4.79 122.15 72.13 2.08 28.93 129205.42Merck 81.28 -1.56 92.64 65.25 2.75 22.39 206147.92Metlife 32.50 -1.93 53.28 22.85 5.05 5.68 29764.41Microsoft 171.64 -2.06 190.70 119.01 1.04 31.701305501.91Mnstr Bvrg 61.94 -2.48 70.52 50.06 - 32.34 33252.66MondelezInt 53.82 -0.69 59.96 41.19 1.91 21.53 77120.99Monsanto 127.95 0.02 127.97 114.19 1.64 23.62 56462.29MorganStly 38.44 -1.42 57.57 27.20 3.19 7.85 60564.11MylanNV 15.44 -0.92 28.46 12.75 - 169.12 7967.19Netflix 429.13 15.58 430.98 252.28 - 110.14 188306.33NextEraE 238.08 -4.30 283.35 174.80 1.98 32.52 116524.18Nike 84.03 -3.44 105.62 60.00 1.04 30.41 104198.67NorfolkS 150.92 -4.58 219.88 112.62 2.25 15.61 41867.65Northrop 342.51 -6.28 385.01 263.31 1.42 27.46 57299.93NXP 86.64 -5.64 139.59 58.41 1.36 108.05 24237.6Occid Pet 13.06 -1.84 65.25 9.00 22.68 -11.54 11690.74Oracle 53.01 -1.00 60.50 39.71 1.66 17.64 167155.72Pepsico 134.12 -4.28 147.20 101.42 2.67 27.34 186365.72Perrigo 51.06 -1.22 63.86 40.01 1.52 50.58 6950.63Pfizer 35.83 -0.61 44.56 27.88 3.79 13.23 198771.91Phillips66 55.80 -5.27 119.92 40.04 5.92 8.74 24521.08PhilMorris 74.84 -2.34 90.17 56.01 5.82 17.21 116533.78PNCFin 92.19 -6.13 161.79 79.41 4.40 8.14 39524.32PPG Inds 88.12 -4.67 134.36 69.77 2.12 17.89 20788.43Praxair 164.50 -0.99 169.75 140.00 2.21 14.16 47306.22Priceline 1905.64 -1.38 2067.99 1612.41 - 17.15 92937.2ProctGmbl 121.23 0.27 128.09 94.34 2.30 73.01 299371.77Prudntl 55.12 -3.49 106.40 38.62 6.85 5.78 21829.94PublStor 197.34 -7.53 266.76 155.37 3.82 28.69 34462.85Qualcomm 74.38 -3.17 96.17 57.03 3.15 22.40 85019.52Raytheon 116.96 -5.47 233.48 103.00 2.98 10.60 32566.46Regen Pharm 516.85 -7.99 527.10 271.37 - 29.68 55908.1S&P Global 268.97 -8.37 312.94 186.06 0.80 33.15 64805.45Salesforce 155.83 -1.88 195.72 115.29 - 177.30 139467.85Schlmbrg 14.19 -1.35 48.88 11.87 13.30 -2.05 19646.27Sempra Energy 122.94 -4.99 161.87 88.00 2.97 21.26 35946.74Shrwin-Will 487.15 -17.24 599.95 325.43 0.88 30.76 44722.3SimonProp 59.98 -7.78 186.24 42.25 13.06 9.34 18329.21SouthCpr 29.36 -1.64 44.82 23.43 5.14 16.21 22697.01Starbucks 71.48 -2.19 99.72 50.02 1.97 24.84 83896.08StateSt 57.40 -3.21 85.89 42.10 3.25 11.31 20216.31Stryker♦ 169.43 -5.96 226.30 124.54 1.19 32.77 63507.14Sychrony Fin 14.87 -1.03 38.18 12.15 5.46 2.83 8732.15T-MobileUS 87.21 -2.41 101.35 63.50 - 23.00 74733.11Target 105.71 -2.67 130.24 70.03 2.36 17.57 52956.69TE Connect 64.87 -5.10 101.00 48.62 2.65 14.69 21647.31Tesla Mtrs 719.20 9.31 968.99 176.99 - -154.95 130420.87TexasInstr 107.07 -3.88 135.70 93.09 2.83 21.66 100000.77TheTrvelers 102.97 -5.05 155.09 76.99 2.96 11.00 26038.77ThrmoFshr 323.19 -3.19 342.26 250.21 0.22 37.36 11782.66TimeWrnr 98.77 0.82 103.89 85.88 1.54 15.09 77269.69TJX Cos 47.73 -2.50 64.95 32.72 1.72 19.45 57160.15UnionPac 145.20 -3.77 188.96 105.08 2.40 18.37 98526.03UPS B 98.49 -2.91 125.31 82.00 3.68 20.43 69170.33USBancorp 33.50 -2.30 61.11 28.59 4.45 8.54 50962.25UtdHlthcre 278.95 8.45 306.72 187.72 1.40 20.63 264604.54UtdTech 86.01 -5.36 158.44 69.02 3.19 14.36 74498.84ValeroEngy 46.58 -4.37 101.99 31.00 7.62 8.32 19028.43Verizon 56.95 -1.19 62.22 48.84 4.03 12.98 235537.44VertexPharm 256.84 -5.57 267.45 163.68 - 30.66 66590.55VF Cp 55.89 -3.69 100.25 45.07 3.26 17.90 22058.94ViacomCBS 15.21 -1.07 53.71 10.10 4.84 3.04 8556.11Visa Inc 166.89 -7.73 214.17 133.93 0.59 32.28 284718.41Walgreen 43.83 -2.55 64.50 39.41 3.96 11.12 38448.56WalMartSto 127.90 -1.10 129.88 98.85 1.59 26.54 362240.04WellsFargo 28.50 -1.68 54.75 25.11 6.36 7.46 116547.84Williams Cos 16.42 -0.89 29.06 8.41 8.73 24.51 19919.49Yum!Brnds 77.70 -2.19 119.72 54.95 2.04 19.89 23379.93Venezuela (VEF)Bco de Vnzla 4924.8 820.80 4924.8 250.00 475.54 - 157.99Bco Provncl 420000 20000 420000 18000 - 17.02 398.34Mrcntl Srvcs 425000 70800 425000 32500 0.01 5.83 227.58

Closing prices and highs & lows are in traded currency (with variations for thatcountry indicated by stock), market capitalisation is in USD. Highs & lows arebased on intraday trading over a rolling 52 week period.♦ ex-dividend■ ex-capital redistribution# price at time of suspension

FT 500: TOP 20

Close Prev Day Week Monthprice price change change % change change % change %

Tesla Mtrs 719.20 709.89 9.31 1.31 170.36 31.0 31.48Netflix 429.13 413.55 15.58 3.77 58.01 15.6 27.64FastRetail 48440.00 48790.00 -350.00 -0.72 5340.00 12.4 5.04Amazon 2291.03 2283.32 7.71 0.34 248.03 12.1 28.38Fuji Hvy Ind 2074.00 2057.50 16.50 0.80 200.00 10.7 -0.58Bhartiartl 510.50 512.20 -1.70 -0.33 48.85 10.6 3.79KoreaElePwr 21200.00 20450.00 750.00 3.67 1950.00 10.1 8.44AstraZen 7615.00 7606.00 9.00 0.12 644.00 9.2 -98.77L&T 880.15 865.45 14.70 1.70 73.05 9.1 -16.29Danone 62.00 61.26 0.74 1.21 5.00 8.8 15.33eBay 35.62 35.74 -0.12 -0.34 2.61 7.9 4.83AstellasPh 1782.50 1769.50 13.00 0.73 125.50 7.6 12.76ShenwanHong 0.04 0.04 0.00 0.00 0.00 7.5 -6.52Williams Cos 16.42 17.31 -0.89 -5.14 1.08 7.0 3.92AbbottLb 90.81 89.14 1.67 1.87 5.86 6.9 11.10Wesfarmers 37.66 37.81 -0.15 -0.40 2.35 6.7 -0.50Nissan Mt 369.20 376.60 -7.40 -1.96 22.50 6.5 -3.63Apple 282.96 287.05 -4.09 -1.42 16.89 6.3 1.85Hermes Intl 675.60 672.80 2.80 0.42 39.60 6.2 17.95ITC 189.35 181.60 7.75 4.27 10.70 6.0 16.70Based on the FT Global 500 companies in local currency

FT 500: BOTTOM 20

Close Prev Day Week Monthprice price change change % change change % change %

Halliburton 6.99 7.63 -0.64 -8.39 -1.76 -20.1 -2.17Schlmbrg 14.19 15.54 -1.35 -8.69 -3.09 -17.9 -12.23Occid Pet 13.06 14.90 -1.84 -12.36 -2.50 -16.1 -8.35L Brands 12.40 14.07 -1.68 -11.90 -2.19 -15.0 -23.01EOG Res 39.14 41.86 -2.72 -6.50 -6.16 -13.6 12.27Caterpillar 110.34 116.48 -6.14 -5.27 -17.06 -13.4 10.79ConocPhil 30.98 34.08 -3.11 -9.11 -4.71 -13.2 -1.47Lukoil 4458.00 4844.00 -386.00 -7.97 -660.00 -12.9 -9.13GenElectric 6.36 6.93 -0.57 -8.20 -0.94 -12.9 -19.04Devon Energy 8.21 9.11 -0.91 -9.93 -1.21 -12.8 -6.03Deere 128.40 138.13 -9.73 -7.04 -18.37 -12.5 -7.60DiscFinServ 32.60 35.53 -2.93 -8.25 -4.62 -12.4 -36.96Phillips66 55.80 61.07 -5.27 -8.63 -7.90 -12.4 2.76ING 4.67 5.10 -0.43 -8.48 -0.62 -11.7 -9.55Sychrony Fin 14.87 15.90 -1.03 -6.48 -1.95 -11.6 -38.64Repsol 7.44 8.04 -0.61 -7.56 -0.93 -11.1 -4.88Franklin 15.32 16.32 -1.01 -6.16 -1.88 -10.9 -15.35KBC Grp 43.01 46.64 -3.63 -7.78 -5.26 -10.9 -5.60CanNatRs 17.10 18.24 -1.14 -6.25 -2.05 -10.7 -13.90BP 299.70 321.10 -21.40 -6.66 -35.65 -10.6 -98.90Based on the FT Global 500 companies in local currency

BONDS: HIGH YIELD & EMERGING MARKET

Day's Mth's SpreadRed Ratings Bid Bid chge chge vs

Apr 15 date Coupon S* M* F* price yield yield yield USHigh Yield US$HCA Inc. 04/24 8.36 BB- Ba2 BB 112.00 5.01 0.00 0.95 4.49

High Yield EuroAldesa Financial Services S.A. 04/21 7.25 - - B 71.10 28.23 0.00 0.64 25.98

Emerging US$Peru 03/19 7.13 BBB+ A3 BBB+ 104.40 2.60 - - 0.34Brazil 01/22 12.50 BB- Ba2 BB- 109.49 6.56 -0.22 0.60 6.30Mexico 01/25 3.60 BBB+ A3 BBB 106.70 2.16 -0.02 -0.30 0.88Colombia 01/26 4.50 BBB- Baa2 BBB- 105.38 3.43 -0.12 -0.18 2.91Brazil 04/26 6.00 BB- Ba2 BB- 114.13 3.37 -0.17 0.12 2.85Poland 04/26 3.25 A- A2 A- 107.50 1.91 -0.06 0.07 1.39Turkey 04/26 4.25 - B1 BB- 83.07 7.84 -0.01 1.43 7.32Turkey 03/27 6.00 - Ba2 BB+ 101.26 5.82 0.00 0.17 3.07Peru 08/27 4.13 BBB+ A3 BBB+ 103.50 3.66 0.01 -0.02 0.80Russia 06/28 12.75 BBB- Baa3 BBB 168.50 3.18 -0.02 -0.10 -

Emerging EuroBrazil 04/21 2.88 BB- Ba2 BB- 103.09 0.05 0.01 -0.09 -1.19Mexico 02/22 1.88 BBB+ A3 BBB 99.39 2.21 -0.22 1.64 1.95Mexico 04/23 2.75 BBB+ A3 BBB+ 107.76 0.76 0.00 -0.07 -1.56Bulgaria 03/28 3.00 BBB- Baa2 BBB 117.04 1.00 0.02 -0.15 -1.42Interactive Data Pricing and Reference Data LLC, an ICE Data Services company. US $ denominated bonds NY close; allother London close. *S - Standard & Poor’s, M - Moody’s, F - Fitch.

BONDS: GLOBAL INVESTMENT GRADE

Day's Mth's SpreadRed Ratings Bid Bid chge chge vs

Apr 15 date Coupon S* M* F* price yield yield yield USUS$Truist Financial Corporation 01/28 6.00 BBB+ A3 A+ 116.10 3.60 0.09 0.13 -Morgan Stanley 01/28 4.00 BBB+ A3 A 101.84 3.72 1.51 1.30 -The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. 02/28 5.00 BBB+ A3 A 105.48 4.18 0.00 0.03 -GTE LLC 04/28 6.94 BBB+ Baa2 A- 123.80 3.50 -0.04 0.05 -United Utilities PLC 08/28 6.88 BBB Baa1 A- 117.76 4.31 0.00 1.45 -Barclays Bank plc 01/29 4.50 A A1 A+ 95.43 5.15 0.00 2.55 -EuroElectricite de France (EDF) 04/30 4.63 A- A3 A- 137.45 0.82 -0.01 0.10 -The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. 02/31 3.00 BBB+ A3 A 121.70 0.93 0.00 0.02 -The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. 02/31 3.00 BBB+ A3 A 124.42 0.68 0.00 -0.11 -Finland 04/31 0.75 AA+ Aa1 AA+ 107.19 0.09 -0.03 0.18 -YenMexico 06/26 1.09 BBB+ A3 BBB 97.92 1.44 0.01 0.56 -£ Sterlinginnogy Fin B.V. 06/30 6.25 BBB Baa2 A- 137.45 2.19 -0.03 0.02 -innogy Fin B.V. 06/30 6.25 BBB Baa2 A- 128.68 3.20 0.00 -0.01 0.40Interactive Data Pricing and Reference Data LLC, an ICE Data Services company. US $ denominated bonds NY close; all other Londonclose. *S - Standard & Poor’s, M - Moody’s, F - Fitch.

INTEREST RATES: OFFICIAL

Apr 15 Rate Current Since Last Mnth Ago Year AgoUS Fed Funds 0.00-0.25 15-03-2020 1.00-1.25 1.50-1.75 1.25-1.50US Prime 4.75 30-10-2019 5.25 5.25 4.25US Discount 2.65 30-09-2019 2.75 2.75 1.75Euro Repo 0.00 16-03-2016 0.00 0.00 0.00UK Repo 0.10 19-03-2020 0.25 0.75 0.25Japan O'night Call 0.00-0.10 01-02-2016 0.00 0.00--0.10 0.00--0.10Switzerland Libor Target -1.25-0.25 15-01-2015 -0.75--0.25 -1.25--0.25 -1.25--0.25

INTEREST RATES: MARKET

Over Change One Three Six OneApr 15 (Libor: Apr 14) night Day Week Month month month month yearUS$ Libor 0.07163 0.004 -0.003 -0.020 0.79413 1.17613 1.15875 1.02588Euro Libor -0.56729 -0.002 0.002 0.009 -0.36957 -0.21857 -0.14471 -0.13429£ Libor 0.06263 0.007 0.003 0.002 0.24375 0.66575 0.74950 0.86175Swiss Fr Libor 0.000 -0.73260 -0.58460 -0.53160 -0.43000Yen Libor 0.006 -0.09133 -0.01800 0.01233 0.09717Euro Euribor -0.017 -0.40400 -0.24800 -0.19500 -0.10500Sterling CDs 0.000 0.75000 0.83000 0.89500US$ CDs 0.000 2.45000 2.56000 2.65000Euro CDs - - - -

Short 7 Days One Three Six OneApr 15 term notice month month month yearEuro -0.71 -0.41 -0.66 -0.36 -0.63 -0.33 -0.46 -0.16 -0.45 -0.15 -0.41 -0.11Sterling 0.45 0.55 0.70 0.80 0.78 0.88 0.82 0.97 0.89 1.04Swiss Franc - - - - - - - - - - - -Canadian Dollar - - - - - - - - - - - -US Dollar 0.08 0.38 0.04 0.34 0.50 0.80 0.80 1.10 0.75 1.05 0.67 0.97Japanese Yen -0.15 0.15 -0.20 0.10 -0.55 0.35 -0.50 0.50 -0.30 0.70 -0.25 0.75Libor rates come from ICE (see www.theice.com) and are fixed at 11am UK time. Other data sources: US $, Euro & CDs:Tullett Prebon; SDR, US Discount: IMF; EONIA: ECB; Swiss Libor: SNB; EURONIA, RONIA & SONIA: WMBA.

