"We have gone to some effort to hide our bodies, as we do not want them found. Please do not waste time and money looking. It would serve no purpose. We are gone, leave us to our peace."
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Several companies have built lithium-ion batteries that can fully charge in a matter of minutes. Their next goal: getting these into electric vehicles.
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It was one of sport's great question marks: Is it humanly possible to run 26.2 miles in under two hours? Then Eliud Kipchoge did it. What followed was international fame — and plenty of controversy. So we flew to Kipchoge's ultra-rarefied Kenyan training ground to meet the man who pulled off the impossible.
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A damning interview with Richard Epstein, the NYU School of Law professor whose articles "Coronavirus Perspective" and "Coronavirus Overreaction" helped guide the White House's initial response.
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"We were at Great America in Santa Clara, Ca. and my daughter kept insisting on getting splashed by the boats coming down the drop of the ride. So, I finally let her."
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It's time to celebrate all our greatest small-screen figures tournament-style, from bosses like Tony Soprano to millennials like Fleabag, from scene stealers like Tyrion Lannister to wild cards like Michael Scott.
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How one distillery worker enlisted friends, family, and a few fellow steroid enthusiasts to liberate hundreds of thousands of dollars' worth of premium bourbon, one barrel at a time.
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COVID-19 cases are spiking nationally, workers are getting sick, and I already can't get groceries delivered in San Francisco. The delivery economy is vital, but it's under incredible strain. Will it break?
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Inspired by Harry Stevens's viral infographic in the Washington Post, here is an explainer on why science says social distancing is the most effective tool we have.
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Older people remain most at risk of dying as the new coronavirus continues its rampage around the globe, but they're far from the only ones vulnerable.
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When someone goes missing, loved ones are thrown into a state akin to constant grieving; waiting for news, living in hope. Novelist Bev Thomas describes how they try to cope and carry on.
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Khaled Almaghafi, an Oakland native, started as a hobbyist, learning from his father. Now he's been supplying the Northern California with honey, beeswax and other products for close to three decades.
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Inspect Her Majesty's corbels and pelmets with the 360 degree Buckingham Palace virtual tour (see below).
Ways to help, and reasons to be cheerful
Free bikes: Last week, Uber made its JUMP bikes free for NHS workers to use. Today, electric bike retailer Fully Charged has done something similar. By registering here, NHS staff can borrow an ebike for up to three months, without fee.
Chocolate Pollocks: Tate has put together a page of artistic projects to try at home. Ideas include mixing shaving foam and paint to make Gerhard Richter-esque patterns, painting plant pots in the style of Bridget Riley, and all the instructions you need to craft a Jackson Pollock chocolate artwork.
Messy fun with Tate's art projects.
Virtual palace: Fancy a snoop around Buckingham Palace? You can take a 360 degree tour via the Royal Collections website, while also dipping into the virtual gallery of more than 250,000 works of art. Download fun family activities, watch behind-the scenes films and find out more on the Royal Collection Trust website.
Free theatre: From today, Hampstead Theatre and The Guardian will re-release the live stream recordings of Mike Bartlett's Wild, Beth Steel's Wonderland and Howard Brenton's Drawing the Line for free.
Sunday Assembly: The Sunday Assembly secular community gathering normally takes place in Conway Hall, but this weekend sees its first ever virtual assembly. The main speaker is Henry C Blanchard, who left a boring corporate job to create an adventure sports business, set up a charity in rural Uganda, and travel the world. He now shows others how to do the same (at least, once the world returns to some kind of normal). Register for a Zoom call, and receive further information by email.
Join a Sunday Assembly via Zoom (see above).
Latest London coronavirus news
London has now recorded some 6,000 cases of coronavirus, the highest in the country. The death toll in London from corona-related causes stands at 353. In a glimmer of hope, the rate of hospital admissions appears to be slowing.
Bizarre scenes in Edgware where a police officer confronts a shopkeeper for chalking two-metre distance lines on the pavement. Senior officers have since confirmed that no further action will be taken.
Knightsbridge is the only tube station to have six consecutive consonants. Aldwych might arguably have qualified, but it's (a) no longer in operation, and (b) contains a 'y' that's acting suspiciously like a vowel, even though it is not one of the traditional five.
Last week, we brought you the best museums and galleries in London that you can visit virtually. This time we've ventured further afield. From New York to New Dehli and from Tokyo to Taipei, here are just some of the world-famous museums that — thanks to the miracles of modern technology — you can freely explore despite being cooped up at home.
The biggest art museum in the United States, the Met boasts works ranging from classical antiquity and ancient Egypt all the way up to modern and contemporary masterpieces. Discover thousands of exhibits in its 2 million-strong permanent collection via Google Arts and Culture, which hosts virtual tours of both the Met itself and the Breur Building.
You can also explore the museum's magnificent architecture in a series of award-winning videos. Created using spherical 360° technology, the Met 360° Project lets you admire the Beaux-Arts Great Hall, The Temple of Dendur and views of the Hudson River — as seen from the museum's cloisters — to name but a few.
Russia's State Hermitage Museum dates all the way back to 1764, when Catherine the Great acquired a large collection of Western European paintings. Today, it consists of five buildings and is the second-biggest art museum in the world. Highlights include James Cox's exquisite mechanical Peacock Clock, the Winter Palace's majestic Main Staircase and the neo-Greek Knight's Hall — all of which you admire in incredible detail thanks to this virtual tour.
If you like ancient monuments, you'll love the Pergamon Museum. Admire the Greek Pergamon Altar, the Roman Market Gate of Miletus, and Processional Way of Babylon from afar with the help of this rather snazzy, 360 virtual tour.
The Louvre (Paris)
Image: Shutterstock
The Louvre is the world's largest art museum and holds the title of the most-visited museum in the world — with queues to match. Luckily, you don't have to wait in line to explore it online. The Louvre's virtual tours immediately whisk visitors away to Egyptian Antiquities, the Galerie d'Apollon, and even the remains of the Louvre's moat.
