The World
U.S. virus cases hit another daily record, as younger people account for ‘disturbing’ number of cases. Meanwhile, Apple will re-close 14 stores in Florida today, bringing its total re-closures to 32 (out of 271 U.S. stores), as TX, NC, LA and KS all paused plans to loosen restrictions. Europe has seen an increase in weekly cases for the first time in months, and in Delhi, crematoria are overwhelmed. (New York Times, Reuters, Bloomberg, BBC, The Times)
Consumer spending increased 8.2% in May, the biggest one-month gain since record keeping began in 1959. May spending grew despite a 4.2% decline in personal income, which had soared by 10.8% the previous month. Meanwhile, Americans still believe the economy is contracting, but they are less bleak. 59% say the economy is in a recession or a depression, compared to 75% in mid-May. At that time, twice as many believed the U.S. was in a depression as now, 36% to 18%. (Wall Street Journal, Gallup)
The Federal Reserve said the nation’s biggest banks could face up to $700 billion in losses on soured loans and ordered them to cap dividends and suspend share buybacks. European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said the world may be past the worst of the crisis but a return to the status quo is unlikely.(Wall Street Journal, CNBC)
China has ramped up its purchases of U.S. soybeans, sparking a rebound in prices and making the crop profitable again for U.S. farmers. (Wall Street Journal)
Vietnam and the Philippines warned of growing insecurity in Southeast Asia amid concerns that China was stepping up its South China Sea activity. Meanwhile, troop movements on the China-India border raise questions whether de-escalation is really occurring, as India warns the status quo is unsustainable. (Reuters, South China Morning Post)
Russians were urged to “Vote for your future – Yes!” as polls opened for a referendum to raise pensions and the minimum wage, enshrine “faith in God” in the constitution — and give President Putin the right to remain in power until 2036. (The Times)
UK polls: When Boris Johnson imposed lockdown on March 23, he did so from a position of seemingly unassailable strength. The Conservatives were almost 23 percentage points ahead of Labour and nothing looked likely to change that. Eleven weeks and a new leader of the opposition later, that figure is just 5 points. (The Times)
Weekend reading: An extensive historical explainer on “China’s Approach to Global Governance.” China has become a powerful force in global governance. Increasingly, its efforts appear to be deepening divides with other countries, particularly democracies that are committed to existing norms and institutions. Ultimately, this divide could make it harder for states to collaboratively address major international challenges. The divide could even create two distinct systems of global governance, badly undermining multilateral cooperation. (Council on Foreign Relations)
Economy & Finance
Mortgage bailouts suddenly swelled this week, as active mortgage forbearance plans rose by 79,000. As of Tuesday, 4.68 million homeowners were in forbearance plans. (CNBC)
World trade experienced an “unprecedented” decline in April, according to widely watched data which found that the eurozone was the hardest-hit area. The volume of global trade in goods dropped by 12.1 per cent in April compared with the previous month — the largest monthly contraction since records began in 2000. (Financial Times)
Pret A Manger chief executive Pano Christou told landlords to expect no more than 30% of the June quarter rent due this week. (The Times)
The Future of Impact Finance: Six leading members of the Impact & Sustainable Finance Faculty Consortium discuss trends, predictions, foibles, and tensions related to the rapidly growing field their group has been focused upon for the past four years. (Stanford Social Innovation Review)
ESG fund data: Growing and Euro-focused. (Daily Shot)
Technology
Amazon has agreed to pay more than $1 billion to buy Zoox, an early developer of autonomous vehicles, marking its entrance in the race to develop driverless cars. Some analysts expect Amazon to focus on integrating autonomous technology into its delivery network. (The Information, Financial Times)
Meanwhile, while most of the investment capital going into the autonomous vehicle sector has focused on cars, automated trucks and delivery vehicles are becoming more appealing amid difficulties in making cars safe enough for the public. (The Information)
Verizon became the largest company to join an ongoing advertising boycott of Facebook and Instagram. The boycott is in response to the social media giant’s handling of incendiary posts from President Trump, as well as ongoing issues with misinformation. (The Verge)
Smart Links
Google staff push CEO Sundar Pichai to detail remote work plans; he declines. (The Information)
Why Zoom’s valuation is so controversial. (Marker)
Pickup orders for restaurants and grocery chains gain ground over deliveries. (Wall Street Journal)
Cereal consumption still riding high after peaking during lockdowns. (Civic Science)
Surging number of Americans looking to move to smaller cities. (Mansion Global)
CRISPR gene editing in human embryos wreaks chromosomal mayhem. (Nature)
Monster black hole found in the early universe. (Science Daily)