BOND INDICES

Day's Month's Year Return ReturnIndex change change change 1 month 1 year

Markit IBoxxABF Pan-Asia unhedged 204.35 0.21 1.38 -1.56 -1.17 4.08Corporates( £) 371.96 0.74 4.72 -1.17 1.26 5.41Corporates($) 311.76 0.53 3.69 0.06 3.69 0.06Corporates(€) 227.56 0.85 2.06 -4.25 -1.98 -1.44Eurozone Sov(€) 249.96 -0.06 -0.75 -0.39 -1.22 3.93Gilts( £) 378.64 -0.21 1.59 8.67 2.40 14.85Global Inflation-Lkd 281.15 0.26 2.66 0.57 3.24 5.41Markit iBoxx £ Non-Gilts 365.91 0.51 3.37 -0.12 0.67 5.79Overall ($) 274.69 0.09 1.05 4.84 1.05 4.84Overall( £) 371.03 0.01 2.12 5.85 1.87 11.97Overall(€) 241.21 0.18 -0.04 -1.16 -1.52 2.38Treasuries ($) 263.02 -0.17 -0.32 8.60 -0.32 8.60

FTSESterling Corporate (£) - - - - - -Euro Corporate (€) 104.47 -0.05 - - 0.54 -1.73Euro Emerging Mkts (€) 467.31 -20.18 - - -2.85 13.28Eurozone Govt Bond 110.04 -0.19 - - -0.34 -0.64

CREDIT INDICES Day's Week's Month's Series SeriesIndex change change change high low

Markit iTraxxCrossover 5Y 490.04 39.91 -38.53 - 743.22 437.71Europe 5Y 84.82 7.83 -10.08 - 131.25 74.88Japan 5Y 83.88 -0.85 -22.83 - 188.33 83.10Senior Financials 5Y 104.88 10.30 -5.31 - 150.83 92.61

Markit CDXEmerging Markets 5Y 313.82 6.97 -33.33 - 421.25 293.13Nth Amer High Yld 5Y 555.05 2.42 -131.49 - 776.87 525.54Nth Amer Inv Grade 5Y 82.03 -1.45 -30.56 - 150.81 81.95Websites: markit.com, ftse.com. All indices shown are unhedged. Currencies are shown in brackets after the index names.

COMMODITIES www.ft.com/commodities

Energy Price* ChangeCrude Oil† Apr 19.68 -1.05Brent Crude Oil‡ 27.78 -2.30RBOB Gasoline† Apr 0.73 0.00Heating Oil† - -Natural Gas† Apr 1.63 -0.02Ethanol♦ - -Uranium† Apr 31.30 1.50Carbon Emissions‡ - -Diesel† - -Base Metals (♠ LME 3 Months)Aluminium 1507.50 -7.50Aluminium Alloy 1180.00 0.00Copper 5105.00 -83.50Lead 1699.50 -4.00Nickel 11810.00 -95.00Tin 15050.00 -410.00Zinc 1925.00 -5.00Precious Metals (PM London Fix)Gold 1741.90 61.25Silver (US cents) 1551.00 33.50Platinum 761.00 26.00Palladium 2189.00 23.00Bulk CommoditiesIron Ore 85.85 -0.25GlobalCOAL RB Index 57.00 0.00Baltic Dry Index 706.00 27.00

Agricultural & Cattle Futures Price* ChangeCorn♦ May 324.50 -1.25Wheat♦ May 536.25 -12.00Soybeans♦ May 846.75 0.25Soybeans Meal♦ May 292.70 4.20Cocoa (ICE Liffe)X May 1778.00 -32.00Cocoa (ICE US)♥ May 2204.00 -52.00Coffee(Robusta)X May 1173.00 15.00Coffee (Arabica)♥ May 115.90 -1.45White SugarX 331.00 -0.50Sugar 11♥ 9.99 -0.08Cotton♥ May 52.09 -0.36Orange Juice♥ May 105.20 -1.30Palm Oil♣ - -Live Cattle♣ Apr 93.80 2.80Feeder Cattle♣ Apr 117.30 2.28Lean Hogs♣ May 38.30 0.00

% Chg % ChgApr 14 Month Year

S&P GSCI Spt 270.91 -9.24 -39.83DJ UBS Spot 61.97 -5.14 -24.75TR/CC CRB TR 131.23 -12.22 -32.90M Lynch MLCX Ex. Rtn 231.14 -9.84 -33.05UBS Bberg CMCI TR 11.05 -5.42 -27.16LEBA EUA Carbon 23.51 -4.62 5.43LEBA CER Carbon 0.24 26.32 0.00LEBA UK Power 3376.00 81.02 23.98

Sources: † NYMEX, ‡ ECX/ICE, ♦ CBOT, X ICE Liffe, ♥ ICE Futures, ♣ CME, ♠ LME/London Metal Exchange.* Latest prices, $unless otherwise stated.

BONDS: INDEX-LINKED

Price Yield Month Value No ofApr 14 Apr 14 Prev return stock Market stocks

Can 4.25%' 21 106.03 0.521 0.521 0.44 5.18 83901.79 8Fr 0.10%' 21 100.61 -0.592 -0.592 0.06 7.57 234450.02 15Swe 0.25%' 22 110.02 -0.983 -0.983 -0.25 31.92 186754.56 7UK 1.875%' 22 111.99 -2.554 -2.554 0.46 15.74 750206.60 28UK 2.5%' 24 360.80 -2.481 -2.481 0.47 6.82 750206.60 28UK 2%' 35 297.04 -2.431 -2.431 1.47 9.08 750206.60 28US 0.625%' 21 100.09 0.549 0.549 1.20 35.84 1528930.11 42US 3.625%' 28 132.13 -0.335 -0.335 2.92 16.78 1528930.11 42Representative stocks from each major market Source: Merill Lynch Global Bond Indices † Local currencies. ‡ Total marketvalue. In line with market convention, for UK Gilts inflation factor is applied to price, for other markets it is applied to paramount.

BONDS: TEN YEAR GOVT SPREADS

Spread SpreadBid vs vs

Yield Bund T-Bonds

Spread SpreadBid vs vs

Yield Bund T-Bonds

Australia - - -Austria -0.20 - -Belgium 0.76 - -Canada 0.75 1.16 -Denmark - - -Finland 0.04 0.45 -France 0.76 - -Germany -0.41 0.00 -Greece 2.24 - -

Italy 1.42 1.83 -Japan - - -Netherlands -0.43 - -Norway 0.43 - -Portugal 0.59 - -Spain 0.80 1.21 -Switzerland -0.37 0.05 -United Kingdom - - -United States - - -

Interactive Data Pricing and Reference Data LLC, an ICE Data Services company.

VOLATILITY INDICES

Apr 15 Day Chng Prev 52 wk high 52 wk lowVIX 42.26 4.50 37.76 85.42 11.03VXD 44.68 3.36 41.32 71.05 2.47VXN 41.89 3.56 38.33 84.67 13.58VDAX 46.74 2.77 43.97 93.30 -† CBOE. VIX: S&P 500 index Options Volatility, VXD: DJIA Index Options Volatility, VXN: NASDAQ Index Options Volatility.‡ Deutsche Borse. VDAX: DAX Index Options Volatility.

BONDS: BENCHMARK GOVERNMENT

Red Bid Bid Day chg Wk chg Month YearDate Coupon Price Yield yield yield chg yld chg yld

Australia - - - - - - -12/21 2.00 102.98 0.22 -0.01 0.00 -0.37 -1.24

Austria 10/25 1.20 107.79 -0.20 -0.01 -0.07 0.15 -0.1202/47 1.50 125.72 0.48 -0.03 -0.08 0.23 -0.64

Belgium 09/22 1.00 103.37 -0.40 -0.02 -0.05 0.19 -0.0306/47 1.60 120.44 0.76 -0.01 -0.07 0.21 -0.71

Canada 09/22 1.00 101.47 0.38 -0.02 -0.11 -0.10 -1.2706/30 1.25 104.85 0.75 0.01 -0.09 -0.02 -

Denmark - - - - - - -11/21 3.00 105.42 -0.40 -0.03 -0.06 0.44 0.18

Finland 09/22 1.63 105.06 -0.45 -0.02 -0.05 0.18 -0.0509/29 0.50 104.31 0.04 -0.03 -0.06 0.16 -

France 10/22 2.25 106.96 -0.48 -0.01 -0.05 0.13 -0.1105/25 0.50 103.93 -0.26 -0.01 -0.05 0.06 -0.1805/48 2.00 131.26 0.76 -0.01 -0.07 0.22 -0.61

Germany 09/22 1.50 105.19 -0.65 -0.03 -0.03 0.29 -0.1302/26 0.50 106.45 -0.58 -0.04 -0.06 0.19 -0.3508/29 0.00 103.94 -0.41 -0.04 -0.06 0.19 -08/50 0.00 99.10 0.03 -0.05 -0.05 0.28 -

Greece 02/26 3.65 110.63 2.24 0.14 0.10 -0.65 -1.2302/26 3.65 110.63 2.24 0.14 0.10 -0.65 -1.23

Ireland 10/22 0.00 100.67 -0.27 0.02 -0.03 0.09 0.0205/30 2.40 121.04 0.28 0.01 -0.09 0.08 -0.42

Italy 08/22 0.90 99.97 0.91 0.19 0.24 -0.18 -0.1402/25 0.35 95.86 1.24 0.18 0.16 -0.12 -05/30 0.40 90.48 1.42 0.17 0.14 -0.06 -03/48 3.45 117.28 2.58 0.11 0.10 0.03 -0.76

Japan - - - - - - -09/22 0.10 100.69 -0.18 0.01 -0.03 0.01 0.0003/26 0.10 101.32 -0.12 0.01 -0.01 0.06 0.0409/47 0.80 108.73 0.46 0.01 0.02 0.15 -0.04

Netherlands 07/22 2.25 106.38 -0.57 -0.03 -0.03 0.18 -0.0807/25 0.25 103.60 -0.43 -0.04 -0.08 0.13 -0.25

New Zealand - - - - - - -05/21 6.00 105.70 0.69 -0.03 -0.08 -0.45 -1.19

Norway 05/21 3.75 103.82 0.28 -0.03 -0.01 -0.46 -1.0902/26 1.50 106.14 0.43 -0.05 -0.03 -0.37 -1.18

Portugal 10/22 2.20 105.32 0.07 0.01 0.02 0.12 0.2502/26 3.30 115.57 0.59 0.01 0.01 0.10 -0.05

Spain 10/22 0.45 100.92 0.09 0.03 0.04 0.24 0.2210/29 0.60 98.19 0.80 0.04 0.03 0.23 -

Sweden - - - - - - -06/22 3.50 108.28 -0.37 -0.01 0.04 0.13 -0.04

Switzerland 05/22 2.00 105.56 -0.61 0.00 -0.03 0.20 0.1106/29 0.00 103.43 -0.37 -0.03 -0.11 0.15 -0.10

United Kingdom - - - - - - -07/22 0.50 100.98 0.07 0.02 -0.08 -0.20 -0.7409/25 2.00 110.29 0.09 0.01 -0.08 -0.16 -0.8807/47 1.50 119.94 0.70 0.03 -0.13 -0.16 -1.03

United States - - - - - - -10/22 2.00 104.41 0.26 -0.01 -0.07 -0.38 -2.1102/26 1.63 106.32 0.52 -0.02 -0.06 -0.36 -1.9511/47 2.75 130.91 1.40 0.03 0.07 -0.19 -1.58

Interactive Data Pricing and Reference Data LLC, an ICE Data Services company.

GILTS: UK CASH MARKET

Red Change in Yield 52 Week AmntApr 15 Price £ Yield Day Week Month Year High Low £m

- - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - -

Tr 2pc '20 100.52 0.05 -28.57 -50.00 -82.76 -93.83 103.48 100.00 32.53Tr 1.5pc '21 101.09 0.07 -30.00 -36.36 -78.79 -91.03 101.58 100.78 32.84Tr 4pc '22 107.51 0.03 -50.00 -72.73 -89.29 -96.15 109.62 107.11 38.39Tr 5pc '25 123.78 0.12 -25.00 -40.00 -57.14 -87.37 126.04 121.74 35.49Tr 1.25pc '27 108.15 0.12 -25.00 -42.86 -61.29 -89.29 108.63 100.93 23.73Tr 4.25pc '32 145.33 0.42 -6.67 -17.65 -17.65 -70.21 148.26 133.58 35.86Tr 4.25pc '36 156.23 0.55 -3.51 -14.06 -17.91 -64.97 160.46 139.13 30.11Tr 4.5pc '42 180.56 0.66 -4.35 -12.00 -20.48 -60.95 186.37 154.03 26.95Tr 3.75pc '52 191.79 0.61 -3.17 -12.86 -24.69 -63.25 198.36 152.65 23.87Tr 4pc '60 223.99 0.53 -5.36 -15.87 -29.33 -67.08 231.12 170.06 23.89Gilts benchmarks & non-rump undated stocks. Closing mid-price in pounds per £100 nominal of stock.

GILTS: UK FTSE ACTUARIES INDICES

Price Indices Day's Total Return ReturnFixed Coupon Apr 15 chg % Return 1 month 1 year Yield1 Up to 5 Years 90.44 0.07 2481.74 0.64 2.00 0.072 5 - 10 Years 188.03 0.24 3796.12 1.58 6.97 0.153 10 - 15 Years 228.97 0.32 4880.97 1.88 11.49 0.414 5 - 15 Years 197.33 0.27 4060.98 1.69 8.20 0.275 Over 15 Years 413.68 0.49 6708.74 6.23 25.34 0.607 All stocks 197.78 0.32 4177.42 3.56 14.07 0.52

Day's Month Year's Total Return ReturnIndex Linked Apr 15 chg % chg % chg % Return 1 month 1 year1 Up to 5 Years 305.17 0.02 0.48 -0.82 2496.47 0.79 0.532 Over 5 years 811.35 0.74 7.13 9.89 6118.65 7.13 10.353 5-15 years 511.04 0.14 2.73 5.04 4050.34 2.73 5.904 Over 15 years 1063.92 0.97 8.86 11.65 7819.15 8.86 11.965 All stocks 723.10 0.66 6.29 8.63 5550.06 6.33 9.21

Yield Indices Apr 15 Apr 14 Yr ago Apr 15 Apr 14 Yr ago5 Yrs 0.00 0.03 0.84 20 Yrs 0.70 0.72 1.7010 Yrs 0.31 0.35 1.26 45 Yrs 0.49 0.51 1.6015 Yrs 0.59 0.62 1.57

inflation 0% inflation 5%Real yield Apr 15 Dur yrs Previous Yr ago Apr 15 Dur yrs Previous Yr agoUp to 5 yrs -2.32 2.62 -2.30 -2.23 -2.60 2.61 -2.81 -2.54Over 5 yrs -2.13 24.67 -2.10 -1.75 -2.14 24.72 -2.11 -1.775-15 yrs -2.53 10.15 -2.51 -1.98 -2.60 10.15 -2.59 -2.06Over 15 yrs -2.08 29.74 -2.05 -1.72 -2.09 29.75 -2.05 -1.73All stocks -2.13 22.05 -2.10 -1.75 -2.15 22.11 -2.12 -1.78See FTSE website for more details www.ftse.com/products/indices/gilts©2018 Tradeweb Markets LLC. All rights reserved. The Tradeweb FTSEGilt Closing Prices information contained herein is proprietary toTradeweb; may not be copied or re-distributed; is not warranted to beaccurate, complete or timely; and does not constitute investment advice.Tradeweb is not responsible for any loss or damage that might result from the use of this information.

All data provided by Morningstar unless otherwise noted. All elements listed are indicative and believed accurateat the time of publication. No offer is made by Morningstar, its suppliers, or the FT. Neither the FT, norMorningstar’s suppliers, warrant or guarantee that the information is reliable or complete. Neither the FT norMorningstar’s suppliers accept responsibility and will not be liable for any loss arising from the reliance on theuse of the listed information. For all queries e-mail [email protected]

Data provided by Morningstar | www.morningstar.co.uk

APRIL 16 2020 Section:Stats Time: 15/4/2020 - 18:31 User: peter.bailey Page Name: MARKET DATA 2, Part,Page,Edition: USA, 11, 1



MANAGED FUNDS SERVICE

Fund Bid Offer D+/- Yield

Aberdeen Standard Capital (JER)PO Box 189, St Helier, Jersey, JE4 9RU 01534 709130FCA Recognised

Aberdeen Standard Capital Offshore Strategy Fund LimitedBridge Fund £ 1.8985 - 0.0139 2.10Global Equity Fund £ 2.5855 - 0.0537 1.28Global Fixed Interest Fund £ 0.8930 - 0.0075 4.95Income Fund £ 0.5535 - -0.0013 3.33Sterling Fixed Interest Fund £ 0.8697 - 0.0029 3.09UK Equity Fund £ 1.5965 - -0.0506 4.76

Algebris Investments (IRL)RegulatedAlgebris Core Italy I EUR Acc € 90.12 - 0.96 -Algebris Allocation Fund - Class I EUR € 86.57 - 0.47 0.00Algebris Core Italy Fund - Class R EUR € 84.64 - 0.91 0.00Algebris Financial Credit Fund - Class I EUR € 164.33 - 4.73 0.00Algebris Financial Credit Fund - Class R EUR € 143.56 - 4.12 0.00Algebris Financial Credit Fund - Class Rd EUR € 99.03 - 2.85 5.62Algebris Financial Income Fund - Class I EUR € 120.47 - 4.36 0.00Algebris Financial Income Fund - Class R EUR € 112.28 - 4.06 0.00Algebris Financial Income Fund - Class Rd EUR € 75.56 - 2.75 6.21Algebris Financial Equity Fund - Class B EUR € 81.44 - 3.91 0.00Algebris Macro Credit Fund - Class I EUR € 109.53 - 2.42 0.00Algebris Macro Credit Fund - Class R EUR € 107.79 - 2.38 0.00Algebris Macro Credit Fund - Class Rd EUR € 107.79 - 2.38 0.00Algebris IG Financial Credit R EUR Acc € 98.27 - 3.02 -Algebris IG Financial Credit B EUR Acc € 98.59 - 3.03 -

The Antares European Fund LimitedOther InternationalAEF Ltd Usd (Est) $ 578.99 - 0.64 -AEF Ltd Eur (Est) € 543.10 - 0.83 0.00