Entirely dedicated to classical antiquity, Berlin's Altes Museum is home to heroes, gods, and monsters — as immortalised by ancient Romans, Greeks, and Etruscans. Explore some of them here.
The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (New York) + Guggenheim Bilbao
Love modern art? Get thee (virtually) to The Guggenheim! See works by artists including Catherine Opie and Paweł Althamer, and explore the building's quirky interior on this virtual tour, and don't forget to check its archive of live-stream interviews with Guggenheim staff members. You can also virtually visit its Spanish sibling, the Guggenheim Bilbao, here.
Be transported to Frida Kahlo's famous Casa Azul with the help of this digital tour. The legendary Mexican painter was born, lived, worked, and died in this modest cobalt-blue home. After her death, it became a museum of her works, those by her husband Diego Rivera, and the couple's personal artefacts. Have a nose around it here.
Escape to the opulence of what was once Vienna's largest residential palace on a virtual tour of the Albertina, home to 130 years worth of art, ranging from French Impressionism to the present day.
Take sanctuary in an ancient city on a digital tour of the Acropolis Museum. This site-specific museum narrates the story of life on the Athenian Acropolis from prehistoric times until the end of antiquity, including the Frieze of the Parthenon, which dates back to the 5th century BCE.
Japanophiles, this one's for you. Discover art and antiquities from all over Japan, plus a handful of other Asian countries at Tokyo National Museum. Highlights include Hokusai's iconic series of prints, Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji and exquisite Edo-era ceramics.
Despite the building itself needing a bit of TLC, The National Museum, New Delhi is a treasure trove of artefacts that range from the ancient Harappan Civilisation to modern works of art. Access hundreds of them via this tour.
Anne Frank and her family spent over two years hiding from Nazi execution in the annex of this 17th century house — which certainly puts our current lockdown into perspective. Learn more about what life was like here on this beautifully-presented and incredibly moving digital tour.
Get a taste of the finer things in life with a virtual visit to The Frick Collection on Manhattan's Upper East Side. This museum houses the art collection of industrialist Henry Clay Frick, which includes an array of Old Masters paintings, superb Italian bronzes, and fine furniture.
Israel's largest cultural institute is one of the world's leading encyclopaedic museums, with works dating from prehistory to the present day — but the jewel in its crown is undoubtedly the Dead Sea Scrolls, which are among the world's oldest biblical manuscripts. Pay them, and hundreds of other exhibits, a virtual visit here.
Take a trip down under with this virtual tour of the Australian Museum. This is your chance to get closer to the unique flora, fauna and cultures of Australia and the Pacific.
Feast your eyes on some of the Dutch Masters' finest accomplishments on a virtual tour of Amsterdam's famous Rijksmuseum. From Rembrandt's Night Watch to Vermeer's Milkmaid, there are plenty of masterpieces to discover — and it doesn't hurt that the museum is a work of art itself that seamlessly combines old and new architectural styles.
Travel back in time to 18th century Venice with a virtual visit to Ca'Rezzonico. This magnificent palazzo on the Grand Canal is bursting with baroque and rococo treasures, alongside paintings by famous Venetian artists like Francesco Guardi.
See Van Gogh's Irises, Manet's Spring, and loads more artistic treasures on this tour of the Getty in Los Angeles. If you could do with a dose Californian sunshine, you should also check out this Xplorit option, which guides you through the museum's Garden Terrace and Sculpture Plaza.
This virtual tour of Dallas's Frontiers of Flight Museum is a lot of fun for aviation buffs of all ages, with over 30 aircraft and space vehicles, plus vintage flight-related memorabilia.
Visit Raphael's Rooms, Pio Clementino Museum, and the Sistine Chapel without leaving your living room thanks to this spectacular series of virtual tours from the Vatican Museums. You can also access archaeological site including the Necropolis of the Via Triumphalis, a Roman-era cemetery discovered buried beneath the Vatican Gardens in 2003.
National Museum of Natural History (Washington DC)
Washington D.C's National Museum of Natural History, which is administered by the Smithsonian Institution, has brought over 145 million plants, animal and mineral specimens to the National Mall, and you can access loads of them on this user-friendly virtual tour. Be sure to visit Lucy — which, aged about 3.2 million years old, is one of the most intact early human skeletons ever found — while you're on it.
National Palace Museum (Taipei)
Image: Shutterstock
Discover one of the world's largest collections of ancient Imperial Chinese artefacts on a virtual tour of Taiwan's majestic National Palace Museum. On Google Arts & Culture, you can get up close to many of the museum's treasures, including its famous Jadeite Cabbage.
However, if you want to get a real feel for the museum, head to its website. Here, you can explore areas including The Palace of Health and Longevity, and The Garden of Tranquility and Compassion (all qualities that, in these extraordinary times, we're not taking for granted), both of which come with their own soothing soundtrack.
For the next few months normality has been wiped from London. Aside from the catastrophic human cost of coronavirus, businesses have been shut and people incarcerated in their own homes. When it's all over — and who knows when that might be — there's no guarantee of "normality" returning. In all likelihood some businesses will remain shut. But beyond closed doors, London's way of life might change too. Below we look at some possible transformations the coming months could bring.
No more microhousing?
Twitter has been abuzz with people lamenting their pre-pandemic choice to live in a confined space. The logic at the time had been: 'It doesn't matter the size of my room, I'm going to be out in London 90% of the time anyway.'
Now that we're all locked indoors, that thinking has gone out the window. And while those who live in cramped houseshares in zone 2 with people they don't really know, nor do they want to know — no Gary, I don't want to play Fortnite with you — think they have it bad; they're only the tip of the iceberg. For example what about those who live in microhousing?
Living in preposterously small spaces, has become a fetishised ideal in recent times. Aesthetically pleasing Youtube channels promote "micro living" as an answer for overcrowding, and lack of affordable property in the modern city. But it's hard to imagine anyone who will be eager to sign up to live in such a limited space in a post-pandemic lifestyle.
