IAN’s Week in Review: GDP falls less in Germany than in other European countries
The last of the largest EU countries to release its activity data, Germany’statistics showed the economy shrinked by 2,2%qoq in Q1. Though Germany is now offically in recession, after a downward revision in Q4 GDP, the decline in Q1 was less dramatic than in France (-5.8 %), Spain (-5.2%) and Italy (-4.7%). This may reflect both less stringent lockdown rules in Germany, but also les reliance on tourism which was dramatically affected by this crisis.
In the US, the Federal Reserve has warned against banks frailty and the risks to financial stability.
International Press Review
The pandemic is killing the attraction of megacities, by Camilla Cavendish: You cannot be in the urban swing of things if there is no swing
Has covid killed globalisation?, by The Economist: The flow of people, trade and capital will be slowed
Trump threatens to cut off relations with China, by FT: New rhetorical blast comes as US increases criticism of Beijing over the coronavirus
The End of the US-China Relationship, by Stephen Roach: From an unnecessary trade war to an increasingly desperate coronavirus war, two angry countries are trapped in a blame game with no easy way out. Now more than ever, both sides need to contemplate the economic and geopolitical consequences of a full rupture.
The Coming Greater Depression of the 2020s, by Nouriel Roubini: While there is never a good time for a pandemic, the COVID-19 crisis has arrived at a particularly bad moment for the global economy. The world has long been drifting into a perfect storm of financial, political, socioeconomic, and environmental risks, all of which are now growing even more acute.
Corona Conspiracy Theorists:Protests in Germany See Fringe Mix with the Mainstream
Ordinary People Are Leading the Leaders, by David Brooks: America looks better from the bottom up
L’épidémie et le rôle central de l’école, éditorial Le Monde: Depuis le 12 mai, les établissements scolaires accueillent à nouveau des élèves. Malgré les craintes, cette reprise s’est plutôt bien passée et fait figure, dans la crise actuelle, de leçon de pragmatisme