Arisaig PartnersOther International FundsArisaig Asia Consumer Fund Class A (Ex-Alcohol) shares $ 85.28 - 0.67 -Arisaig Asia Consumer Fund Limited $ 83.42 - 0.67 0.00Arisaig Global Emerging Markets Consumer Fund $ 10.47 - 0.20 0.00Arisaig Global Emerging Markets Consumer UCITS € 12.85 - -0.01 0.00Arisaig Global Emerging Markets Consumer UCITS STG £ 14.50 - -0.10 0.00Arisaig Latin America Consumer Fund $ 18.71 - 0.39 0.00

Artemis Fund Managers Ltd (1200)F (UK)57 St. James's Street, London SW1A 1LD 0800 092 2051Authorised Inv FundsArtemis Corporate Bond I Acc £ 1.01 - 0.01 -Artemis Target Return Bond I Acc £ 0.99 - 0.00 -

Ashmore Investment Management Limited (LUX)2 rue Albert Borschette L-1246 LuxembourgFCA RecognisedAshmore SICAV Emerging Market Debt Fund $ 75.43 - 1.26 7.91Ashmore SICAV Emerging Market Frontier Equity Fund $ 128.95 - 2.41 1.90Ashmore SICAV Emerging Market Total Return Fund $ 67.63 - 0.90 6.63Ashmore SICAV Global Small Cap Equity Fund $ 115.63 - 1.37 0.04EM Active Equity Fund Acc USD $ 112.46 - 1.47 0.00EM Equity Fund Acc USD $ 90.28 - 1.33 0.00EM Mkts Corp.Debt USD F $ 75.71 - 1.57 8.30EM Mkts Loc.Ccy Bd USD F $ 68.73 - 0.51 6.13EM Short Duration Fund Acc USD $ 93.09 - 0.48 0.00

Atlantas Sicav (LUX)RegulatedAmerican Dynamic $ 4516.03 4516.03 153.41 0.00American One $ 4468.74 4468.74 157.68 0.00Bond Global € 1499.43 1499.43 16.81 0.00Eurocroissance € 1015.86 1015.86 41.62 0.00Far East $ 856.09 - 23.11 0.00

Barclays Investment Funds (CI) Ltd (JER)39/41 Broad Street, St Helier, Jersey, JE2 3RR Channel Islands 01534 812800FCA Recognised

Bond FundsSterling Bond F £ 0.49 - 0.00 1.84

CCLA Investment Management Ltd (UK)Senator House 85 Queen Victoria Street London EC4V 4ETAuthorised Inv FundsDiversified Income 1 Units GBP Inc £ 1.45 1.45 -0.02 1.07Diversified Income 2 Units GBP Inc £ 1.40 1.40 -0.01 1.09Diversified Income 3 Units GBP Inc £ 1.40 1.40 -0.02 1.08


CG Asset Management Limited (IRL)25 Moorgate, London, EC2R 6AYDealing: Tel. +353 1434 5098 Fax. +353 1542 2859FCA Recognised

CG Portfolio Fund PlcAbsolute Return Cls M Inc £ 122.01 122.01 -0.54 1.55Capital Gearing Portfolio GBP P £ 33057.54 33057.54 -153.55 1.56Capital Gearing Portfolio GBP V £ 160.77 160.77 -0.74 0.62Dollar Fund Cls D Inc £ 174.45 174.45 -1.12 1.84Dollar Hedged GBP Inc £ 102.81 102.81 0.36 1.86Real Return Cls A Inc £ 208.95 208.95 -1.22 2.13

Chartered Asset Management Pte LtdOther International FundsCAM-GTF Limited $ 246813.66 246813.66 -4021.04 0.00CAM GTi Limited $ 697.51 - -26.30 -Raffles-Asia Investment Company $ 1.25 1.25 -0.13 2.39

Cheyne Capital Management (UK) LLPOther International FundsCheyne European Event Driven Fund (M) € 144.16 - -0.70 -

price updated (D) daily, (W) weekly, (M) monthly

Dodge & Cox Worldwide Funds (IRL)6 Duke Street,St.James,London SW1Y 6BNwww.dodgeandcox.worldwide.com 020 3713 7664FCA Recognised

Dodge & Cox Worldwide Funds plc - Global Bond FundEUR Accumulating Class € 14.54 - 0.18 0.00EUR Accumulating Class (H) € 10.32 - 0.18 0.00EUR Distributing Class € 11.62 - 0.15 4.42EUR Distributing Class (H) € 8.21 - 0.14 4.86GBP Distributing Class £ 12.32 - 0.06 4.35GBP Distributing Class (H) £ 8.62 - 0.14 5.18USD Accumulating Class $ 11.52 - 0.20 0.00

Dodge & Cox Worldwide Funds plc-Global Stock FundUSD Accumulating Share Class $ 17.49 - 0.07 0.00GBP Accumulating Share Class £ 22.79 - -0.19 0.00GBP Distributing Share class £ 15.79 - -0.13 1.76EUR Accumulating Share Class € 23.92 - 0.00 0.00GBP Distributing Class (H) £ 8.63 - 0.04 1.56

Dodge & Cox Worldwide Funds plc-U.S. Stock FundUSD Accumulating Share Class $ 22.56 - -0.03 0.00GBP Accumulating Share Class £ 27.79 - -0.39 0.00GBP Distributing Share Class £ 17.04 - -0.24 1.37EUR Accumulating Share Class € 26.63 - -0.16 -GBP Distributing Class (H) £ 9.49 - -0.01 1.13

Dragon Capital Group1501 Me Linh Point, 2 Ngo Duc Ke, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, VietnamFund information, dealing and administration: [email protected]

Other International FundsVietnam Equity (UCITS) Fund A USD $ 17.15 - 0.30 0.00

Ennismore Smaller Cos Plc (IRL)5 Kensington Church St, London W8 4LD 020 7368 4220FCA RecognisedEnnismore European Smlr Cos NAV £ 127.13 - -2.15 0.00Ennismore European Smlr Cos NAV € 146.01 - -1.36 0.00

Ennismore European Smlr Cos Hedge FdOther International FundsNAV € 519.33 - 19.19 0.00

Equinox Fund Mgmt (Guernsey) Limited (GSY)RegulatedEquinox Russian Opportunities Fund Limited $ 143.53 - -35.69 0.00

Euronova Asset Management UK LLP (CYM)RegulatedSmaller Cos Cls One Shares € 42.29 - 2.35 0.00Smaller Cos Cls Two Shares € 28.25 - 1.56 0.00Smaller Cos Cls Three Shares € 14.12 - 0.78 0.00Smaller Cos Cls Four Shares € 18.31 - 1.02 0.00

FIL Investment Services (UK) Limited (1200)F (UK)130, Tonbridge Rd, Tonbridge TN11 9DZCallfree: Private Clients 0800 414161Broker Dealings: 0800 414 181

OEIC FundsFidelity American Fund W-ACC-GBP £ 44.16 - 0.19 0.39Fidelity Cash Fund Y-ACC-GBP £ 1.02 - 0.00 0.66FID Emerg Europe, Middle East and Africa Fund W-ACC-GBP £ 1.66 - -0.05 6.12Fidelity Global Enhanced Income Fund W-ACC-GBP £ 1.79 - 0.00 4.25Fidelity Global Focus Fund W-ACC-GBP £ 23.67 - -0.06 0.29Fidelity Global High Yield Fund Y-ACC-GBP £ 13.34 - 0.11 4.45Fidelity Japan Fund W-ACC-GBP £ 3.92 - 0.00 0.74Fidelity Japan Smaller Companies Fund W-ACC-GBP £ 3.18 - 0.01 0.48Fidelity Select 50 Balanced Fund PI-ACC-GBP £ 1.01 - 0.01 0.85Fidelity Special Situations Fund W-ACC-GBP £ 26.00 - -1.09 4.37Short Dated Corporate Bond Fund Y ACC GBP £ 10.55 - 0.01 4.09Fidelity Sustainable Water & Waste W Acc £ 0.87 - 0.00 -Fidelity Sustainable Water & Waste W Inc £ 0.87 - 0.00 -Fidelity UK Growth Fund W-ACC-GBP £ 3.34 - -0.05 -


Fidelity UK Select Fund W-ACC-GBP £ 2.55 - -0.06 2.88

Institutional OEIC FundsEurope (ex-UK) Fund ACC-GBP £ 5.39 - -0.06 1.07

Findlay Park Funds Plc (IRL)30 Herbert Street, Dublin 2, Ireland Tel: 020 7968 4900FCA RecognisedAmerican Fund USD Class $ 122.98 - 1.45 0.00American Fund GBP Hedged £ 62.44 - 0.73 0.00American Fund GBP Unhedged £ 97.60 - 0.14 0.00

Foord Asset ManagementWebsite: www.foord.com - Email: [email protected]

FCA Recognised - Luxembourg UCITSFoord International Fund | R $ 40.40 - 0.19 -Foord Global Equity Fund (Lux) | R $ 12.38 - 0.16 -

RegulatedFoord Global Equity Fund (Sing) | B $ 15.17 - 0.22 0.00Foord International Trust (Gsy) $ 40.13 - 0.19 0.00

Franklin Templeton International Services Sarl (IRL)JPMorgan House - International Financial Services Centre,Dublin 1, IrelandOther International Funds

Franklin Emerging Market Debt Opportunities Fund PlcFranklin Emg Mkts Debt Opp CHFSFr 13.42 - -2.47 11.63Franklin Emg Mkts Debt Opp GBP £ 8.65 - -1.75 8.40Franklin Emg Mkts Debt Opp SGD S$ 18.99 - -3.39 6.11Franklin Emg Mkts Debt Opp USD $ 14.77 - -2.71 8.28

[email protected], www.funds.gam.comRegulatedLAPIS GBL TOP 50 DIV.YLD-Na-D £ 94.48 - 0.06 3.31LAPIS GBL F OWD 50 DIV.YLD-Na-D £ 87.25 - -0.13 -

Genesis Investment Management LLPOther International FundsEmerging Mkts NAV £ 7.21 - -0.16 0.00

HPB Assurance LtdAnglo Intl House, Bank Hill, Douglas, Isle of Man, IM1 4LN 01638 563490

International InsurancesHoliday Property Bond Ser 1 £ 0.51 - 0.00 0.00Holiday Property Bond Ser 2 £ 0.64 - 0.00 0.00

Intrinsic Value Investors (IVI) LLP (IRL)1 Hat & Mitre Court, 88 St John Street, London EC1M 4EL +44 (0)20 7566 1210FCA RecognisedIVI European Fund EUR € 19.69 - 0.15 0.00IVI European Fund GBP £ 22.88 - 0.06 -

Janus Henderson Investors (UK)PO Box 9023, Chelmsford, CM99 2WB Enquiries: 0800 832 832www.janushenderson.comAuthorised Inv FundsJanus Henderson Instl UK Idx Opps A Acc £ 0.79 - -0.02 -

Kames Capital ICVC (UK)Kames House, 3 Lochside Crescent, Edinburgh, EH12 9SA0800 358 3009 www.kamescapital.comAuthorised FundsKames Global Equity GBP B Acc £ 2.14 - 0.02 0.26

Kames Capital VCIC (IRL)1 North Wall Quay, Dublin 1, Ireland +35 3162 24493FCA RecognisedAbsolute Return Bond B GBP Acc 1108.18 - 2.19 1.72High Yield Global Bond A GBP Inc 446.79 - 4.83 4.58High Yield Global Bond B GBP Inc 951.67 - 10.27 5.32Kames Global Equity Income B GBP Acc 1688.97 - 18.94 0.00Kames Global Equity Income B GBP Inc 1455.44 - -8.32 3.19Kames Global Equity Market Neutral Fund - B Acc GBP £ 10.38 - 0.06 0.00Kames Inv Grd Gbl Bond A Inc GBH 588.95 - 4.43 1.85Global Sustainable Equity B Acc GBP £ 17.42 - 0.32 0.00Global Sustainable Equity C Acc GBP £ 17.63 - 0.33 0.00Short Dated High Yld Bd B Acc GBP £ 9.89 - 0.05 0.00Short Dated High Yld Bd C Acc GBP (Hdg) £ 9.97 - 0.05 0.00Strategic Global Bond A GBP Inc 1157.00 - 10.02 2.49Strategic Global Bond B GBP Inc 657.06 - 5.70 3.24

Lloyds Investment Fund Managers Limited (1000)F (JER)PO Box 311, 11-12 Esplanade, St Helier, Jersey, JE4 8ZU 01534 845555Other International Funds

Lloyds Investment Funds LimitedEuro High Income € 1.4840xd - 0.0170 2.85High Income £ 0.8505xd - 0.0032 3.91Sterling Bond £ 1.5380xd - 0.0070 2.29

Lloyds Multi Strategy Fund LimitedConservative Strategy £ 1.2040 - 0.0060 0.00Growth Strategy £ 1.6360 - 0.0000 0.00Aggressive Strategy £ 2.1770 - -0.0020 0.00


Global USD Growth Strategy $ 1.5170 - 0.0190 0.00Dealing Daily

M & G Securities (1200)F (UK)PO Box 9038, Chelmsford, CM99 2XFwww.mandg.co.uk/charities Enq./Dealing: 0800 917 4472Authorised Inv FundsM&G Charibond Charities Fixed Interest Fund (Charibond) Inc £ 1.24 - 0.00 -M&G Charibond Charities Fixed Interest Fund (Charibond) Acc £ 41.77 - 0.02 -M&G Charity Multi Asset Fund Inc £ 0.72 - -0.01 -M&G Charity Multi Asset Fund Acc £ 76.37 - -1.07 -

MMIP Investment Management Limited (GSY)Regulated

Multi-Manager Investment Programmes PCC LimitedUK Equity Fd Cl A Series 01 £ 2678.37 2710.53 -291.52 -Diversified Absolute Rtn Fd USD Cl AF2 $ 1622.95 - -30.27 0.00Diversified Absolute Return Stlg Cell AF2 £ 1546.87 - -30.93 0.00Global Equity Fund A Lead Series £ 1491.22 1496.14 -84.52 -

Marwyn Asset Management Limited (CYM)RegulatedMarwyn Value Investors £ 340.40 - -14.66 0.00

Milltrust International Managed Investments ICAV (IRL)[email protected], +44(0)20 8123 8369 www.milltrust.comRegulatedBritish Innovation Fund £ 100.02 - 3.18 0.00MAI - Buy & Lease (Australia) A$ 102.52 - 2.25 0.00MAI - Buy & Lease (New Zealand)NZ$ 97.29 - 0.06 0.00Milltrust Global Emerging Markets Fund - Class A $ 76.92 - 0.74 0.00The Climate Impact Asia Fund (Class A) $ 91.15 - -4.27 -

Morgens Waterfall Vintiadis.co IncOther International FundsPhaeton Intl (BVI) Ltd (Est) $ 551.76 - 15.41 0.00

New Capital UCITS Fund PLC (IRL)Leconfield House, Curzon Street, London, W1J 5JBwww.newcapitalfunds.comFCA Recognised

New Capital UCITS FundsNew Capital China Equity Fund $ 173.52 - 3.20 0.00New Capital Dynamic European Equity Fund € 110.21 - 1.38 0.00New Capital Dynamic UK Equity Fund £ 98.60 - -0.35 0.00New Capital Global Alpha Fund £ 102.17 - 0.96 0.00New Capital Global Equity Conviction Fund $ 137.94 - 3.07 0.00New Capital Global Value Credit Fund $ 146.96 - 1.13 0.00New Capital Japan Equity Fund ¥ 1123.94 - 15.09 0.00New Capital US Growth Fund $ 292.40 - 12.63 0.00New Capital US Small Cap Growth Fund $ 126.00 - 2.15 0.00New Capital Wealthy Nations Bond Fund $ 137.68 - 1.20 0.00

Northwest Investment Management (HK) Ltd11th Floor, Kinwick Centre, 32, Hollywood Road, Central Hong Kong +852 9331 9220Other International FundsNorthwest China Opps Class T $ $ 2953.12 - 122.47 0.00Northwest Feilong Class T $ $ 2079.06 - 73.88 0.00Northwest Fund Class T $ $ 2726.11 - 110.69 0.00Northwest Warrant Class A $ $ 1330.60 - 12.11 0.00

Oasis Crescent Management Company LtdOther International FundsOasis Crescent Equity Fund R 10.72 - 0.01 1.12

Oasis Global Mgmt Co (Ireland) Ltd (IRL)Regulated

Oasis Crescent Global Investment Fund (Ireland) plcOasis Crescent Global Short Term Income Fund I - Class A Dist $ 0.98 - 0.00 2.47Oasis Crescent Global Equity Fund $ 28.93 - 0.60 0.47Oasis Crescent Variable Balanced Fund £ 8.48 - -0.07 0.12OasisCresGl Income Class A $ 10.41 - 0.03 2.98OasisCresGl LowBal D ($) Dist $ 11.36 - 0.08 1.10OasisCresGl Med Eq Bal A ($) Dist $ 12.11 - 0.13 0.45Oasis Crescent Gbl Property Eqty $ 7.22 - -0.14 1.95


Omnia Fund LtdOther International FundsEstimated NAV $ 494.51 - -151.91 0.00

Oryx International Growth Fund LtdOther International FundsNAV (Fully Diluted) £ 9.10 - -0.52 0.00

Orbis Investments (U.K.) Limited (GBR)28 Dorset Square, London, NW1 6QGwww.orbis.com 0800 358 2030RegulatedOrbis OEIC Global Cautious Standard £ 9.46 - 0.05 0.04Orbis OEIC Global Balanced Standard £ 12.70 - 0.04 0.00Orbis OEIC Global Equity Standard £ 14.64 - 0.00 0.00Orbis OEIC UK Equity Standard £ 6.24 - -0.07 0.00