More love for our green spaces
Swan Lane Open Space
One of the byproducts of coronavirus life is a renewed focus on the city's green spaces. The government has come in for both criticism and praise for keeping parks open, arguing that the health benefits — both mental and physical — of keeping these spaces open, outweighs the risk of spreading the virus. This is in diametric opposition to what many other European countries have done. Some local authorities have taken matters into their own hands and closed their parks, a move which has caused an outcry of its own.
Right now there's plenty of talk of how cherished these spaces are, but that isn't always how they've been treated pre-coronavirus (see also the importance of the NHS). Lots of councils have made a regular habit of renting their green spaces out to music festivals and other private events. This denies regular use of the space to locals, while it also often damages the spaces themselves. Councils rent parks out because their budgets have been cut by years of austerity, and use these events to raise money for their other services. However, the order of which services people value most might be reshuffled by coronavirus, with parks set to benefit greatly in people's estimations. Perhaps we could see even greater resistance to privatisation of green spaces once this is all over.
Rental prices could come down
Photo: Shutterstock
While no industry will come out of Covid-19 unscathed, one of the worst hit is surely travel. Countries are closing their borders, airlines are asking for a government bailout, and hotels are closing for the foreseeable future. But not everyone who travels uses hotels... at least, they didn't used to.
Short term holiday lettings companies like AirBnB had eaten a huge chunk of their market share. And while these companies began offering folks a way to make some extra cash from a spare room, they quickly morphed into something else entirely — entire properties were reserved for these sorts of lettings, eating into a finite resource the city doesn't have enough of: housing stock.
The government has tried to legislate to stop entire properties being used as short-term holiday lets year round, but the rules are frequently broken and rarely enforced. However, there are early signs that coronavirus has done what government legislation has failed to. The uncertainty in the travel market means that short term letting bookings have dried up, and these properties are now being put on the regular long-term rental market. There's early evidence that this influx of new property is being listed at cheaper prices than the market usually operates at. While this price undercutting probably won't last post-pandemic, the precariousness of the short-term lettings game might mean that property owners decide to stick to long-term lets instead. And an increase in the housing supply should push prices down.
Working from home becomes the norm
The changing of attitude to the three little letters 'wfh' was happening even before coronavirus — TfL had hypothesised that falling ridership numbers could be down to this — but the pandemic has the power to be the rapid catalyst that could change the way we work forever. First of all, let's clarify something. Not everyone can work from home, and it's often the essential workers (one side effect of the pandemic is unveiling who actually is key to society functioning) who can't.
But for the rest of us, especially those in the creative agencies, or with white collar jobs, working from home is eminently doable. In fact, for many of us, it's preferable (you can stay in your PJs all day, what's not to love!). With many London-transplants heading "home home" to wait out the pandemic somewhere with a garden, it's even raised the question of whether people need to move to London for their job.
Now as soon as this all blows over, we're sure many people will jump for joy at the idea of returning to the office... initially. But once that novelty of being out of the house wears off, perhaps you'll experience a yearning for the relaxed pace of that wfh life.
Bidets become a bathroom essential
Image: Wikicommons
No toilet paper, no worries!
Do you have any predictions for how coronavirus could change the city forever? We'd love to hear them in the comments below
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Every new plane introduced to an air force behaves differently and with the introduction of the fifth-generation Su-57 fighter, Russian pilots have had to adapt their solo and formation flying skills as well as perform high-level aerobatic manoeuvres – something they have now successfully achieved.
The fighter jet manoeuvres usually seen at air shows, while appearing genuinely astonishing and jaw-dropping, actually serve practical purposes – to outperform an opponent, gain an upper hand, and ultimately win a dogfight.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said that coronavirus could cause between 100,000 and 200,000 deaths in the U.S. https://t.co/GCtnBWcypFpic.twitter.com/7Nhj2s8K92
Serbian military sets up the beds inside Hall 1 of the Belgrade Fair to accommodate people who suffer mild symptoms of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Belgrade, Serbia, March 24, 2020. REUTERS/Marko Djurica
LONDON (Reuters) - How much damage has the coronavirus and the oil price collapse inflicted on global financial markets this year? Put simply, it has probably been the most destructive sell-off since the Great Depression.
The numbers have been staggering. $15 trillion has been wiped of world stock markets .MIWD00000PUS, oil has slumped 60% as Saudi Arabia and Russia have started a price war and emerging markets like Brazil, Mexico and South Africa have seen their currencies plummet more than 20%.
Volatility and corporate borrowing market stress has spiked on worries that whole sectors could go bust, airlines .dMIWO0AL00PUS have had half their value vaporized, while cratering economies risk a new wave of government debt crises.
"It has been like a train wreck," Chris Dyer, Director of Global Equity at Eaton Vance, said. "You could see it coming and coming and coming, but you just couldn't stop it happening." Read more ....
WNU Editor: I agree with this sentence from the above Reuters report ....
.... "These are truly historical moments in the history of financial markets. 2020 will go alongside 1929, 1987 and 2008 in the text books of financial market panics," Deutsche Bank Strategist, Jim Reid, said.
Sanderson Farms, a large poultry manufacturer and Smithfield Foods, the world's largest pork producer, have both reported their first couple of positive cases of coronavirus.
This raises the obvious question: what happens when people critical to the world's food supply start to fall ill?
As of now, there has been no such disruption - but it is beginning to morph into a massive threat, Bloomberg notes, with workers in close quarters preparing and processing food globally. Aside from the obvious threat of food not making it to consumers, things like fruits may also wind up rotting in fields if there aren't enough workers to pick and cultivate them.
Read more .... WNU Editor: The world's richest nations will make sure that their supply chains for food will function normally. Heaven help the rest of the world who are too poor to make such a guarantee.
* Scientists around the world have been sequencing virus DNA to track the spread * There are eight strains identified, but all are very similar with tiny variations * Experts say that no strain appears to be more lethal than any of the others * It's also highly unlikely that the virus could mutate into a more lethal strain * Coronavirus appears to mutate very slowly, giving hope for long-lasting vaccine
Scientists around the world are tracking at least eight strains of coronavirus around the world, using genetic detective work to show how the virus spreads.
