Weekly News Summary for June 26 to July 2, 2020

Friday, June 26, 2020: Fed Suspends Stock Buybacks and Limits Payouts

The Federal Reserve temporarily restricted the US’ biggest banks from buying back their own stocks or raising dividend payments in the third quarter, as regulators try to ensure that the banks are strong enough to weather the pandemic.

The decision came as the central bank warned that an extended economic slump caused by the COVID-19 pandemic could leave the banking sector with $700 billion worth of losses on bad loans.

Monday, June 29, 2020: Facebook Ad Boycotts Surge

Shares of Facebook Inc. dropped another 2.3% in pre-market trading after the number of major advertisers boycotting its two social media platforms, due to its perceived failure to take care of the spread of hate speech and inaccurate information, continued to grow.

Companies including PepsiCo Inc., Starbucks Corp., and Guinness maker Diageo plc announced over the weekend their plans to remove their advertisements from Facebook’s networks, joining consumer group Unilever, Verizon Wireless, the Coca-Cola Company, and others who made the move last week.

Tuesday, June 30, 2020: China Passes Hong Kong Security Law

China’s top legislative body has formally passed a new national security law that would strengthen its control over Hong Kong.

In response to the decision, the US government had begun withdrawing Hong Kong’s special status, postponing defense exports and keeping the city from accessing the US’ tech products.

Wednesday, July 1, 2020: Europe’s Economy Shows More Signs of Improvement

Europe’s economy showed more signs of recovery after experiencing a decline earlier in the second quarter.

The euro zone’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for the month of June was adjusted to 47.4, while the UK’s PMI climbed above the 50-mark that separates growth from contraction, whereas Germany’s unemployment eased in June to 69,000, well below forecasts for an increase of 120,000.

Thursday, July 2, 2020: Oil prices Rise as Supplies fall 7.2M Barrels

Oil prices edged higher on Thursday, as a steep fall of 7.2 million barrels in crude supplies offset concerns over the possibility that a rise in COVID-19 infections in the US and renewed lockdown measures in California might hinder the recovery in oil demand.

US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures gained 0.7% to $40.12 a barrel, adding to a 1.4% rise from Wednesday, while Brent crude oil futures inched up 0.8% to $42.37 a barrel, having surged 1.8% in the previous session.