Pictet Asset Management (Europe) SA (LUX)15, Avenue J.F. Kennedy L-1855 LuxembourgTel: 0041 58 323 3000FCA RecognisedPictet-Absl Rtn Fix Inc-HI EUR € 109.26 - 0.81 0.00Pictet-Asian Equities Ex Japan-I USD F $ 277.68 - -4.54 0.00Pictet-Asian Local Currency Debt-I USD F $ 171.34 - 0.43 0.00Pictet-Biotech-I USD F $ 898.45 - -8.94 0.00Pictet-CHF Bonds I CHF SFr 494.51 - 2.30 0.00Pictet-China Index I USD $ 150.02 - 2.02 0.00Pictet-Clean Energy-I USD F $ 96.92 - -2.87 0.00Pictet-Digital-I USD F $ 413.45 - -5.56 0.00Pictet-Em Lcl Ccy Dbt-I USD F $ 164.61 - 1.46 0.00Pictet-Emerging Europe-I EUR F € 345.66 - -17.86 0.00Pictet-Emerging Markets-I USD F $ 556.52 - -12.67 0.00Pictet-Emerging Markets Index-I USD F $ 251.58 - 3.93 0.00Pictet-Emerging Corporate Bonds I USD $ 120.13 - 2.18 0.00Pictet-Emerging Markets High Dividend I USD $ 109.53 - -2.91 0.00Pictet-Emerging Markets Sust Eq I USD $ 87.65 - -2.00 0.00Pictet-EUR Bonds-I F € 620.76 - 3.02 0.00Pictet-EUR Corporate Bonds-I F € 210.48 - 2.68 0.00Pictet-EUR Government Bonds I EUR € 173.81 - -0.21 0.00Pictet-EUR High Yield-I F € 263.40 - 5.76 0.00Pictet-EUR Short Mid-Term Bonds-I F € 135.49 - -0.02 0.00Pictet-EUR Short Term HY I EUR € 118.19 - 2.29 0.00Pictet-EUR Sov.Sht.Mon.Mkt EUR I € 100.31 - -0.01 0.00Pictet-Euroland Index IS EUR € 134.92 - 0.74 0.00Pictet-Europe Index-I EUR F € 174.52 - 1.09 0.00Pictet-European Equity Selection-I EUR F € 537.09 - -27.92 0.00Pictet-European Sust Eq-I EUR F € 256.23 - -6.78 0.00Pictet-Global Bds Fundamental I USD $ 127.51 - 0.68 0.00Pictet-Global Bonds-I EUR € 195.45 - 0.46 0.00Pictet-Global Defensive Equities I USD $ 173.48 - -3.34 0.00Pictet-Global Emerging Debt-I USD F $ 403.46 - 5.06 0.00Pictet-Global Env.Opport-I EUR € 227.18 - -0.40 0.00Pictet-Global Megatrend Selection-I USD F $ 285.79 - -6.29 0.00Pictet-Global Sust.Credit HI EUR € 155.51 - 3.11 0.00Pictet-Greater China-I USD F $ 663.21 - -11.62 0.00Pictet-Health-I USD $ 313.09 - -0.95 0.00Pictet-SmartCity-I EUR € 185.11 - -3.49 0.00Pictet-India Index I USD $ 95.04 - 3.77 0.00Pictet-Indian Equities-I USD F $ 444.37 - -15.83 0.00Pictet-Japan Index-I JPY F ¥ 16413.23 - 40.45 0.00Pictet-Japanese Equities Opp-I JPY F ¥ 9991.75 - 0.10 0.00Pictet-Japanese Equity Selection-I JPY F ¥ 14340.62 - -34.41 0.00Pictet-LATAM Lc Ccy Dbt-I USD F $ 117.09 - 0.74 0.00Pictet-Multi Asset Global Opportunities-I EUR € 123.19 - 0.38 0.00Pictet-Nutrition-I EUR € 216.29 - -3.41 0.00Pictet-Pacific Ex Japan Index-I USD F $ 375.69 - 9.24 0.00Pictet-Premium Brands-I EUR F € 178.68 - -3.25 0.00Pictet-Russia Index I USD $ 78.41 - -2.10 0.00Pictet-Russian Equities-I USD F $ 68.98 - -4.99 0.00Pictet-Security-I USD F $ 267.83 - -6.16 0.00Pictet-Small Cap Europe-I EUR F € 1149.92 - -35.24 0.00Pictet-ST Emerg Local Currency Debt-I USD F $ 96.52 - -0.17 0.00Pictet-ST.MoneyMkt-I € 138.04 - 0.00 0.00Pictet-ST.MoneyMkt JPY I USD ¥ 100704.98 - 3.31 0.00Pictet-ST.MoneyMkt-ICHF SFr 119.85 - 0.00 0.00Pictet-ST.MoneyMkt-IUSD $ 145.68 - 0.02 0.00Pictet-Timber-I USD F $ 144.87 - -5.59 0.00Pictet-US High Yield-I USD F $ 163.62 - 4.14 0.00Pictet-USA Index-I USD F $ 264.79 - 5.24 0.00Pictet-USD Government Bonds-I F $ 764.18 - -1.97 0.00Pictet-USD Short Mid-Term Bonds-I F $ 142.46 - 0.42 0.00Pictet-USD Sov.ST.Mon.Mkt-I $ 109.60 - 0.01 0.00Pictet-Water-I EUR F € 367.92 - -2.82 0.00

Platinum Capital Management LtdOther International FundsPlatinum All Star Fund - A $ 129.11 - - -Platinum Global Growth UCITS Fund $ 10.19 - 0.32 0.00Platinum Essential Resources UCITS Fund SICAV USD Class E $ 6.89 - 0.25 0.00Platinum Global Dividend UCITS Fund $ 49.27 - 0.97 0.00


Polar Capital Funds Plc (IRL)RegulatedAutomation & Artificial Intelligence CL I USD Acc $ 11.60 11.60 0.36 0.00Asian Financials I USD $ 314.78 314.78 -0.43 0.00Biotechnology I USD $ 26.72 26.72 1.20 0.00Emerging Market Stars I USD Acc $ 9.36 - 0.11 0.00European Ex UK Inc EUR Acc € 10.05 10.05 0.08 0.00Financial Opps I USD $ 9.78 - -0.17 3.46GEM Income I USD $ 9.78 - 0.12 0.00Global Convertible I USD $ 12.59 12.59 0.27 0.00Global Insurance I GBP £ 6.34 - -0.17 0.00Global Technology I USD $ 55.77 - 2.56 0.00Healthcare Blue Chip Fund I USD Acc $ 13.59 13.59 0.20 0.00Healthcare Opps I USD $ 48.56 - 0.89 0.00Income Opportunities B2 I GBP Acc £ 1.82 1.82 -0.04 0.00Japan Value I JPY ¥ 93.82 93.82 -1.78 0.00North American I USD $ 22.14 22.14 0.31 0.00UK Absolute Equity I GBP £ 15.72 15.72 0.44 0.00UK Val Opp I GBP Acc £ 9.22 9.22 -0.41 0.00

Polar Capital LLP (CYM)RegulatedEuropean Forager A EUR € 178.32 - -18.16 0.00

Private Fund Mgrs (Guernsey) Ltd (GSY)RegulatedMonument Growth 07/04/2020 £ 431.06 435.26 6.10 1.80

Prusik Investment Management LLP (IRL)Enquiries - 0207 493 1331RegulatedPrusik Asian Equity Income B Dist $ 151.26 - -0.05 6.05Prusik Asia Emerging Opportunities Fund A Acc $ 116.54 - 2.22 0.00Prusik Asia Fund U Dist. £ 162.08 - 1.82 0.00

Purisima Investment Fds (CI) Ltd (JER)RegulatedPCG B 207.59 - -0.73 0.00PCG C 203.09 - -0.72 0.00

Ram Active Investments SAwww.ram-ai.comOther International FundsRAM Systematic Emerg Markets Eq $ 148.61 - 1.87 -RAM Systematic European Eq € 371.36 - 2.92 -RAM Systematic Funds Global Sustainable Income Eq $ 104.45 - 0.32 0.00RAM Systematic Long/Short Emerg Markets Eq $ 108.31 - 0.06 -RAM Systematic Long/Short European Eq € 137.19 - -0.16 -RAM Systematic North American Eq $ 286.96 - 9.60 -RAM Tactical Global Bond Total Return € 147.37 - 0.54 -RAM Tactical II Asia Bond Total Return $ 144.77 - 0.92 -

Ruffer LLP (1000)F (UK)65 Gresham Street, London, EC2V 7NQOrder Desk and Enquiries: 0345 601 9610Authorised Inv Funds

Authorised Corporate Director - Link Fund SolutionsLF Ruffer European C Acc 531.53 - 8.86 0.76LF Ruffer European C Inc 97.10 - 1.62 0.85LF Ruffer European O Acc 519.39 - 8.63 0.40LF Ruffer Equity & General C Acc 421.92 - 4.02 0.54LF Ruffer Equity & General C Inc 386.64 - 3.69 0.54LF Ruffer Equity & General O Acc 412.32 - 3.91 0.21LF Ruffer Equity & General O Inc 381.74 - 3.62 0.23LF Ruffer Gold C Acc 226.98 - 26.74 0.00LF Ruffer Gold C Inc 137.37 - 16.18 -LF Ruffer Gold O Acc 221.73 - 26.11 0.00LF Ruffer Japanese C Inc 128.71 - 2.87 0.34LF Ruffer Japanese C Acc 276.39 - 6.15 0.32LF Ruffer Pacific & Emerging Markets C Acc 321.42 - 5.84 1.43LF Ruffer Pacific & Emerging Markets C Inc 88.34 - 1.60 1.56LF Ruffer Pacific & Emerging Markets O Acc 313.81 - 5.69 1.13LF Ruffer Total Return C Acc 461.14 - 3.06 1.47LF Ruffer Total Return C Inc 299.42 - 1.99 1.49LF Ruffer Total Return O Acc 450.60 - 2.96 1.47LF Ruffer Total Return O Inc 292.42 - 1.93 1.49

RobecoSAM (LUX)Tel. +41 44 653 10 10 http://www.robecosam.com/RegulatedRobecoSAM Sm.Energy/A £ 17.94 - 0.32 1.78RobecoSAM Sm.Energy/N € 17.13 - 0.43 0.00RobecoSAM Sm.Materials/A £ 156.36 - -0.86 2.05RobecoSAM Sm.Materials/N € 169.33 - 0.37 0.00RobecoSAM Sm.Materials/Na € 110.43 - 0.24 2.02RobecoSAM S.HealthyLiv/B € 215.90 - 2.41 0.00RobecoSAM S.HealthyLiv/N € 207.82 - 2.34 0.00RobecoSAM S.HealthyLiv/Na £ 149.70 - 0.56 1.62


RobecoSAM S.Water/A £ 235.95 - -1.99 1.89RobecoSAM S.Water/N € 213.90 - -0.16 0.00

Rubrics Global UCITS Funds Plc (IRL)www.rubricsam.comRegulatedRubrics Emerging Markets Fixed Income UCITS Fund $ 133.66 - 0.29 0.00Rubrics Global Credit UCITS Fund $ 16.71 - 0.13 0.00Rubrics Global Fixed Income UCITS Fund $ 181.94 - 0.20 0.00Q Rubrics India Fixed Income UCITS Fund $ 10.69 - 0.02 0.00Rubrics India Fixed Income UCITS Fund $ 92.85 - 0.15 0.00

SlaterInvestments

Slater Investments Ltd (UK)www.slaterinvestments.com; Tel: 0207 220 9460FCA RecognisedSlater Growth 483.24 483.24 -9.03 0.00Slater Income A Inc 109.85 109.85 -3.00 0.00Slater Recovery 233.47 233.47 -2.94 0.00Slater Artorius 195.67 195.67 3.32 0.57

Stonehage Fleming Investment Management Ltd (IRL)www.stonehagefleming.com/[email protected] Global Best Ideas Eq B USD ACC $ 182.43 - 3.52 0.00SF Global Best Ideas Eq D GBP INC £ 219.69 - 2.00 0.13

Toscafund Asset Management LLP (UK)www.toscafund.comAuthorised FundsAptus Global Financials B Acc £ 2.52 - 0.00 -Aptus Global Financials B Inc £ 1.79 - 0.00 -

Toscafund Asset Management LLPwww.toscafund.comTosca A USD $ 257.93 - -82.98 -Tosca Mid Cap GBP £ 150.61 - -117.34 -Tosca Opportunity B USD $ 232.96 - -175.67 -Pegasus Fund Ltd A-1 GBP £ 36.17 - -28.23 0.00

Troy Asset Mgt (1200) (UK)65 Gresham Street, London, EC2V 7NQOrder Desk and Enquiries: 0345 608 0950Authorised Inv Funds

Authorised Corporate Director - Link Fund Solutions

Trojan Investment Funds

Trojan Ethical O Acc 111.69 - 1.39 0.00Trojan Ethical O Inc 111.55 - 1.39 0.00

WA Fixed Income Fund Plc (IRL)RegulatedEuropean Multi-Sector € 114.18 - 1.33 0.00

Yuki - Co, LLC (IRL)Tel +18015545191 www.yukifunds.comRegulated

Yuki Mizuho Umbrella FundYuki Mizuho Japan Dynamic Growth ¥ 5502.00 - 70.00 0.00Yuki Japan Low Price ¥ 28473.00 - -405.00 0.00

Yuki Asia Umbrella FundYuki Japan Rebounding Growth Fund JPY Class ¥ 24211.00 - 336.00 0.00Yuki Japan Rebounding Growth Fund USD Hedged Class $ 993.72 - 14.14 0.00

Zadig Gestion (Memnon Fund) (LUX)FCA RecognisedMemnon European Fund - Class U2 GBP £ 157.90 - 0.11 0.00


Data Provided by

www.morningstar.co.ukData as shown is for information purposes only. Nooffer is made by Morningstar or this publication.

Guide to Data

The fund prices quoted on these pages are supplied by the operator of the relevant fund. Details of funds published on these pages, including prices, are for the purpose of information only and should only be used as a guide. The Financial Times Limited makes no representation as to their accuracy or completeness and they should not be relied upon when making an investment decision. The sale of interests in the funds listed on these pages may, in certain jurisdictions, be restricted by law and the funds will not necessarily be available to persons in all jurisdictions in which the publication circulates. Persons in any doubt should take appropriate professional advice. Data collated by Morningstar. For other queries contact [email protected] +44 (0)207 873 4211. The fund prices published in this edition along with additional information are also available on the Financial Times website, www.ft.com/funds. The funds published on these pages are grouped together by fund management company. Prices are in pence unless otherwise indicated. The change, if shown, is the change on the previously quoted figure (not all funds update prices daily). Those designated $ with no prefix refer to US dollars. Yield percentage figures (in Tuesday to Saturday papers) allow for buying expenses. Prices of certain older insurance linked plans might be subject to capital gains tax on sales. Guide to pricing of Authorised Investment Funds: (compiled with the assistance of the IMA. The Investment Management Association, 65 Kingsway, London WC2B 6TD. Tel: +44 (0)20 7831 0898.) OEIC: Open-Ended Investment Company. Similar to a unit trust but using a company rather than a trust structure. Different share classes are issued to reflect a different currency, charging structure or type of holder. Selling price: Also called bid price. The price at which units in a unit trust are sold by investors. Buying price: Also called offer price. The price at which units in a unit trust are bought by investors. Includes manager’s initial charge. Single price: Based on a mid-market valuation of the underlying investments. The buying and selling price for shares of an OEIC and units of a single priced unit trust are the same. Treatment of manager’s periodic capital charge: The letter C denotes that the trust deducts all or part of the manager’s/operator’s periodic charge from capital, contact the manager/operator for full details of the effect of this course of action. Exit Charges: The letter E denotes that an exit charge may be made when you sell units, contact the manager/operator for full details. Time: Some funds give information about the timing of price quotes. The time shown alongside the fund manager’s/operator’s name is the valuation point for their unit trusts/OEICs, unless another time is indicated by the symbol alongside the individual unit trust/OEIC name. The symbols are as follows: ✠ 0001 to 1100 hours; ♦ 1101 to 1400 hours; ▲1401 to 1700 hours; # 1701 to midnight. Daily dealing prices are set on the basis of the valuation point, a short period of time may elapse before prices become available. Historic pricing: The letter H denotes that the managers/operators will normally deal on the price set at the most recent valuation. The prices shown are the latest available before publication and may not be the current dealing levels because of an intervening portfolio revaluation or a switch to a forward pricing basis. The managers/operators must deal at a forward price on request, and may move to forward pricing at any time. Forward pricing: The letter F denotes that that managers/operators deal at the price to be set at the next valuation. Investors can be given no definite price in advance of the purchase or sale being carried out. The prices appearing in the newspaper are the most recent provided by the managers/operators. Scheme particulars, prospectus, key features and reports: The most recent particulars and documents may be obtained free of charge from fund managers/operators. * Indicates funds which do not price on Fridays. Charges for this advertising service are based on the number of lines published and the classification of the fund. Please contact [email protected] or call +44 (0)20 7873 3132 for further information.