Researchers say the virus appears to mutate very slowly, with only tiny differences between the different strains, and that none of the strains of the virus is more deadly than another.
They also say it does not appear the strains will grow more lethal as they evolve.
Police fired tear gas at a crowd of Kenyan ferry commuters as the country's first day of a coronavirus curfew slid into chaos. Elsewhere, officers were captured in mobile phone footage whacking people with batons.
Virus prevention measures have taken a violent turn in parts of Africa as countries impose lockdowns and curfews or seal off major cities. Health experts say the virus' spread, though still at an early stage, resembles the arc seen in Europe, adding to widespread anxiety. Cases across Africa were set to climb above 4,000 late Saturday.
Abuses of the new measures by authorities are an immediate concern.
While the wealthy Gulf states will be fine, the other countries have a major challenge ahead of them.
The number of cases of coronavirus in the Middle East increased to more than 50,000 on Saturday night, and continues to rise everyday by the thousands.
More than half of the cases are in Iran, where official numbers put them at 35,000. However, the real number in the Islamic Republic is thought to be as much as five times that, according to the WHO.
* People are now allowed to enter the city and hundreds arrived on metro services * Citizens are still not allowed to leave the city and shops are still shut * City placed under lockdown in January with roadblocks ring-fencing outskirts * In China, more than 80,000 have been infected, with 3,295 reported deaths
Angry crowds rioted near the Chinese city of Wuhan after the region's two-month coronavirus lockdown was lifted but residents were told they could not travel elsewhere in China.
Shocking footage showed a mob overturning a police van on a bridge linking Wuhan, which is the capital of Hubei Province, and neighbouring Jiangxi.
The violent scenes came despite a move by the authorities on Saturday to allow people into Wuhan from elsewhere in the country for the first time since coronavirus emerged in the city in late December last year.
* Only Italy's single-day death tally is worse than Spain's - with a total of 969 * New Spanish Ministry of Health figures show 78,797 people have been infected * It comes after the country ordered all but non-essential workers to stay indoors
Spain has suffered its worst day yet as 838 die from coronavirus as the country's death total soars to 6,528.
It surpasses the death toll for the previous 24 hours, announced yesterday morning by six.
Only Italy's single-day death tally is worse than Spain's - with 969 dying there from coronavirus in the 24 hours between Thursday and Friday.
* Death toll in Italy alone accounts for third of all deaths from the bug world-wide * The total number of confirmed cases in country rose to 97,689 from 92,472 * At least 50 medics have died while trying to contain spread of Covid-19 in Italy * National Federation of Orders of Surgeons and Dentists updated list of doctors * Coffins from Bergamo, Northern Italy, are being moved to less affected regions
Italy's coronavirus death toll has skyrocketed by 756 in one day, bringing the country's total fatalities to 10,779.
The death toll in Italy alone - the highest in the world - accounts for a third of all fatalities from the bug world-wide.
The total number of confirmed cases in the country rose to 97,689 from a previous 92,472 today, the lowest daily rise in new cases since Wednesday.
* Donald Trump said Sunday that the administration is extending the coronavirus guidelines, originally imposed for 15 days, until April 30 – a 30 day extension * He admitted that his Easter deadline for the country to be up and running was just an 'aspiration' * The president also said that it's likely the fast-spreading respiratory virus will peak in two weeks, which is right around Easter * 'The modeling estimates that the peak is likely to hit in two weeks,' he said during his daily coronavirus task force briefing at the White House on Sunday
Donald Trump said Sunday the administration's coronavirus task force's 15-day plan to reduce the spread of the disease is being extended 30 days, which is weeks past his Easter deadline.
He also claimed during his daily press briefing at the White House Sunday evening that the peak of coronavirus is expected to hit in two weeks, even though the death toll in the U.S. doubled from 1,000 to 2,000 in just one day.
Video of Dr. Fauci telling @jaketapper that "Looking at what we're seeing now, I would say between 100,000 and 200,000 cases... excuse me, deaths. I mean, we're going to have millions of cases." #CNNSOTU
* Dr Anthony Fauci on Sunday morning estimated the US could see between 100,000 and 200,000 deaths * 'We're going to have millions of cases,' he said, adding that he did not want to be held to that number because the pandemic is 'such a moving target' * Fauci offered his prognosis as the federal government weighs rolling back guidelines on social distancing * He said he would only support such action in lesser impacted areas if there is enhanced testing in place * As of Sunday morning, there were more than 132,000 positive cases and more than 2,300 deaths in the US * New York City remains the epicenter of the nation's outbreak, with 33,786 cases and 678 deaths * Several other cities including Detroit, Chicago and New Orleans are being monitored as potential hotspots * Dr Deborah Birx, the White House's coronavirus response coordinator, said Sunday: 'Every metro area should assume that they will have an outbreak equivalent to New York'
Dr Anthony Fauci, the government's foremost infection disease expert, says the United States could experience more than 100,000 deaths and millions of infections from the coronavirus pandemic.
Fauci offered his prognosis in an interview with CNN's State of the Union on Sunday morning, as the federal government weighs rolling back guidelines on social distancing.
'I would say between 100,000 and 200,000 cases,' he said, correcting himself to say he meant deaths. 'We're going to have millions of cases.' But he added 'I don't want to be held to that' because the pandemic is 'such a moving target'.
The bleak projection comes as the US leads the world in coronavirus infections, with 132,647 reported to date. The nationwide death toll reached 2,355 on Sunday, more than doubling figures reported two days earlier.
Ministers and senior Downing Street officials said the Communist state now faces a 'reckoning' over its handling of the outbreak and risks becoming a 'pariah state'. People are pictured in the city of Wuhan after lockdown restrictions were relaxed
* Ministers demand review of Britain's relationship with Communist super-state * It comes amid fury over China's misinformation blitz around Covid-19 outbreak * PM urged to block deal with technology giant Huawei to build UK's 5G network
China's behaviour during the coronavirus pandemic will eventually result in a 'reckoning' in relations with Beijing, close allies of Boris Johnson have warned.
Senior Ministers think China risks becoming a pariah state unless there are sweeping reforms when the crisis abates, and they are demanding an urgent review of Britain's relationship with the Communist super-state.
It comes as the Prime Minister faces renewed Cabinet pressure to block the deal with the Chinese technology giant Huawei to build vast swathes of Britain's 5G network.
WNU Editor: People I trust believe China underestimated their number of cases by a factor of 5 or 10. I give it a couple years before Beijing tells us the real number of cases and deaths in their country.
Long-delayed parliamentary elections overshadowed by kidnapping of opposition leader, concerns over coronavirus.
Polls have closed in Mali's long-delayed parliamentary elections which were held despite concerns about security and the coronavirus pandemic.
Sunday's vote came hours after the violence-hit West African country announced its first coronavirus death and days after main opposition leader Soumaila Cisse was kidnapped by unidentified gunmen.
The vote was expected to see new MPs elected to the 147-seat National Assembly for the first time since 2013, when President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita's Rally for Mali party won a substantial majority.
Parliamentary elections were meant to take place again in late 2018 following Keita's re-election, but the poll was postponed several times, largely due to security concerns.
After Sunday's first-round vote, a second round is scheduled for April 19.
French Foreign Legion soldiers from the Operation Barkhane Counterterrorism Force taking positions as Merlin helicopters land in the Liptako-Gourma zone in northeastern Mali.
Riding along with French troops hunting Islamist militants in France's unwinnable West African war.
AWAGATE FOREST, MALI — For two days, dozens of armored vehicles carrying 180 elite soldiers with the French Foreign Legion lumbered over West Africa's scrubby savanna to reach a suspected hide-out for Islamist militants.
Finally, by a thicket of acacia trees, the legionnaires spotted a turbaned suspect in flip-flops, carrying an AK-47, who set off at a sprint and melted away in the distance. The soldiers found only his gun, boots, and ammunition holster under a thorny fence, and presented the findings to their officer.
"A bit of a modest result,'' said Col. Nicolas Meunier, commanding officer of the French desert battle group.
When France sent its forces into Mali, a former French colony, after armed Islamists took control of the West African country's northern cities, their mission was supposed to last only a few weeks.
That was seven years ago.
Since then, the terrorist threat has spread across a vast sweep of land south of the Sahara known as the Sahel, and France's counterterrorism fight has spread with it. As a result, more than 10,000 West Africans have died, over a million have fled their homes and military forces from West Africa and France have suffered many losses.
And still, the battle is hardly finished. The Islamic State in the Greater Sahara, a potent armed group with loose ties to the Islamic State, has been conducting sophisticated attacks in the border regions of Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso. In the past four months, militants have raided four major military outposts in Mali and Niger, killing 300 soldiers.
The militant group's refusal represents a setback for US-brokered peace talks
The Taliban refused to begin talks with the Afghan government's new negotiating team on Saturday, in a setback to the US-brokered peace process for one of the world's longest-running conflicts.
Spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the militants could not talk to the 21-member team named on Thursday as it had not been constituted taking all parties into account. The team is headed by Masoom Stanekzai, an ex-security chief and supporter of president Ashraf Ghani, and includes politicians, former officials and representatives of civil society. Five members are women.
"In order to reach true and lasting peace, the aforementioned team must be agreed upon by all effective Afghan sides so that it can represent all sides," said Mujahid.
* The US Navy Ship Comfort departed for New York on Saturday * Trump called the hospital ship a 'message of hope' for New Yorkers * The ship will provide 1,000 extra beds and 1,200 medical staff to the city * It is expected to dock in Manhattan on Monday * The situation in New York is dramatically escalating the cases jumped by iver 7,000 to 52,318 on Saturday * The death toll in the state is now at 728 * Earlier on Saturday, Trump claimed he would quarantine New York * Gov. Andrew Cuomo pushed back saying 'I don't like the sound of it'
President Donald Trump sent a 'message of hope' to the people of New York on Saturday as he sent off Navy hospital ship USNS Comfort to begin its journey to the city stricken with drastically increasing coronavirus cases.
The ship, traveling from the naval station in Norfolk, Virginia, will supply the city at the epicenter of the country's coronavirus crisis with 1,000 extra beds as well as 1,200 medical staff.
Deaths in the state rose by 209 on Saturday to a death toll of 728 people as cases in the city alone hit over 29,000.
Trump told the struggling New York 'we're here for you', despite earlier causing tension with the state's governor Andrew Cuomo for revealing his plans to quarantine New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.
Dr. Anthony Fauci says there could potentially be between 100,000 to 200,000 deaths related to the coronavirus and millions of cases. "I just don't think that we really need to make a projection when it's such a moving target, that you could so easily be wrong," he adds. #CNNSOTUpic.twitter.com/F2MOHY3xl4
A lot of readers want to know how I am doing during this "crisis", and what I am actually doing in my chalet deep in the woods and in front of a lake in the Laurentians of Quebec.
So here is a brief summary.
First things first. I have been sleeping a lot. In normal times I usually need about 7 hours. But not in the past two weeks. I am easily doing 8 or 9 hours, and I need a nap in the middle of the day. Granted the fresh air always knocks me out in the beginning, but I think stress and worry on what is happening to others have made me wanting to sleep more.
I am reading a lot of books (at least one a day). Being the co-founder of the world's second oldest online library .... Bookyards .... gives me access to a lot of books, not only from my own library, but from publishers, authors, and other online libraries. I am currently reading Isaac Asimov's complete Foundation series.
I am getting a lot of interview requests from radio and TV stations in Russia and Ukraine. There is a lot of public interest on what is happening in the U.S. and Canada, and I am trying to do my best to inform people in the "old country" on what is happening here.