APRIL 16 2020 Section:Stats Time: 15/4/2020 - 18:49 User: peter.bailey Page Name: MANAGED FUNDS 4, Part,Page,Edition: EUR, 12, 1



APRIL 16 2020 Section:Ad Page Time: 15/4/2020 - 14:13 User: peter.bailey Page Name: FPA, Part,Page,Edition: EUR, 13, 1



ARTS

Gruffgravitas: BenMendelsohnstars asdetectiveRalphAndersonin ‘TheOutsider’

Dan Einav

A child’s body is found in the woods in asmall rural town in the state of Georgia.The killer’s fingerprints and DNA areimmediately traced back to a belovedlocal baseball coach, who was also seenby several people walking aroundbloodied and dazed on the day of themurder. It’s just about the most open-and-shut case one could come across,and hardly, you think, the basis for a 10-partHBOmini-series.

But then things start to get veryuncanny very quickly — The Outsider isan adaptation of a Stephen King novel,afterall. It soontranspires that there’sasmuch irrefragable evidence that exon-erates the accused, Terry Maitland(Jason Bateman, whose reputation forplayingthegenialEverymanmakeshiman inspired casting choice for anunlikely murderer) as there is that con-demns him. How could he have com-mitted this grisly act when there isincontrovertible video proof that he wasin another city at the time? A dop-pelgänger perhaps? If the defendant’sthe killer’s spit, you must acquit — butthere’s clearly more going on here than asimplecaseofmistakenidentity.

Trying to make sense of it all is detec-tive Ralph Anderson (Ben Mendelsohn,terrific) whose voice lies somewherebetween Tom Waits after a heavy smok-ing session and a rusty lawnmowersputtering to life. He’s not so much

world-weary, as world-exhausted,defeated and drained following therecent death of his teenage son. Anothershow may have painted him as a reck-less maverick anti-hero with nothing tolose, but this one shrewdly resists suchcomplacent characterisation. Yes, he’sgruff and laconic, but there’s a satisfyinggravitas and sympathetic humanitythere too as we follow this confoundinginvestigation largely through his pain-strickeneyes.

To say much more about the increas-ingly bewildering discoveries that aremade in the first handful of episodeswould attenuate the impact of theshow’s ever-shifting narrative. The sec-ond episode, for instance, opens with aplot development that completelychanges the trajectory we initiallyassumed the story might take. By thethird and fourth instalments the verygenre of the series seems to have shiftedfrom gritty murder mystery to some-thingmoreakintosupernaturalhorror.

Which isn’t to say that The Outsider isbeset with rushed plotting or tonalinconsistencies. As the show changescourse, its masterfully disquieting andevocative execution endures. Droningcellos and pounding drums, creepingliminal shots and chiaroscuro lightingall combine with great effect to elicit astrong visceral response, even if themindremainsa littlebemused.

“I have no tolerance for the un-explainable,” Ralph concedes at onepoint, when more abstract theoriesbegin to get thrown around. You mayfind yourself feeling much the same wayby the series’ halfway point, when itseems less and less likely there will beany clear, logical explanation for what’sgoing on. Still, there’s enough toadmire in this gothicky police drama tosuggest that you shouldn’t expect a totalcop-outeither.

Available now on Amazon, iTunes,Google and others

When murder gives way to horror

TELEVIS ION

The OutsiderHBOaaaae

I f you were 16 when Clueless wasreleased in 1995, you will never seeyour thirties again. For those whofist-pumped through The BreakfastClub as adolescents in 1985, pension

provisionhas likely longbeenaconcern.Such is the nature of the American high-school movie — a cinematic tree ring forteenage life.

Now, Generation Z has the hyper-stylised Selah and the Spades, its direc-tor Tayarisha Poe attuned enough to thegenre to open with a breakdown of therival factions running Haldwell, a clois-tered Pennsylvania boarding school.But these are no off-the-shelf geeks andjocks. Rather, the cliques double as bud-ding crime syndicates, trading in allthings illicit up to and including thedrink and drugs available from theSpades, presided over by Selah Sum-mers (Lovie Simone), a young mobsterdrivento lead.

Making her first film, Poe challengesherself to reinvent the overfamiliar,wrapping it up in high style, with a castof mostly black characters in the kind ofmovie traditionally given over to whiteones. Older viewers might point out thetrace elements of Rian Johnson’s Brick(2005), or even Francis Ford Coppola’sRumble Fish (1983) — made, Coppolasaid, as an “art film for teenagers”.Younger viewers will shrug and turnbacktothescreen.

Rightly so. The look of the film is amarvel, scenes packed like Bento boxeswith deep colour and precision cuts.A hedonistic night out among Haldwellstudents unfolds in darkness lit by thebeams of miners’ helmets while BingCrosby croons on the soundtrack.(Iknow,Iusedjust tohangaroundinthepark as well.) Beyond cinematic fore-bears, you could call the movie themeeting point of Rihanna and Donna

Tartt, the novelist’s The Secret Historyfinding an echo in Haldwell’s burnishedwood and ivy-covered walls. UnlikeTartt, Poe doesn’t deal in murder, butshe gives even youthful hijinks a whis-pery, arcane quality, a hint of menacewith Selah at the centre, an old soulwith weight on her shoulders, an anti-heroinewehaven’tmetbefore.

If you’re wondering about the story,that’s where a warning comes. For sometime, there isn’t much of one — thescript is more a series of monologuesand skits. When it does arrive, so doserious wobbles for Poe’s tightrope walkof a film. (We can only care so muchabout a cancelled prom, even a re-inventedone.)At itsweakest,youmightsee the movie as you would a teenageparty — useful background for thosewho care to know what kids are up to,not something you would want to be at.Mostly though, what you come awaywith is a sense of gargantuan promise. If

the audience for the film are the nextadults on the rank, Poe herself is alsoassuredlytheshapeof things tocome.On Amazon from April 17

Did Hollywood ever know what to dowith Naomi Watts? With the film indus-try in deep freeze during the corona-virus pandemic, a byproduct has beenattention falling on movies that wouldusually have been jostled out of sight.Their number includes The Wolf Hour,a more-or-less one-woman thriller thathas its prickly moments but also high-lights the strange status of its femalelead. Next year will be the 20th anniver-sary of Mulholland Drive, the DavidLynch fantasia in which Watts arrivedout of a professional nowhere, playingdual roles with such a supernova joltthat her place as the first great moviestarof thenewcenturyfeltobvious.

Now, Watts is here alone for much of a(very) low-budget tale of psychic unrav-elling set in the infamous New Yorkheatwave summer of 1977. Her charac-ter is June E. Leigh, gnawed at by agora-phobia in a grimy tenement. (The singleroom setting is perfect, of course, forboth fine-tuned acting and films with nomoney.) Chain-smoking in the swelter,her buzzer repeatedly going off withoutthe caller making themselves known,the plot is given a further twist by Junebeing a once-stellar novelist, cursed byboth a family secret and, naturally,writer’sblock.

Director Alistair Banks Griffin has funbut doesn’t always keep his eye on thebasics. (The buzzer that drives June tothe brink registers less as a nightmareomen than the nuisance of a stray pizzadelivery.) Watts is left to do the heavylifting as she has done so often, bringingher character shimmering into life, asrealas ifyouwerethere inthatsweatboxapartment with her — even this far fromMulhollandDrive.Now on Amazon, Google and more

September 2008 is typically remem-bered as the month of the most spectac-ular meltdown of the last global finan-cial crisis. Not so in the bio-documen-tary Martin Margiela: In His OwnWords. While Lehman Brothers col-lapsed, the real drama was evidentlytaking place in Paris, where fashionhouse Maison Martin Margiela cele-brated its 20th anniversary under thedirectionof itsBelgian founder.Then,asa title card announces, Margiela Left TheFashion World For Good. All this does notdomuchtodispel thesenseofcoutureasa — let’s say — world unto itself. Still, thefilm is out to maximise its appeal,putting not just one mystery before usbut two. Beyond Margiela’s professionaldisappearance, another puzzle is thevery identity of a man who never know-ingly let himself be photographed.“Jamais”, his onetime boss Jean PaulGaultierobliginglyconfirms.

Luckily, the sense of hard sell is soonabandoned. A better fit is the conven-tional timeline with which the elusiveMargiela narrates his life story, a

Gen Z high-school movie is almost Grade A

Rock of ages: from left,Celeste O’Connor, LovieSimone and Jharrel Jeromein ‘Selah and the Spades’

Selah and the SpadesTayarisha PoeAAAAE

The Wolf HourAlistair Banks GriffinAAAEE

Martin Margiela: In His Own WordsReiner HolzemerAAAEE

The Iron MaskOleg StepchenkoAAEEE

close-up of the creative process and thepressures that arise when businessdepends on it. The starting point ischildhood, the young Martin inspiredby his dressmaker grandmother to usehis dolls as mannequins. (The chal-lenges faced by a boy growing up in1960s small-town Belgium with a full setofBarbiesaresubtlyacknowledged.)

By his emergence in the last days ofthe 1980s, he was having ideas thatwould still spook the fashion worldtoday, such as the catwalk show hestaged in a banlieue, with tickets givenout first come, first served. The interestin facelessness that would keep him off-camera also informed the Margiela logo,a piece of pointed un-branding in theform of a plain white label that of coursebecame a lusted-after brand. Margielawrestles with the contradictions, affableandinvisible.Now on Amazon, Curzon Home Cinemaand more

Entire movies have begun and endedin the time it takes to get through thecrediting of financiers for 18th-centuryactionfantasy The Iron Mask, acartoon-ish Chinese-Russian co-production yoususpect may simply be listing every reg-istered business from St Petersburg toShanghai. But the best-known namescome last — executive producers JackieChan and Arnold Schwarzenegger, eachalso starring in panto costume and dulyengaging in a superannuated dust-up.That showdown is just one odd sightamong many in a film daubed in CGI,with dialogue by Google Translate and anarrative logic so bamboozling it couldpass foravant-garde.

WhatopensasataleofChinese legendlurches intotheapparent imprisonmentof Peter the Great in the Tower of Lon-don, overseen by Schwarzenegger’sjailer, bellicose and English(ish). Shar-ing his cell is Chan’s stoical tea wizard.(Don’taskme.)Refusingfood,heclaimsinstead to be sustained by the sun thatrises in the east, nodding through thebars towards Georgian Dagenham.Stuck tying the loose ends together iscartographer Jonathan Green (JasonFlemyng), en route to Moscow, terrifiedby monstrous Cossacks. “Strangevisions still haunt me,” Flemyng broods.Youandmeboth, Jason.Now on Amazon, Google and more

Any old iron men: Jackie Chan and Arnold Schwarzenegger in ‘The Iron Mask’

FILM

DannyLeigh

APRIL 16 2020 Section:Features Time: 15/4/2020 - 18:56 User: keith.allen Page Name: ARTS LON, Part,Page,Edition: EUR, 14, 1



FT BIG READ. CORONAVIRUS

The British committee of experts Sage was created to keep science and politics separate. But critics saythe government pays too much attention to epidemiologists and not enough to other important factors.

By Jonathan Ford

This showed that while testing-basedisolationlockedupbetween5and10percentof thepopulation, randomisolationneeded to sequester more than 50 percent to suppress the virus by the sameamount. “An economy can survive with10 per cent of the population in isola-tion,” writes Mr Romer. “It can’t survivewhen50percent is in isolation.”

Prof Costello’s conclusion is that Sagemay be guilty of discarding testing andtracing too quickly. “We’ve been run-ning this epidemic like Robert McNa-mara, the US defence secretary in the Vietnamwar,whocollectedvastquanti-ties of data to assess the war’s progress,”he says. “We should have been more likethe other side, fighting a guerrilla waragainst thevirus.”

Hunt the virus

These debates are resurfacing as thegovernment contemplates exit strate-gies. There is no certainty that an effec-tive vaccine will be available quickly.Other treatments may come sooner, butto end the lockdown in their absence, hardchoiceswillneedtobefaced.

One is to use social distancing to drivethe virus to very low levels, and then liftisolation while using testing and contacttracing to play “hunt the virus”. This isnot simple. “The big questions are howlow is low enough, and how long it maytake to get there,” says Prof Woolhouse.“We are hoping the virus will enter thedown phase in the next few weeks, butwedon’tknowhowfast thatwillbe.”

It also requires a commitment toramp up testing to levels where such astrategy is feasible. Prof Edmunds ques-tions whether this can be done. “Thedata requirements would be enor-mous,”hesays.“Itwouldbeveryhardtooperationalise.”

The second is to raise NHS capacityrapidly, using the lockdown to createnew intensive care units. This could beaccompanied by partial lifting of thelockdown, perhaps leaving the elderlyand vulnerable in isolation while releas-ing more of the young to return to work.Once again considerable testing andtracing will be required as many willremainsusceptible.

Experts agree there will be no returnto normal without effective treatment.“The only real way out is waiting for avaccine,”saysProfWoolhouse.

The crisis may not be over, butalready there are lessons. Perhaps thebiggest one, according to Sir David, is tobolster resilience against future out-breaks. As chief scientific adviserbetween 2000 and 2008, he pushed theidea of the UK becoming more seriousabout preparing for emerging healthandenvironmental threats.

“We seem to have forgotten thelessons, the fact that we need redun-dancy against all the things we haven’tpreparedfor,”hesays.

The current crisis shows how a lack ofpreparation ultimately limits a coun-try’s options. “When it came to foot-and-mouth and Sars, we used to be theones telling China how to respond, butnow the boot is on the other foot. TheAsians are in the lead and they’verespondedwell.We’vedonepoorly.”

I n the spring of 2001, Britain waswracked by its first large-scaleepidemic of foot-and-mouthdiseasesincethe late1960s.

The country’s livestock farmerswere still embroiled in the lockdownthat accompanied Bovine SpongiformEncephalopathy (BSE), a neurologicaldisease of cattle, that would slash beefconsumptionandexports foradecade.

Now they faced the risk of furthercurbs on animal sales, and the possiblemass culling of their herds. Muchdepended on whether the governmentgotontopof theoutbreakfast.

Concerned at blithe official state-ments that the disease was under con-trol, with the implication that aggres-sive countermeasures would not beneeded, one official suggested turningto a novel source to investigate thecourseof the infection.

Sir John Krebs, then chairman of theBritish Food Standards Agency, encour-aged the government’s new chief scien-tific adviser, David King, to recruitepidemiologists at three universities —Imperial College London, CambridgeandEdinburgh—tomodel theevolutionof the disease. It wasn’t the first timethat computer models had been built tostudy epidemics. The innovation was totry to do it in real time, in order to guidetheresponse.

The independent modellers quicklyexploded the government’s optimisticassumptions, showing the outbreak wason course to be far larger, and to spreadfaster, than officials expected. Thegovernment ramped up its response,imposing pre-emptive culls insidecordons around infected farmsteads,ultimatelyslaughtering6manimals.

The extent to which modelling helpedremains disputed, with some scientistsclaiming the intervention led to unnec-essary culling. But most studies suggestit led to the outbreak ending earlier,with some scientists claiming thatalmost 1m fewer animals were slaugh-tered than if the government’s morerelaxedstancehadrunitscourse.

That experience two decades ago hasinformed the way the government seeksto combat infectious diseases. In the UKone result was the establishment of theScientific Advisory Group for Emergen-cies (Sage), a group of independent sci-entists and officials presently chaired bychief scientificadviser,PatrickVallance.Convened periodically to handle spe-cific crises, it has been advising the gov-ernmentonthecoronaviruspandemic.

Its proponents claim this system hasbrought rigour to government decision-making that was sometimes absent inthe past, mainly by separating sciencefrompolitics.

Sir David points to a notorious inci-dent in May 1990 during the BSE crisis,when the agriculture minister, JohnGummer, fedhis four-year-olddaughtera hamburger at the height of concernsover the risk of the disease being trans-mitted to humans, something thatscientists were then still investigating. Areport suggesting just such a link waspublishedin1996.

The impression from the photo wasthat economic priorities trumped

“some kind of herd immunity”. Theimpression that a mathematical modelprompted a government volte face ledto a torrent of critical attention on ProfFergusonandhis team.

Some scientists point out that themodel was originally built for a differentdisease — influenza. According to MikeCates, a Cambridge university mathe-matics professor, “everyone’s consciousof the fact that it has been rapidly con-verted from a different purpose andwasn’t originally designed for this typeofvirusandthis typeof transmission”.

He is now leading a project sponsoredby the Royal Society — the UK’s seniorscientific academy — to create morediversemodellinggroups.

Meanwhile, a rival group of academ-ics at Oxford university released a paperseemingly contradicting the conclu-sions on likely fatalities drawn byImperial. This was largely because itassumed the disease had been in circu-lation longer, and had therefore alreadyinfected a larger proportion of theBritish population without leading tosubstantialnumbersofdeaths.

Sage advice

An ad hoc group, Sage is assembled tomeet specific crises. When it comes toinfectious diseases, the group sifts datafunnelled to it from three subcommit-tees. One, known as Nervtag, looks at the threat from emerging outbreaks.There is another specialising in model-ling called SPI-M, and a behaviouralgroup,orSPI-B.

There is overlap between these bod-ies. For instance, Prof Ferguson sits onNervtag,SPI-MandSage itself.

One of the concerns about Sage is thatit does not disclose its full membership.The explanation given is that it is a shift-ing cast of experts that moves depend-ing on the task to be tackled. But ano-nymity makes it hard to know whetherits deliberations could be dominated byanyonescientificconstituency.

Sir David worries that there could be acost in terms of public confidence: “Isimply cannot see the argument for notknowingwhothemembersofSageare.”

Sage members deny it is some sort ofmodeller’s clique. John Edmunds, aprofessor of infectious modelling at theLondon School of Hygiene and TropicalMedicine, who sits on the committee, aswell as Nervtag and SPI-M, says itreceives contributions from a numberof disciplines from virologists to clini-ciansandbehavioural scientists.

What seems clear though is that mod-elling moved up the agenda from lateFebruary when the rapid spread of thevirus became apparent. That is whenthis sort of data became the main focusof attention. “Until that point, weweren’t even asked to model the idea ofa total lockdown,” says Prof Edmunds.“It was only when Italy started to looktotally horrific that those sorts of policyoptionssuddenlyopenedup.”

Concerns about the validity of modelsare not a new feature of public healthcrises. From their first live deploymentin2001theyhavebeencontentious.

Used in 2001 to inform national rulesabout prophylactic culling in areas

deemed at risk of foot-and-mouth, themodels infuriated farmers who believedtheir livestock was healthy. MichaelThrusfield, an expert in animal dis-eases, later claimed that Prof Ferguson’smodelling was “not fit for purpose” andled to the unnecessary deaths ofanimals. While many authorities aremore sympathetic to Prof Ferguson, thecounterfactual ishardtoprove.

There was a similar dispute after the2009 swine flu outbreak when advicebased on Imperial’s model was madepublic by ministers. This described a“reasonable worst-case scenario” inwhich there could be 65,000 deaths. Inpractise, therewereonly457.

A later official report from DeirdreHine, a Welsh physician and formerchair of the Commission for HealthImprovement, cleared everyone ofoverreacting, despite the consequentexpenditure of £1.2bn on flu remediesthatwerenotneeded.

“When you have a chip pan fire in thekitchen and, because you have a fireblanket and a smoke alarm, damage tothe kitchen is minimal and to the rest ofthe house is non-existent, you don’tthereafter throw out your insurance,”DameDeirdresaid.

She did, however, warn about Sageputting too much weight on the “aca-demic scientific viewpoint — the model-ling activity — to the exclusion of viewsfrom those involved in operational epi-demiology”, such as public healthexperts and people in the clinical frontline. She also urged the government tomake sure its response was flexiblebecause future pandemics would notspread evenly but would be concen-trated in certain “hotspots”. This arguedagainstasingleresponse.

One scientist who believes the com-mittee discarded Dame Deirdre’s advicenot to “model watch” is AnthonyCostello, a public health specialist atUniversity College London. He claimsthat too little attention was paid topublic health measures that could havesoftenedthe lockdown.

In particular he argues that identifica-tion of cases and contact tracing wasabandoned too quickly in favour of theblunderbuss of social distancing. Notonly has this shut down large parts ofthe economy, it leaves the UK prone to arecurrence of the disease wheneverrestrictions are lifted because so fewmay be immune. “The lockdown wasright in London and other places whereit was clearly running out of control, butin other places you could have tried tocontain it,”hesays.

Even with a shortage of testing equip-ment, Prof Costello argues that the gov-ernment could have ramped up “symp-tomatic case definition” — identifyingdiagnosable cases and tracking whothose people had had contact with.King’s College London has produced asimple app, Covid Symptom Tracker,whichassistswithrecordingdiagnoses.

He cites some work from Paul Romer,an American economist, who has mod-elled the relative outcomes of quaran-tining only those who are tested and iso-lating a random fraction of the popula-tion whether they have the virus or not.

health concerns. “As the official reportinto the crisis suggested, the ministercould seem concerned with other thingsthan science, such as a desire to keep themarketupfor farmers,”SirDavidsays.

With the coronavirus outbreak, how-ever, that separation between technicaladvice and politics has itself becomecontentious. The government standsaccused of being too in thrall to science,in particular to epidemiologists, and ofpaying insufficient attention to otherimportant factors such as the economyandbehavioural science.

John Ashton, a regional director atPublic Health England, has talked aboutthe government treating its favouredepidemiologistsas“demigods”.

Even Mark Woolhouse, professor ofinfectiousdiseaseepidemiologyatEdin-burgh university, while supportive ofthe lockdown, worries that insufficientattention has been paid to other consid-erations. “I am an epidemiologist and Iworry that the response is based toomuchonepidemiologyalone,”hesays.

Stark conclusions

Much of the concern stems from theweight placed by ministers on a reportpublished on March 16 by a team ofepidemiologists at Imperial College,London led by Neil Ferguson. Not onlydid this document warn that,unchecked, the virus could kill 510,000people, it counselled that even with thegovernment’s then preferred strategy of“mitigation”, more than 250,000 woulddie, with the National Health Servicerapidly becoming wholly overwhelmed.

The stark conclusion did not comefrom Imperial redrawing its model. Itwas the result of inputting data emerg-ing from the pandemic in Italy, whichshowed that far more patients thanpreviously estimated required scarceintensivecarebeds.

Prof Ferguson is a big name in epide-miological modelling, with experiencedating back to the foot-and-mouthcrisis. The Imperial report sent a shock-wave through the system in both the UKand the US, leading to the introductionof the present policy of “social distanc-ing” and suppression, with its heavyeconomicandsocialcosts for thepublic.

Just three days beforehand, SirPatrick had told the country that theaim was “to reduce the peak [ofinfection], not suppress it completely”and that policy was aimed at building

Modellingthe virus

Keeping theirdistance:PatrickVallance, left,Britain’s chiefscientificadviser, andChris Whitty,chief medicalofficer forEngland,arriving inDowning Streeton Monday for agovernmentpress conferenceon thepandemic. The2001 outbreakof foot-and-mouth disease,below, led to thecreation of theScientificAdvisory Groupfor Emergencies— Glyn Kirk/AFP via GettyImages

‘I am anepidemiol-ogist and Iworry thatthe responseis based toomuch onepidemiologyalone’MarkWoolhouse,Edinburghuniversity

‘Thelockdownwas right inLondon andother placeswhere it wasclearly out ofcontrol, butin otherplaces youcould havetried tocontain it’AnthonyCostello, UCL

APRIL 16 2020 Section:Features Time: 15/4/2020 - 18:42 User: alistair.hayes Page Name: BIGPAGE, Part,Page,Edition: EUR, 15, 1



Post-crisis efforts can setus on a low-carbon pathCoronavirus may slow climate-relatedaction in the coming year or two, butthe response to the pandemic couldultimately reset action on climate forthe better (“How coronavirus stalledclimate change momentum”, The BigRead, April 14). The key is recognisingthe intricate relationship betweenhuman wellbeing, planetary health andeconomic recovery.

A number of parallels have beendrawn between the current pandemicand the climate crisis. Both crises aretransboundary, don’t discriminate,have huge cross-sectoral economicimpacts, and affect the mostvulnerable the hardest. Tackling thesecrises rely on using the best availablescience and technology, require aglobally co-ordinated response with anextraordinary level of governmentaction, and necessitate a systemicchange to bring the current situationunder control and build resilience tofuture threats.

Rebuilding must interweave climatepriorities; it’s not a zero-sum game.Treated together, post-pandemicefforts, policies and fiscal stimuli canput us on a low carbon recovery pathand ensure support for the poorest andmost vulnerable. And for business thecrisis underscores the need to price insystemic risks like climate risks, andharness the business practices the virushas accelerated — from remoteteleworking and increased digitalconnectivity, to automation,nearshoring and regionalising supplychains — all of which also can deliversustained greenhouse gas emissionsreduction.Dr Celine HerweijerUK Partner and Global Climate ChangeLeader,PwC,London WC2, UK

Polish law does not allowfor election to be cancelledIt is right that politicians everywhere,also in Poland, are focused now on onething: battling Covid-19. However,there are other important stateobligations, including those arisingfrom the democratic rule of law. One ofthem is that the Polish government isconstitutionally obliged to hold thepresidential election in May (“The follyof a Covid-19 election in Poland mustbe called out”, John Dalhuisen, April13).

Bearing in mind the health of ourcitizens, we propose the safest solution:a postal vote. Local elections through apostal vote have recently beensuccessfully held in a few Europeancountries, where no seriousdeficiencies were found, and no

international institution was critical ofthese votes.

Polish law does not provide forelection cancellation, thus it is notpossible. In this difficult time of thepandemic, the proposed postal votewill enable the whole of Polish societyto participate in the election and willensure constitutional equality for all.

Although Mr Dalhuisen mentions theone scenario under which the lawallows for elections not to take place,namely the introduction of a state ofemergency, he does not refer to the factthat this solution carries with it severerestrictions on civil liberties. It is worthadding that recently some EU countrieshave been criticised by internationalinstitutions for doing exactly that.

In contrast, the organisation of theelection in May derives directly fromthe Polish constitution, and there areno reasons to introduce a state ofemergency at this moment. Not tomention that calling for the EU tointervene and demand that one of itsmember states declare a state ofemergency — in the name of the rule oflaw, allegedly — seems ratherincomprehensible itself.Arkady RzegockiPolish Ambassador to the UK

Taxes will have to rise tofund a proper care systemI am a retired doctor who worked for25 years looking after patients withlife-limiting conditions in hospital, carehomes, in the community and in ahospice. I was privileged to meet manywonderful carers in all those situations,and I valued their contribution andtried to encourage recognition of theirconsiderable worth, so I was delightedto read Camilla Cavendish’s column“We must break down the boundariesbetween the NHS and social care”(April 11). She highlights theextraordinary efforts that have beenmade to discharge patients from

hospital; it is particularly social carerswho have made this possible andensured that there is capacity in acuteNHS facilities.

Now is the time for politicians to taketheir courage in both hands and tell thepopulation that a realistic system ofcare has to be funded and that this canonly be done by increasing taxes. Ibelieve that those of us who haveretired and pay income tax should alsopay national insurance, perhaps at areduced rate. This would raise a usefulamount of revenue and would dosomething to rebalance the growingintergenerational divide.

It is mostly people over the age of 65who require care, although there areincreasing numbers of people of allages now needing care. So let us respectand value carers — not just byapplauding them but by supportingtheir training and education and byincreasing their pay.Dr Kirsty MuirheadAyr, UK

Parkies are ‘the world’sonly harmless police’The neglect of our public parks during12 years of austerity has beensaddening. Let us hope the coronaviruscrisis reminds us all of their value andthe need to spend money on theirupkeep. Edwin Heathcote’s Notebookcolumn on the history and underlyingpolitics of public parks was anenjoyable, informative read (“Closingparks when they’re needed most isespecially cruel”, April 14).

His final paragraph stirred nostalgicmemories of looking out for the parkkeepers. Joseph Roth described themas “the world’s only harmless police” ina lovely article about the Schiller Parkin Berlin, in 1923. It is included in asuperb collection of his journalismWhat I Saw: Reports from Berlin 1920-33,translated by Michael Hofmann.Geoff SmithHuddersfield, W Yorks, UK

What the thinkingeconomist knew all alongFew would recognise Tony Barber’srepresentation of full EU integration asa “neuralgic British fantasy” (“Does theUK want the EU to emerge strongerfrom the virus crisis?”, FT.com, April14). Given the inherent fragility ofseparate fiscal and monetary decision-making, full integration has alwaysbeen on the horizon. That the UKshould leave the EU before the collapseof that unsustainable structure washigh up among the thinkingeconomist’s motivations for Brexit.GR SteeleEmeritus Reader of Economics,Lancaster University ManagementSchool, UK

Loan scheme is workingfor my small US businessMy small company’s experienceworking through the Small BusinessAdministration and Payroll ProtectionProgram has been remarkablydifferent from that suggested in youreditorial “Small businesses deservemuch better rescue deals” (April 14).In fact, less than 30 days after DallasCounty issued a “shelter-in-place”order, our small company will be inreceipt of funds (mostly forgivablewhich, therefore, I consider grants) inan amount exceeding two times ourmonthly payroll.

There are plenty of gripes for whichto criticise the US government relatedto our handling of the pandemic, butgetting money speedily and capably tosmall businesses is not one.Jon AltschulerFounder, Altschuler and Company,Dallas, TX, US

Banks have no useful rolein fallout from pandemicPatrick Jenkins is absolutely right(Inside Business, April 14): to expectthe banks to lend freely in the middleof a crisis without examining eachapplicant’s ability to repay is indeed“barmy”; what is more, it is exactlywhat they got up to in the years leadingup to 2008, for which they receivedmuch (justified) censure. The problemis that we are in an unprecedentedsituation, with a great tranche ofBritish businesses — the struggling andthe robust alike — staring bankruptcyin the face. The only way they cansurvive and protect their workers’ jobsis by a cash injection now.

What this underlines is that when itcomes to addressing the economicfallout from the pandemic the bankshave no useful role. We need a lender oflast resort, whose sole concern iskeeping businesses afloat and which isprepared to absorb the hit when aproportion, even a large proportion, ofthe businesses to which it lends fail, justas long as the majority survive. Andthere is only one institution capable ofplaying such a role: the Treasury. Giventhe alternative — a major recessionbecoming a great depression — thegovernment must steel itself. And fast.The banks can go on doing whatever itis they do; at least they’re not part ofthe problem this time, which is all wecan expect of them.Ian MacKillopIlminster, Somerset, UK

The other day, as India wascompleting its third week of one of theworld’s biggest and strictest pandemiclockdowns, I walked through themidday heat to the neighbourhoodshops to buy a few household items.

Outside the local mom-and-popstore where I buy my dry goods,circles were drawn on the ground toindicate where people should stand,properly distanced. Customers werewaiting in a short queue in theirdesignated circles, which was quite asight for a city not generally knownfor its discipline in wait lines.

But inside the shop, although I wasjust one of two customers, it wasimpossible to follow the World HealthOrganization’s social distancing adviceto stay at least one metre from anyother person to avoid exposure to thecoronavirus.

Like most traditional, family-ownedgrocery shops — the primary retailformat for much of urban India — thestore is always crammed with as manyitems as possible while still allowingfor human entry, leaving just a tinyspace for customers to stand.

Even without shoppers, there was acrowd. Besides the owner and hissons, there was the usual gaggle ofassistants — cataloguing inventory,bringing items from the storeroom orclimbing ladders to retrieve itemsfrom shelves near the ceiling.

I was already feeling hemmed in,when deliverymen carrying freshsupplies arrived. I lurched backwardsinto a shelf-covered wall as they gentlybrushed past, cartons of food on their

shoulders and light scarves aroundtheir faces as masks.

I paid quickly, left the shop and,while trudging back to my apartment,vowed to avoid it for as long aspossible. But my anxiety-inducingexpedition also highlighted one of thefactors that make India’s strictlockdown, extended to May 3, such aharrowing sacrifice for so many.

India’s big cities are among theworld’s most densely populated, andspace — a specially preciouscommodity in a protracted curfew —is distributed as unequally as otherwealth. India’s elites and upper-middle-class may be comfortablybarricaded inside capacious homes.But the lockdown has left manyordinary Indians crammed inside likethe inmates of an overcrowded prison.

It’s not just India’s poorest and mostvulnerable slum-dwellers who livecheek-by-jowl. Sky-high urban realestate prices mean plenty of working-class families, even those with twoearning members, can only afford thetiniest of homes. In spaces so smallthat chic western design magazinesmight describe them as “micro-apartments”, husbands, wives,children, and sometimes ageing in-laws too, all eat, sleep and livetogether in a single room.

Such conditions are not new. But inthe past, the daily comings and goingsto school, jobs and social events madeit bearable. In lockdown, it isdifferent. “We feel like we are in acage,” said our nanny’s daughter, whoshares a 25-square metre flat with her

hospital lab clerk husband and theirtwo teenagers.

Unlike other parts of the worldwhere the locked-down can stillexercise outdoors daily, Indians havealso been admonished not to step outat all, except for emergencies orurgent purchases. It’s easy to see why:many urban neighbourhoods are justa jumble of skinny multistoreybuildings on narrow lanes, making itimpossible to prevent co-minglingwithout the strictest enforcement.

For now, many urban Indians seemto accept confinement as the price ofavoiding a calamitous disease. Thoughrural migrants stuck far from theirvillages have protested to demand theright to go home, most urbanneighbourhoods have remained quiet.

But nerves are fraying. I know ayoung private tutor, living in a singleroom with her husband, a translator,their two young children and her in-laws. Space is so tight that her father-in-law sleeps on the kitchen floor.

“People are feeling very stressedout, very anxious and depressed,” shetold me when I called the other day.“There is a feeling of negativity. To aska person to spend 24 hours in a singleroom without going outside, this isaffecting their mental health . . . Ifit was sure that afterwards, everythingwill be normal, it would be OK. But weknow there is no ending to this. Weare not sure that after May 3 this isgoing to settle down or go back tonormal life. That is the worst part.”

[email protected]

Urban India’scoronaviruslockdownclaustrophobia

New DelhiNotebook

by Amy Kazmin

We write to urge leaders of our mainpolitical parties to give a commitmentnow, that once the worst of the Covid-19 crisis has passed there will be a fulland independent public inquiry underthe Inquiries Act 2005, without unduedelay.

There has been a widespread debateabout our preparedness for, andresponse to, the pandemic. The publicas a whole, and most notably groupssuch as the health and care professions,the medical science community and

those who have lost loved ones to thevirus, are entitled to reassurance thatthe relevant questions will beaddressed. Given that we may well facefurther such pandemics in thefuture, we also need to know that thelessons of Covid-19 will be learned intimely fashion.

To ensure that the inquirycommands the widest possibleconfidence, we further ask politicalleaders to commit to seeking consensusamong themselves on its form and

timing. Such matters as the terms ofreference and choice of chair shouldrequire cross-party agreement.