I am getting a lot of phone/messenger/and skype calls. A lot of people I know are worried and stressed. Fortunately my family is OK. With the exception of my brother who is freaking out on what is happening in the Bay area of San Francisco and one of my cousins in Ukraine who is battling cancer, everyone else is calm and hoping that this crisis will pass sooner rather than later.
Everyone also wants to know how is my mom doing. She is 93 (next month she will be 94), and she is OK. She is truly someone who has seen it all, so this pandemic is just another event in her very long life.
I am cooking a lot. Made borscht, chicken soup, homemade pizza, bread and baguettes this week. Beef stroganoff is on the menu today.
Chopping a lot of wood. I have the tools, the fallen trees, and a wood splitter. If the economy completely collapses, I am going into the firewood business.
Playing a lot of chess against the computer. When I was young (13 years old), my ranking was at the expert level. If I had played in a few more tournaments, I would probably have become a Master or higher. One of my regrets in my life.
Playing a lot of music (I play the accordion and guitar), as well as listening to a lot of music on YouTube. I listen to everything. From classical to what's popular today.
Took the telescope out of storage and have used it twice in the past week. The stars are incredible at this time of year. A hot thermos of tea and watching the stars is my idea of chilling.
Doing a lot of thinking on what will be the geopolitical, military, and economic impact of this pandemic. A crisis always produces change and a lot of opportunities. And this is one huge crisis that has produced many opportunities. I have a few ideas. Will be posting them in the coming weeks.
As for WNU. I am the first to admit that my productivity has crashed. I am functioning at about 25% since the start of this crisis, and I know that I can do better. It is just a question of focusing and making the necessary commitment of time. So without saying anything else. It is back to blogging.
P.S. I just want to say thank you for all the emails, notes, and comments that have been sent my way in the past two weeks. Your messages and kind words are always appreciated.
It’s time to saddle up and ride out, for Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord entered early access this morning. The long-awaited follow-up to Warband (one of the best RPGs, don’t you know?) will once again send us out to ride around a sandbox medieval world, raising armies, politicking, laying siege, and charging around big battlefields with hundreds of soldiers throwing down. But if you’d rather wait for the full and finished game, it’s expected to leave early access in “around a year.” For now, onwards to the launch trailer!
Some of you will remember 2002’s Soldat, a side-scrolling 2D shoot ’em up with multiplayer and jetpacks. You lot might be especially interested in the free demo for Soldat 2, which is the same thing but without the multiplayer. It’s being made by Michal Marcinkowski, the same guy who did the original.
I’m not tainted by nostalgia, and I enjoyed myself too. It’s pretty good! It makes me miss The Showdown Effect.
Rejoice, keyboard deals hunters, as Fnatic’s Streak and miniStreak mechanical gaming keyboards have had their prices slashed once again over on Amazon UK. This time, it’s the Cherry MX Brown versions of the Streak and tenkeyless miniStreak that are mainly on offer, with the Streak going for a third off at £90, down from its usual £120, and the miniStreak for £75, which £15 cheaper than normal. Fnatic’s older Rush keyboards are also on sale, too, so come on down and let’s get this keyboard deals party started.
Ostriv is a Ukrainian town building game set in the early 1700s. If I tell you how it works, it will sound like every other city builder, and that would do this delightful game a disservice.
So instead, I’m going to show you what happens when you tell your little villagers to build a house.
Five years after Absolute Drift, Funselektor have found themselves behind the wheel once again. This week, the minimalist driving developers released a free demo for Art Of Rally, a top-down distillation of the (objectively best) motorsport that takes Absolute Drift’s textureless powerslides and lets them loose on delightfully toy-like Nordic forest tracks.
What happens after World Of Warcraft: Classic? It’s something the MMO throwback was always going to have to deal with, eventually. There’s only so much content to revisit after all. As Classic’s expiration date slowly draws closer, Blizzard have begun asking players what they’d like to see next – specifically, whether they’re ready to head back through the Dark Portal in a Classic-style return to World Of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade.
Screenshot Saturday Sundays! A virtual picturebook of holiday snaps from across the game development globe, delivered straight to Twitter’s doorstep every seven days. This week, we’re basically running down good lockdown practice: wash up often, eat well, and remember to take a nice walk now and again. Maybe don’t go hopping on trains right now, mind.
It feels criminal to do this to Doom Eternal. Doom is the ur-FPS. Not the first, by any means, but the most – the first-person shooter we’ve been chasing for decades. In their own act of heresy, though, modders have plucked the eyes from our Doom Slayer and hung them a few feet behind his rear, turning Doom Eternal’s meaty in-your-face gorefest into a ludicrously nippy third-person adventure.
CORONAVIRUS could be the start of a new Cold War scenario, as the US and China continue to point the finger at each other, former Ministry of Defence Minister Tobias Ellwood has warned Express.co.uk.
GERMANY are set to introduce "immunity certificates" to those who have recovered from catching the coronavirus in a bid to end lockdowns across the country.
EGYPT archaeologist Chris Naunton believes there are still around 100 tombs of high-ranking officials to be uncovered including an "entire dynasty" lost to time.
A MIRACULOUS 101-year-old has recovered from COVID-19 after being discharged from hospital in Italy - meaning he has survived not one, but two global pandemics, having been born in the midst of the Spanish Flu outbreak.
SPAIN's government has issued clarification over which essential workers will still be allowed to work, following tougher lockdown restrictions introduced on Saturday.