While the nation’s focus now will beon tackling the pandemic, it is not tooearly to do this Providing theseassurances is not only right and urgent,it is also surely easy. All that is neededis for the main political parties toconfirm publicly that they will work tomake it happen.Lord KerslakeLord Patten of Barnes

Baroness Kennedy of The ShawsLord McNallyLord AdebowaleProf John AshtonBaroness AltmannBaroness BlackstoneBaroness BrintonSir Muir GrayLord McNallyProf Martin McKeeBaroness JollyBaroness O’Neill of BengarveLord Winston

We urge Britain’s main parties to commit to a public inquiry

Letters

THURSDAY 16 APRIL 2020

Email: [email protected] daytime telephone number and full address

Corrections: [email protected] you are not satisfied with the FT’s response to your complaint, you can appealto the FT Editorial Complaints Commissioner: [email protected]

OPINION ON FT.COMVirus ill-effects could pass down generationsMost of the pupils out of school have no accessto online learning, writes David Milibandwww.ft.com/opinion

The UK government has cancelledplans for thousands of new ventilatorsafter they turned out to be unfit fortreating patients with Covid-19. Its tar-getofreaching100,000virustestsadayby the end of April seems little closer.In parts of the country, volunteers aresewing gowns from old clothes amidcontinuing delays in providing protec-tive gear to frontline medical staff.Shortages of both equipment and test-ing are worsening an unfolding tragedyin care homes for the elderly. Viewedfrom countries such as Germany,whose death rate from coronavirus is afraction of Britain’s, the government’scompetenceappearsquestionable.

True, Britain’s handling of the pan-demic is well short of the chaos inWashington. Since the governmentbelatedly changed strategy from “miti-gating” to “suppressing” the virus amonth ago, its lockdown measureshavemirroredthoseofmanyEuropeanneighbours, whose own strategies havenot been faultless. Moreover, the rapidopening of huge pop-up Nightingalehospitals in London and elsewhere hasbeen impressive. As the virus nears itspeak, beds and intensive care placesare still available. Opinion polls show afearful country is backing the govern-mentandthehandlingof thecrisis.

Yet the Conservative administrationis still battling to overcome years ofunderfunding that left the NHS far lesswell equipped to confront the pan-demic than many European health sys-tems, and its own failures to do ade-quate planning in January and Febru-ary. While ministers say the step-up intesting will not be a straight line butwill eventually accelerate, the languageof a 100,000-a-day target was softenedthis week to an “ambition”. Differentparts of the system are engaged in fin-ger-pointing over the delays to protec-tiveequipment.

The government and officials sent

out to inform the public must be morecandid. Last month’s broader strategyswitch was accompanied by a commu-nications reset, introducing daily pressconferences by ministers flanked byexperts. But ministers rapidlydefaulted to the same defensive pos-ture as before, repeating the govern-ment’s favoured three-word sloganswhileduckingkeyquestions.

Officials counter that the simplemessages have cut through, pointing tofar greater than expected public com-pliance with lockdown rules. To carrythe country with them through thelong months of easing — and poten-tially reapplying — restrictions, how-ever, they will need to establish adeeper basis of trust. The public canunderstand more than slogans, andaccepts that errors will occur. Itdeserves clear explanations of failures,and how they will be remedied. Obfus-cationwill,over time,sapapproval.

That also means being more open,even as the government extends thelockdown today, over the eventual exitstrategy. Businesses and families needto understand how the transitiontowards normality will happen so theycan plan and prepare. The cabinetshould be bolder, too, in bringing inoutside expertise. Operations chiefs —potentially from the private sector —could oversee testing, equipment, andcare homes. Beyond the government,efforts to ensure parliament can meetin virtual sessions to hold the executivetoaccountshouldbeaccelerated.

The government has been given a liftby Prime Minister Boris Johnson’srecovery from his own near-deathexperience. But his full return to offi-cial business will take time. Until he isback, those spearheading the virusresponse must be ready to level withthe public over exactly what mistakeshave been made — and what is beingdonetofix them.

Government must be more open on Covid-19 mistakes and next steps

UK public deserves clearanswers from ministers

Donald Trump has scarcely seemedmore erratic than in the past few days.He has lacked the coherent, consistentleadership needed in the face of theCovid-19crisis. Instead,hehas left localand regional politicians to fight eachother in a Hobbesian bidding war foreverything from respirators to bailoutmoney. He has undermined his medi-calexperts.LateonTuesday,hecarriedthrough on a threat to suspend fundingtotheWorldHealthOrganization.

The president has spent much of thecrisis eschewing blame, includingaccusing the WHO of “severely mis-managing” the pandemic and of beingcraven towards China. Whatever thesubstance of his arguments, he appearsmore interested in deflecting criticismthanintakingchargeof thecrisis.

The White House announced a planthis week to unite executives andthought leaders to find ways out of thecrisis. But he has scuppered others’attempts to do so at both local andinternational levels. When a coalitionof governors in seven northeasternstates and another in three West Coaststates announced they would co-oper-atetofightthevirus,anddevelopaplanfor reopening business, Mr Trumpclaimed only he had the authority toopenorclosestateeconomies.

Mr Trump wants the economy run-ning before the November elections forhis own political reasons. But individ-ual states can and should look aftertheir populations’ wellbeing. Article 1,section 8 of the US Constitution stateswhich powers are reserved for the fed-eral government. Nothing gives Wash-ington sole control over state econo-mies,despiteMrTrump’sbluster.

Across the political spectrum, thereis agreement on the need to protectpublic health while restarting the econ-omy as quickly as is possible amid theworst downturn in postwar history.Anthony Fauci of the White House

coronavirus taskforcesaidat theweek-end that the US could see somenational restrictions eased in May. Healso made it clear that regions wouldneed to reopen at different paces,rather than via a White House edict.His reward was Mr Trump retweetingcalls for him to be fired, although thepresident laterrecanted.

Some 80 per cent of Americans trustDr Fauci. By contrast, polls show manyare losing faith in the president’s abilityto handle Covid-19. In an ideal world,the White House would be addressinghealth and economic concerns byorganising a vast increase of testing forall Americans. That would allow for amove from social distancing to a stag-gered return to work for those whohaveproofof theirhealthstatus.

The country has the resources avail-able to do this — from community lead-ers who can organise tests to compa-nies that can ramp up production.What is needed, however, is a co-ordi-nated command and control structureto integrate all necessary public andprivate resources. In short, Americaneeds a War Production Board of thesort thatmobilisedthenation’seffort inthe second world war, with billions ofdollarsof fundingat itsdisposal.

In lieu of White House leadership,such an effort could be authorised andfunded by Congress, with mayors andgovernors empowered to organise test-ing, and tech and pharmaceuticalgroups working in tandem with pro-ducers to increasethescaleof tests.

A coalition of the willing couldappoint a leader — perhaps a respectedchief executive or mayor — to co-ordi-nate resources nationally while allow-ing states to tailor the rollout to theirneeds. It would be in Americans’ bestinterests if Mr Trump stepped asideandallowedtheexperts—fromhis taskforce to local leaders — to get on withthehardworkofvirus fighting.

Formation of regional coalitions offer a path to a staggered exit

Trump should leave thevirus response to experts

APRIL 16 2020 Section:Features Time: 15/4/2020 - 18:44 User: alistair.hayes Page Name: LEADER USA, Part,Page,Edition: EUR, 16, 1



Opinion

follow a second principle: look to thehorizon. In normal times, there is ahealthy tension between short-termand long-term results. In a crisis, onlythe long term matters. The goal must beto contribute what you can, and emergefromthecrisiswithasterlingpublic rep-utation, employee trust and a strongfinancial foundation. All this will pavethe way for a better relationship withgovernment, too.

In 1944, Sewell Avery, chairman ofthe department store MontgomeryWard and an ardent free marketeer, lostpatience with the government rulesfor negotiating with the store’s unions.“Tohellwithgovernment!”heshouted.

He was physically carried out of hisoffice by national guardsmen. Mr Averyeventually got his company back. Buttoday’s chief executives might want toconsider how a similar failure to see thebig picture would play out in the age ofsocialmedia.

[email protected]

government asks will be reasonable. Buttwo principles will help see companiesthrough. First: don’t wait. The best wayfor an industry to avoid landing on thewrong side of an unpredictable govern-ment’s agenda — or of public opinion —is toact first.

We have seen some of this already.The biggest US banks announced as agroup that they would suspend buybackprogrammes to preserve capital forlending.Thiswasnotacostlessdecision.With banks’ share prices low, buybackscan deliver big gains to shareholders,and many bank leaders were confidentthey had plenty of capital. But the deci-sion was wise. Shares can always bebought back after the crisis has passed,and acting early aligned the banks withregulatorsandthepublicgood.

We will need to see similar and bolderactions, if thecrisisworsens.TheAmeri-can industrial response to coronaviruswill almost certainly be better if compa-nies leadandthepresident follows.

But this can only happen if companies

leader, and it gives the presidentialson-in-law, JaredKushner,akeyrole.

Complicating companies’ relation-ship with the government is the fact thatthe biggest challenge this time is notgoing to be manufacturing equipmentbut supporting the economy throughthe shutdown. When the governmenttells you to make guns to kill Nazis, andoffers to pay, you do it. When it tells youto administer, for a fee, the coronavirusbailout programme for small business,as US banks have been asked to do, it isalmost as easy to say yes. If the next ask— implicit or explicit — is about whethercompanies can lay off staff or set pay,respondingwillbeharder.

There is no guarantee that what the

A similar memo instructed the secre-tary of homeland security to “use anyand all authority” to secure N95 facemasks from the manufacturer 3M. Itcame after Mr Trump said 3M wouldhave “a hell of a price to pay” if it did notprioritiseUScustomers.

Both companies quickly came toagreements with the administration.A GM factory will soon start turning outventilators, and 3M has agreed to sendsome 166m masks to the US from itsplants abroad. It may not always be soeasy,however.

We are at a moment of cautious opti-mism about the virus’s trajectory. Butthe worst-case scenario, in whichrepeated outbreaks cripple the US econ-omy for another six months or more,may yet play out. In that case, the fed-eral government will ask much more ofa lotmorecompanies.

The greatest risk then would comenot fromMrTrump’s tweetsandtemperbut the lack of institutional structures.FDR put in place systems that filteredthe executive will through agencies,boards and Congress. Business execu-tives were not just consulted; they ledtheefforts.Thefirstchairof theOfficeofProduction Management was formerGMpresidentWilliamKnudsen.

The rapid rise of coronavirus hasmade it difficult to construct that kindof structure. This may change in time,but so far Mr Trump has kept powerclosely held. His supply-chain task forceis run by a Navy admiral, not a business

I n a time of crisis, what does busi-nessowethepublicgood?Andwhatcan the government require com-panies to do? If the crisis is deepenough, the answer to the latter

question is:almostanything.In his 1942 State of the Union address,

US president Franklin D Rooseveltproclaimed “overwhelming superiorityof armament” a requirement for victoryin the second world war. He ordered theconstruction of an astonishing 60,000planes, 45,000 tanks, 20,000 anti-aircraft guns and 6m tonnes of shippingcapacity that year. To reach those goals,the Office of Production Managementbanned the manufacture of passengercars, diverting all of Detroit’s manufac-turingcapacitytothewareffort.

In the coronavirus pandemic, theUS government’s demands have beenlighter — but less predictable. Lastmonth, President Donald Trump signeda memo ordering General Motors to“accept, perform, and prioritise federalcontracts for ventilators”. The memosaid GM had been “wasting time”, andMr Trump tweeted that it was “always amess with” chief executive Mary Barra.

How to answergovernment’s

crisis call

Businesses’ goal should beto emerge with sterling

reputations, staff trust andstrong financial foundations

I t has become a truism to assert thatthe pandemic highlights the endur-ing importance of the nation-state.What is less clear, but as important,is what it does to nation-states’

operatingsystems: theirconstitutions.Constitutions provide the legal princi-

ples for the governance of states, andtheir relationships with civil society.They are the rule books that make thenation-state effective, legitimate anddecent. Most constitutions — the UKand the US are rare exceptions — wereforged in the aftermath of the secondworld war, or the cold war: for peace-time and normalcy. Can they survivethecoronaviruscrucible?

Hungary’s prime minister ViktorOrban has pounced on the crisis tocomplete his already near-dictatorialpowers. He can now rule by decree, withno time limit. Yet claims by illiberalauthoritarians that they perform betterthan liberal democracies handling thischallenge do not hold. The disregard forlife seen in the battles waged by China,Russia, India, Brazil and similar regimesagainstCovid-19 isevidenceenough.

But liberal western democracies alsoface profound quandaries as they try tocontrol the havoc wrought by the pan-demic. What is the proper use of emer-gency powers? How can a proliferatingexecutive be contained? How can indi-vidual freedoms be protected against astatewithnewcoerciveappetites?

Emergency powers are the exceptiontothefoundationof liberalconstitution-alism: the limited sovereignty of thestate, which protects individuals fromtyranny. This is why most constitutions

only permit governments to declare a“state of emergency” under extraordi-nary circumstances. It is one of the mostrevealingtestsa leadercanface.

The French constitution gives thepresidentbroademergencypowers,andEmmanuel Macron rushed to assertthem early on, declaring that Francewas “at war”. Yet this week, after muchcriticism, inacontrite televisedaddress,headmittedmistakeshadbeenmade.

President Donald Trump this weektoldastartledAmericathathisconstitu-tional authority over states is “total”.Ironically, he does have broad statutoryemergency powers. But he has usedthem only once (ordering a company tomake masks), contending that the bur-den of managing Covid-19 falls on stategovernors and mayors. One critic calledthis“performativeauthoritarianism”.

Germany’s Basic Law provides emer-gency powers in limited cases — but notfor a pandemic. So chancellor AngelaMerkel’s government made do byexpanding an existing law on infectiousdisease protection, which was casti-gated as “excessive self-empowerment”.But Ms Merkel has also been a model ofcalm rationality, and empatheticcommunication.

The pandemic is “the hour of theexecutive” — as were the 9/11 attacksand the financial crisis of 2008. Every-where, governments are racing to passeconomic packages and ramp up agen-cies to administer them. The coercivestate is also back with a vengeance:putting citizens under house arrest, orletting them out on condition that theysubmit to intrusive biosurveillancemeasures, suchascompulsorytracking.

As governments morph into theIncredible Hulk, other constitutionalactors such as courts, governors andcitizens may have to take a step back atfirst. But the longer the crisis lasts, themore vital it is for them to reassert theirrightful roles, and demand that govern-ment actions be evidence-based, pro-portional,accountableandreversible.

That is a lot to ask. Governments aremaking life-and-death decisions basedon imperfect information. There will bea temptation for the executive to over-play a dearth of actionable facts with anexcess of assertiveness. These are themoments populists and authoritarianswait for. All the more important, then,not to allow changes now that maketheirworkeasier later.

The writer is a senior fellow at theBrookings Institution

Coronavirusis also a threatto democraticconstitutions

As states morph into theIncredible Hulk, other

constitutional actors mustassert their rightful role

I t feels rude to point out how littlewas expected of Harry Trumanwhen he became US president 75Aprils ago. He was “just” a Missourihaberdasher. He is still the last non-

graduate to attain the office. After Fran-klin Roosevelt, who matched AlbertEinstein as the man of the 20th century,snobs viewed his instalment as an actofbathos.

Truman would end up curatingthe second half of that century. Natowas his doing, as was Bretton Woods,the Marshall Plan and the nuclearage. Perhaps a Napoleonic gift for com-mand always lurked underneath thatEveryman bonhomie. More likely,though, the world happened to be at itsmost pliable in 1945. Circumstancescountedformorethanthe individual.

Joe Biden must look at the parableof Truman with indecent relish. A pres-ident is never more powerful than afteran international crisis. With the worldin flux, he need not be an obviouslygreat man to be of great consequence.If the underwhelming Democrat beatsPresident Donald Trump in November,he will have a globe- and era-shapingopportunity.

The winner could decide for a gener-ation the lesson of the coronavirus pan-demic. Is it the innate danger of the out-side world, or the indispensability of co-operationwithin it?Hewillhaveas largea say on whether US-China relationsenter a froideur that splits the planet, orjust settle into mutual vigilance. Eventhrough his rhetoric, he will choosewhich of the two feelings that now pulseinside Americans to encourage: a fear ofopenness, or a pent-up yearning for thenormality of travel and trade. Just as thepresidency was worth more in 1945than in 1960 — the second being tram-melled by decisions made in the first —the policies of 2021 will set the tone forfuturegovernments.

Mr Biden is, then, the last, best hope

for globalists. At a crucial election,they have a candidate who wouldtake the liberal line on all the hingequestions above. This is not justuntrue of Mr Trump. It wouldhave been untrue of Bernie Sandersor even Elizabeth Warren. Mr Biden’srivals for the Democratic nod werehardly nationalists, but they wereprotectionists with none of his immer-sion inmultilateral institutions.

Nor is there a foreign leader who canplausibly carry the torch. The most stal-wart internationalist, Angela Merkel, isnot long for the German chancellery.The youth and verve of EmmanuelMacron, president of France, belie hisprotectionism, even if it is Europeanrather than narrowly French in scope.Britain has a jingoist government.

And though America’s relative clouthas waned since 1945, when it produceda third of world output, no other dem-ocracy can make or break globalisationanyway.

Mr Biden is the only show in town, butthat is one more show than there mighthave been. Yes, as Sanders loyalistsinsist, he can be a horse-tranquilisinglydull candidate, at once verbose and con-tent-free. In choosing him, the Demo-crats fled to safety. But globalists shouldsee him as a reprieve in a century wherethe torrent of big events — coronavirus,populism, the 2008 financial crash —hasbeenagainst them.

And nationalists should not assumethat such an unprepossessing politicianmust be useless against them. Thaterrorhasbeenmadebefore.

There was nothing inevitable aboutthe US underwriting the free world after1945: the public clamour was for demo-bilisation. Nor was it destined thatAmerica would lead a liberal systemafter the Soviet collapse: the semi-isola-tionist Ross Perot won a vast vote-sharein 1992. What counted in the end weretheearlydecisions.Andtheyweretaken

by presidents who were Biden-like intheir innocuousness. George HW Bushwas a company man (that companybeing the federal government) whopassed 64 years of pre-presidential lifewithout saying much of distinction. Oneexternal shock, and he was able to settheworldonacoursethatboundseveralsuccessors. Presidents with much moreinnate dynamism have left shallowerimpressions on history. Circumstancesmatter.

So it could be with Mr Biden. Thispandemic is not the cold war, much lessa hot one, but it is the largest disruptionfor a generation. Next January, if theworstof ithaspassed, theworldcouldgoin one of two directions. The early deci-sions of the US will determine which. Assuch Mr Biden’s plans must widen fromthe merely curative — fumigate Amer-ica of Trumpism, make bruised alliesgood — to the creative work of crafting apost-virus world. Perhaps it is too muchto hope that an unremarkable leadercan make the planet safe for globalism.But itwouldnotbethefirst time.

[email protected]

The Democrat need notbe an obviouslygreat man to be

of great consequence

Biden is the last, best hope for globalists

AMERICA

JananGanesh

W e will meet again,”Queen Elizabeth saidrecently, invoking a1939 song. It was aninspiring thought and

exactly what we needed. But what kindof a world can we expect after the pan-demic? Will we gain something from theexperienceof jointlyresistingthecrisis?

The world was full of serious prob-lems before coronavirus. Inequality wasrampant, both between countries andwithin them. In the US, the world’srichest country, millions of peoplelacked medical coverage, contributingto unnecessary illness. Ill-calculatedausterity had weakened the EU’s abilityto provide public support to vulnerablepeople. Anti-democratic politics was onthe rise, from Brazil and Bolivia toPolandandHungary.

Is it possible that shared experience ofthe pandemic will help alleviate suchpre-existingproblems?

The need to act together can certainlygenerate an appreciation of theconstructive role of public action. Thesecond world war, for example, madepeople better realise the importance ofinternational co-operation. The UnitedNations, the IMF and the World Bankwere born in 1944-5, not long after VeraLynnsangaboutmeetingagain.

However, was there any long-termimprovement within a country from theexperienceofcrisis?Wedidseesome.

There was a sharp reduction of theincidence of undernourishment inBritain in the difficult years of foodshortages during the second world war.Facing a big reduction of food availabil-ity, Britain arranged more equal foodsharing, through rationing and socialsupport. The chronically undernour-ished were much better fed than everbefore. A similar thing happened withbetter-sharedmedicalattention.

The results were astounding. Duringthe war decade of the 1940s, life expect-ancy at birth in England and Wales wentup by 6.5 years for men, compared with1.2 years in the preceding decade, andfor women it rose 7 years, far exceedingthe 1.5 year gain of the decade before.The positive lessons from pursuing

equity and paying greater attention tothe disadvantaged helped in the emer-gence of what came to be known as thewelfare state. Aneurin Bevan, an advo-cate of greater equity during and afterthe war, inaugurated the first NationalHealth Service hospital in Britain — theParkHospital inManchester—in1948.

Can something similarly positive hap-pen due to the experience of the present

crisis? The lessons to emerge from a cri-sis surely depend on how it is dealt with,andwhatconcernscometothefore.

Politics is important here, includingthe relation between rulers and gov-erned. During the war years, in contrastwith the better sharing of food andhealthcare by the British public, theterrible 1943 Bengal famine occurred inBritish India, killing nearly 3m, whichtheRajdid little toprevent.

In the policies against the present

pandemic, equity has not been a partic-ularly noticeable priority. In the US,African Americans are dying at an enor-mously higher rate from Covid-19 thanwhite people. In Chicago, more than 70per cent of pandemic deaths have beenof African Americans who constituteonly a third of the resident population.Internal disparities in suffering seem tohave been no less in many other coun-tries, fromBrazilandHungarytoIndia.

India is a particularly striking case.Inequalities remain very large. Famineshave not occurred since the establish-ment of democracy in independentIndia. Yet open public discussion —which makes the predicament of thedeprived heard, politically significantand protects the endangered — facesincreasing governmental restriction,including reduction of media freedomthroughdirectandindirectmeans.

Marked by the contrast betweenreasonable medical facilities for theaffluent, and not even decent primaryhealthcare for most of the poor, andweighed down by the brutal asym-metries of modernised caste inequali-ties, India could have benefited greatlyfrom equitable pandemic management.Yet there is little evidence of egalitarian

concerns. Instead, the focus has been ondrastic control and sudden lockdowns(including of trains and buses) with lit-tle attention paid to labourers who losetheir jobs or the many migrant workers,the poorest of the poor, who are kepthundredsofmiles fromtheirhomes.

Sure, social distancing restricts thevirus’ spread (this important benefit isnot in dispute). But it has to becombined with compensatory arrange-ments — for income, food, access andmedical attention — for people devas-tated by the lockdown. India, like manycountries, needs something like anNHS. But no lesson in that direction willprobably emerge from the pandemicresponse,givenitshuge inequities.

Sadly, it is quite possible that when wemeet again we will be no better placed toface the unequal world in which we live.Yet it need not go that way. A concernwith equity in crisis management wouldlessen suffering in many countries now,and offer new ideas to inspire us to builda less unequal world in the future. Sincewe are less than half way into the crisis,darewehopethiscanstillhappen?

The writer, a Nobel laureate, is Thomas WLamont University Professor at Harvard

It is possible when we meetagain we will be no betterplaced to face the world.

Yet it need not go that way

A better society can emerge from the pandemic

AmartyaSen

COMPANIES

RobertArmstrong

POLITICS

ConstanzeStelzenmüller

APRIL 16 2020 Section:Features Time: 15/4/2020 - 17:30 User: alistair.hayes Page Name: COMMENT USA, Part,Page,Edition: EUR, 17, 1



Activist investors are often lambastedas hatchet-wielding invaders. But thecase of publishing house Lagardère —illustrative of French tolerance ofdominant founding families — givesthem cause to swing away.

One of them, Joseph Oughourlian,has urged fellow Lagardèreshareholders to vote for his proposalsat the general meeting. The boss ofhedge fund Amber Capital wants toreplace most of the board of the ownerof French publishing house Hachette.Mr Oughourlian seeks the first chink inthe armour of scion, chief executiveand bon vivant Arnaud Lagardère. Theactivist aims to end the French mediagroup’s poor share price performance.

Mr Lagardère has been in controlsince 2003. Under the company’ssociété en commandité par actionsstructure only the board can oust him,despite his small 7 per cent holding. Alack of accountability on the board forpoor management makes an ejectionunlikely. Yet, Lagardère shares havetrailed the French market by roughly30 percentage points over 10 years.

Weak foundations may help MrOughourlian find a breach. MrLagardère’s stake is held by his opaquepersonal holding company LC&M.Amber Capital won a ruling in Franceto have LC&M’s accounts published,though it has yet to do so. Frenchaccounting authorities investigatedLC&M’s auditor for the delay.

Those accounts detail how muchdebt LC&M and Mr Lagardère areliable for — the FT estimated it at morethan €200m. Collateral for that debt isbelieved to be Mr Lagardère’s shares inthe public company. The stake isvalued below €100m. As dividendpayments dry up, servicing that debtbecomes harder. Ultimatelyresponsible for all the company’s debtsunder the commandité, Mr Lagardère’spersonal finances are precarious,dependent as they are upon thecompany’s share price. That suggests

Lagardère:under siege

the board should reconsider hisposition. Ordinary shareholders shouldback Mr Oughourlian’s plan in May.

Newcastle United owner Mike Ashleysought fan kudos by downing a pint ofbeer in seconds at a match not longafter he took over the club.

This is not a stunt you can expectfrom the club’s new owners — aninvestor group led by Saudi Arabia’ssovereign wealth fund. It has agreed tobuy the football club from the UK retailtycoon for £300m in cash.

A crisis is a good time for purchasesfor a fund that has more than $300bn

Saudi Arabia/Newcastle:playing her Toon

in assets. The Public Investment Fundhas already bought cheap shares in oilcompanies Royal Dutch Shell and Eni,and in struggling cruise holidays groupCarnival.

A key part of the consortium isAmanda Staveley, a longtime Gulfdealmaker. She brokered acontroversial deal for Abu Dhabiinvestors to prop up Barclays back inthe dark days of the 2008 crisis.

The PIF, steered by Crown PrinceMohammed bin Salman, will stump uproughly 80 per cent. Ms Staveley’s PCPCapital provides the balance. This willcome equally from her family’s savingsand those of UK property developersDavid and Simon Reuben.

Mr Ashley has even lent PCP funds.Not that he is desperate, or anything.

Price was a sticking point. Mr Ashley

wanted to recover as much as he couldof his investment since buying the clubin May 2007. This stood at £134m incash and £110m of debt repayments inSeptember 2008.

To the ire of fans, Mr Ashley hasrefused to spend heavily on players.That might be one reason the clubearned the sixth-highest cumulativepre-tax profits of any Premier Leagueclub over the eight seasons to 2017/18.

The persuasive Ms Staveley, like somany football investors, only seespotential: from brand, loyal fans andnew media backers. She has Liverpooland Manchester United in her sights.Fans will shout for joy.

So will star players. They have beendodging calls to take coronavirus-inspired pay cuts with an agility theysometimes lack on match day.

The economic crisis has turned aspotlight on leverage. Financial gearingis what investors obsess over, forgettingthat operational leverage matters justas much. Companies with high fixedoverheads but slim marginal costs arevulnerable to huge profitability hits iftop-line revenue falls even slightly. Nosector exemplifies this better thanairlines: incremental ticket sales for aflight flow mostly to the bottom line.

The US Treasury finalised its supportpackage for US carriers on Tuesday.The terms were relatively generous tocompanies, with equity stakes for theUS taxpayer essentially limited to 1 percent. Most airlines took grants and asmaller proportion of loans. Throughgritted teeth they agreed to curbs onredundancies, shareholder payouts andexecutive pay. But for them to prosper,consumer demand will have to rally.Otherwise companies will have to cuttheir aircraft fleets and workforces.

JetBlue explained that its aid packageof nearly $1bn had two parts. A near-$700m forgivable grant and then a$250m unsecured 10-year loan at a“low interest rate”. The gross amountrepresents 76 per cent of payroll costsfor the two middle quarters in 2019.

Delta provided detail on its ownterms. These included the strike priceon the warrants given to the UStaxpayer for a 1 per cent stake in thecompany, whose market value now isroughly $16bn. The terms are sogenerous that even if Delta’s shares risean implausible 10 times in a decade,the annualised return to taxpayers willstill be a negative 5 per cent.

Such largesse will offend many. Inthe past six years the group hasreturned $60bn in dividends and stockbuybacks. Should the Treasury havedemanded more upside in a recoveryin return for such lenient debtconditions? That potential is far fromobvious right now: operational gearingis weighing heavily on airlines.

If they return thirstily to the federalspigot after slashing overheads, criticsof the current deal may well get thechunkier equity they want.

US airlines rescue:pivotal moments

Now are the flighty fallen. HNA Grouponce splurged $40bn on stakes ineverything from the Hilton hotelsgroup to Deutsche Bank. Right now,China’s largest private aviationbusiness provides an object lesson inliquidity risk. It has been hit hard by alockdown that has grounded mostairlines. Creditors will suffer.

Party bosses should revise their viewof HNA as “too big to fail”. Localsponsors cannot prop it up forever.National authorities should bereluctant to step in. China appears tolack the resources and resolve forblanket bailouts. Public finances arestretched, the economy is highlyleveraged and growth is expected to hita four-decade low this year. A morethan 30 per cent drop in a seven-yearHNA bond yesterday prompted theShanghai Stock Exchange to halt tradein HNA temporarily. Hours earlier,HNA had held an emergency investorcall announcing the deferral ofpayments on a separate tranche ofbonds. Payments to creditors of WestAir, an HNA budget carrier, werepostponed last week.

HNA has delayed interest tobondholders several times over thepast two years. Total debts stand at$74bn, with short-term borrowings at$15bn, S&P Global says. Net losses were$495m during the first half of last year.

For three years, this bad advert forforeign M&A has been selling assetswith the aim of cutting debts. Investorshave been unimpressed. HainanAirlines, HNA’s largest carrier, pricedtwo-year dollar bonds to yield over 13per cent in 2018. HNA’s desperationmeans funding costs will spike further.

Hainan was HNA’s last hope for arevival. But air-passenger traffic dived54 per cent in China in the first quarter.

Airlines accounted for 84 per cent ofChina’s aviation industry losses of$5.6bn. Even when global lockdownsease, a rebound in air travel may beslow. Dispiritingly for anyone weary oflockdowns and travel bans, Harvardresearchers say social distancing maybe needed for another two years.

That possibility should discouragethe Hainan provincial governmentfrom rescuing HNA yet again. The localadministration has a relatively highdebt-to-GDP ratio of more than 40 per

China airlines/HNA:too big to bail out

cent. Beijing should keep its powderdry to bail out businesses of greatersystemic importance.

HNA’s greatest value may now be asa marker of where Chinese stateintervention stops.

CROSSWORDNo. 16,452 Set by SLORMGORM

JOTTER PAD

ACROSS 1 Giant live insect chases after

man! (8) 6 British and American farm

department (6) 9 Bit of smut editor on Times

deleted (6)10 Host who might give others

some digs? (8)11 Republican tucking into milk

and gin (4)12 Spotty youth once slated

wrongly (10)14 Go to the bottom to catch

large fish (8)16 Club Med primarily has great

service (4)18 Bird one’s seen on incoming

boat at front (4)19 Firm admitted to sudden rises

in misfortunes (8)21 Old fellow pursuing Member

for Battle (10)22 So uninspiring! (4)24 Sort of bones on the outside

of head of tropical fish (8)26 Health worker without energy

for the job? (6)27 Plug a duke found by green in

Paris (6)28 He and I, say, could be factors

(8)

DOWN 2 Don’t start great panic, it’s a

mistake (5)

3 Former region US parasites ruined (4,7)

4 Veteran helps to collect bit of milk for spinsters (3,5)

5 Student dwelling on if she recalled revising (4,2,9)

6 Posh bloke turned over by rake in hood (6)

7 Detective losing head could create trouble (3)

8 Account of severe gale missing first two parts (9)

13 A dream I care about is the brotherhood of man (11)

15 Floor of hovel I carpeted for free (9)

17 My husband blocks pleasant cliff-top road (8)

20 Wearing clothes is polite (6)23 A man or a mole? (5)25 Animal eggs (3)

Solution 16,451

Lex on the webFor notes on today’s breakingstories go to www.ft.com/lex

Twitter: @FTLex

The virus crisis has exposed glaringshortfalls in America’s supply chains.The country’s complex system forproducing and distributing food isthe latest to show the strain.

Meat group Smithfield Foodsannounced a shutdown at theweekend. Its plant in Sioux Falls,South Dakota closed indefinitely after238 workers contracted the virus. Itis one of the largest pork-processingfacilities in the US.

Labour shortages in food factoriesand on farms are under-recognisedthreats to food supplies. Panic buyingin stores has made more headlines.

But C Larry Pope, Smithfield’s chiefexecutive, warned the closure —coming on top of similar moves byrival meat packers — was pushing the

country “perilously close to the edge”in supplies for grocers.

The workers who keep America fedare also some of the country’s poorest.Living and working in close quartersmakes them particularly vulnerable tocontracting coronavirus. Self-isolationand social distancing are luxuriesunavailable to those working shoulder-to-shoulder in factories or on farms.

These workplaces cannot count onthe new jobless millions to replace staffwho fall ill. The work is back-breakingand the pay is low. In California, whichproduces a third of the nation’svegetables and two-thirds of its fruitsand nuts, growers are worried that theywill not have enough workers to plantand pick this year’s harvest.

Border restrictions threaten to cut

off the flow of migrant labour. Crisesgive the whip hand to availablelabour, however temporarily. The USshould remember, no food workers,no food. Employers who chargeworkers for protective masks, forexample, are financially short-sighted as well as mean spirited.

Investors can expect extendedvolatility in prices for agriculturalcommodities and in the shares offood producers such as WH Group,Smithfield’s Chinese owner.

The stock fell a third from mid-February to mid-March before risinga quarter. Tyson Foods has been justas volatile. US hog futures point torising prices. It is in the multiple andinterlinked effects of the pandemicthat investment profits will be made.

FT graphic Sources: Refinitiv; USDA

US farms rely on migrants/immigrants% of hired sta�

0

20

40

60

80

Farm labourers Farm managers & supervisors

White Mexican origin

US pork imports have declinedValue of trade in swine meat (12-month rolling sum, rebased to 100)

70

80

90

100

110

120

130

2018 2019 2020

Exports

Imports

Food stocks will stay volatileShare prices (rebased)

5060708090

100110

Jan 2020 Mar Apr

WH Group

Tyson Foods

US food supply: labour in lockdownA supply chain is only as strong as its weakest link. Empty shelves could result as easily from labourshortages at farms and food factories as from panic buying. The US depends heavily on domesticproduction, in which migrant and immigrant workers are prominent. Shares reflect shocks to confidence.

APRIL 16 2020 Section:FrontBack Time: 15/4/2020 - 18:33 User: karen.crawcour Page Name: 1BACK, Part,Page,Edition: EUR, 18, 1


Financial Times Europe - 16 04 2020

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