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NEW DELHI | MUMBAI: The country's largest two-wheeler manufacturer Hero MotoCorp said it's invoking force majeure to suspend full payments to vendors, since it has "no visibility of receivables," with sales having come to a standstill because of the Covid-19 lockdown. Hero MotoCorp told them that BS-4 and BS-6 vehicles remained unsold at dealerships, which will remain shut at least until mid-April, when the three-week lockdown is scheduled to end."In this situation, we are left with no other option but to invoke force majeure and regret to inform that HMCL will not be in a position to meet all its obligations," the company told its suppliers in a letter that ET has seen.The decision follows the Supreme Court refusing to grant an extension of the March 31 deadline by which sales of BS-4 vehicles have to stop, despite the lockdown. It, however, allowed 10% of remaining BS-4 stock to be sold in 10 days after the lockdown gets over, except in Delhi-NCR, in its ruling on Friday. Hero is understood to have the largest share of the total stock of 700,000 unsold BS-4 scooters and motorcycles in the country.The company told ET it was doing its best under trying circumstances. "Hero has always supported its stakeholders, and will continue to do so," it said in an email. "Despite the challenging circumstances... we are prioritising payments process to make full and on-time payments to large number of MSMEs and small vendors." "Our other vendors are also receiving payments, albeit in a phased manner on account of the current situation. In fact, we have paid all our contractual workers well in advance for the full month, as they have been the ones impacted most adversely," the company said.The company told vendors that bill discounting facilities have been withdrawn effective immediately. It will release payments to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and suppliers it owes up to Rs 2.5 crore as of March 23 — they will be paid in full as per standard payment terms. Hero MotoCorp said it made payments up to March 22 as per the regular cycle but will not be able to maintain its track record of timely payments."We are monitoring the situation closely and would like to confirm that despite these difficult times, Hero MotoCorp will release 25% of the due amount on all the future payment dates and balance amount will remain pending until fund position return to normal," the company said. "We are reviewing our ability to pay on a daily basis and may amend the payment favorably for the supply chain partners in future."The company told suppliers that they had weathered challenges together before."First during global recession in 2009 and then during demonetisation in 2016, (the company) stood firm and met all its obligations in a timely manner including payment to its supply chain partners," it said in the communication. "However, the impact of Covid-19 took the world by storm."On Saturday, the company had told dealers it will take back all unsold BS-4 stocks in NCR and will extend some financial support to dealers in other parts of India."Not just dealers — the entire ecosystem needs support at a time like this," said a person aware of the development, who didn't want to be identified.While Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India, Suzuki Motorcycle India, Yamaha, Bajaj Auto and Royal Enfield have honoured payments to vendors, TVS Motor Company has assured payments to suppliers, said people aware of the matter. Indian automobile companies have to move to the more stringent BS-6 emission standard on April 1.
NEW DELHI: The Centre is identifying emerging "hotspots" of Covid-19 infection and employing a rigorous cluster containment strategy which involves demarcating an area of 3 kilometre radius around epicentre, a buffer zone of additional 5 kilometre radius and ensuring all quarantine protocols are followed here.The health ministry is studying data and identifying probable hotspots of Covid-19 which need to be better monitored so that the infection does not spread. Joint secretary (health) Lav Agarwal said, "We are studying emerging hot spots and these are being identified after which a rigorous containment policy is being followed." The number of confirmed cases at 4 pm on Sunday had increased to 979 with 25 deaths. Over the last 24 hours, 106 new positive cases and six deaths from different states have been reported. 74879471 The rigorous containment strategy or the micro plan for containing local transmission involves first identifying the house of a Covid-19 positive patient and then tracing contact list and mapping all of them. In a scenario where this is taking time, the protocol is to demarcate an area of 3 kilometre radius as the epicentre. This epicentre would be the containment zone which would be sealed. All residents within this area would be asked to stay indoors and sanitisation would take place. Health workers in surveillance teams would be asked to go doorto-door and seek details such as number of people in a house, their age, gender and their health status, including any underlying conditions. A daily check would be kept on these. A 5 kilometre radius buffer zone would also be demarcated.The strategy to identify containment zones has been evolved after areas like Bhilwara have emerged as pockets showing quick spread of infection. The containment plan would involve the last-mile health worker in identifying such clusters, house-to-house visits, keeping a track of active cases and their contacts, maintaining a list of suspected cases and their contacts and ensuring all protocols of home quarantine are followed. Every health worker should be set a target of 50 houses in a day. Agarwal said, "The reason behind following this containment policy is to ensure that if there is any suspected case we quarantine them and if he develops symptoms proper medical treatment is given at the right time." Secretary (health) Preeti Sudan took a meeting with state health secretaries on Sunday and took stock of isolation and quarantine facilities. The Centre has directed the states that there should not be any cohorting of infected patients with non -Covid patients.
While the country has gone into a lockdown to halt the march of the Covid-19 virus, the stock market crash triggered by the global panic may be good news for long-term investors. Valuations have crashed and could fall further over recession fears. Narendra Nathan tells investors what they should do in these circumstances.There might be a silver lining to this once in a decade crashDespite short-term pains, the crash is a good accumulation opportunity for long-term investors. Previous crashes have wiped out more than 50% of the Sensex value. 74862245 Sensex PE is below long term averageWith Sensex PE close to 10-year lows, start buying in staggered manner. 74862257 Warning: Trailing PE have touched lower levels in previous bear markets over fears of fall in future earnings.Dividend yield is a good valuation toolDividend yield is at reasonable levels, another nudge to start buying. 74862266 It makes sense to buy cheapSince we are already in fair valuation zone, investors can start buying. 74862283 10-year Sensex CAGR is at 15-year lowA very low 10-year CAGR indicates that investors can start buying slowly. 74862291 Sensex dividend yield is close to 10-year highStart buying slowly and hike investments if the dividend yield goes up further. 74862295 Warning: Companies may cut dividends in coming year and dividend yield may fall again in futureHistorical low returns can be good newsHistorical 10-year CAGR turned negative only once in 2002-03. Any fall from current levels should be used to buy more as it may mean good future returns. 74862307
KOLKATA: All bank branches across the country will be operational from Monday following a advisory from the government as pressure on bank branches is likely to mount due to salary and pension payment.The department of financial services (DFS) told banks to keep all banking channels open and ensure branches and business correspondents function throughout the lockdown period, so that people do not face any hassle in their financial transactions.DFS advisory will also aimed that servicing rural customers who are likely to be benefited under the government's Rs 1.7 lakh crore financial assistance package amid coronavirus-led business disruptions. Branches will however remain open from 10 in the morning to 2 in the afternoon.The advisory for running the branches with skeleton staff and on providing the basic minimum services however remains unchanged. Cash deposit and withdrawal, clearing of cheques, remittance services, government transactions and ATM services as listed as essential banking services.Last week, banks were following cluster-wise banking under which a single branch of a particular bank was functioning within a 5 km radius in urban and semi urban localities. Rural branches were open on alternate days. Reserve Bank of India has also announced special measures for annual closing FY20 for government accounts. Accordingly, banks will have to ensure that all government transactions are accounted for within the same financial year. The banking regulator advised banks to keep the over-the-counter windows open up to normal hours on March 31 for government transactions. The RTGS facility will be available for extended period on March 31 while special clearing of cheques will be carried out.
Mumbai: The government's relief package for those hit the worst by the Covid-19 lockdown will need to quickly overcome operational and logistical hurdles in order to be effective, as it involves the direct transfer of such handouts through Aadhaar-linked bank accounts.The finance ministry said ₹1.75 lakh crore will be given to "80 crore poorest Indians" under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY) over three months starting April 1.Participants in the direct benefit transfer (DBT) architecture such as banks, ATM operators, Bank Mitras and fintech companies running payment systems aren't sure if the process will function seamlessly.Challenges include having adequate cash in ATMs, operational efficiency of the Aadhaar-enabled Payment System (AePS) at scale and the negligible digital payment acceptance infrastructure in rural areas, where there aren't too many cash machines in any case, they said. A significant number of people still don't have bank accounts and many of those that do haven't linked them with Aadhaar.Constraints Faced by Bank MitrasThere are an estimated 1.1 billion operational bank accounts, of which 800 million have been seeded with Aadhaar."The low acceptance of digital payments is definitely a challenge in rural areas," according to State Bank of India (SBI) chairman Rajnish Kumar."It is however an awareness and habit issue as well. We are urging all our customers to use digital means to transact as much as possible."The DBT model depends on the JAM (Jan Dhan-Aadhaar-Mobile) architecture to directly remit government-sanctioned welfare funds to beneficiary bank accounts. That raises questions about how relief funds will be given to those without bank accounts, especially migrant workers.Of the 230,000 ATMs in the country, only 45,000 are in rural areas, as per Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data."Cash for white-label ATMs is normally sourced from local bank branches but with the low inflow of cash to bank branches in these areas due to reduced commerce, we are now facing cash shortages resulting in a number of ATMs being unavailable to the needy," said Rustom Irani, MD and CEO of cash business, Hitachi Payment Services, which maintains cash machines in India.74880932 CASH CONCERNSInadequate supply could lead to a dash for cash in an economy where over 90% of combined rural and urban retail spends are still made with paper money, said a stakeholder."An immediate concern is transfer of foodstock from rural to urban areas where almost the entire logistics is driven by cash," said the person.Restrictions on movement mean that regular maintenance of ATMs becomes difficult, making them prone to malfunction."There are on-ground challenges related to the concerned staff not being able to commute and render their work owing to fear and confusion," said Ravi Goyal, chairman of AGS Transact, an ATM service provider for banks.Under these circumstances, much of the burden for conversion of relief funds to currency notes for the urban and rural poor may fall upon the country's estimated 1 million Bank Mitras or outsourced banking agents. Several concerns on the operation of these agents have also come to fore."Only 30% of our Bank Mitras have been able to ply due to travel restrictions imposed by local area authorities despite their services being classified as essential by the government," said Seema Prem, CEO of FIA technology, a financial inclusion service.Furthermore, these agents, who also act as micro ATM points, allowing rural customers to withdraw cash through the AePS, don't have enough currency notes due to the halt in economic activity. Some are using previous experience as a guide."We are treating our experiences during demonetisation as a preparation for coronavirus," said Anand Bajaj, CEO PayNearby, a leading AePS facilitator.The sudden spike in transaction traffic owing to DBT withdrawals may also put pressure on the AePS infrastructure, where failure rates are higher than other digital payment channels. Transaction failures in AePS in some zones are as high as 45%, said a person with knowledge of the matter."In the absence of any directions from the finance ministry, it would require coordinated efforts of the entire banking and payments ecosystem to reach out to these unbanked citizens for transfer of relief funds," said a top official wishing not to be named.
New Delhi: Power plants have been exempted from advance coal and freight payments for three months, which will prevent supply disruption during the lockdown and give a major relief to generating firms, particularly in the private sector.A senior ministry official said the short-term dispensation was requested by private power companies that constitute 35% of Indian electricity generation base as they cited cash crunch due to non-payment by discoms. State and central generating companies including NTPC also face the problems but the power ministry on Friday directed them to supply electricity to even defaulting state electricity distribution companies through a three- month moratorium.The official said power minister R K Singh has written to coal minister Pralhad Joshi and railways minister Piyush Goyal seeking the exemption for three months to maintain electricity supply as the country remains in lockdown till April 14. The Reserve Bank has allowed financial institutions to give a moratorium of three months on repayment of loans, however Covid-19 poses a challenge in terms of recovery of dues from state electricity distribution companies.A coal ministry official said the power ministry's demand was being evaluated though with Rs 14,000 crore outstanding receivables from state run power projects, Coal India is stretched for funds. "Realisations from them are likely to be long-drawn under the present challenging times," he said. A railway ministry official said they were yet to receive communication from the power ministry.ET reported on March 24 that Covid-19 is expected to have a major impact on India's power sector with distribution companies halting payments to generation companies as states electricity departments are not taking coercive actions to recover bills from consumers. Recovery of electricity dues by state discoms takes place in a big way in March every year.According to the Praapti portal of the Union power ministry, the outstanding amount of discoms stands at Rs 86,931 crore, of which Rs 76,063 crore is overdue.Association of Power Producers Ashok Khurana said, "With overhang of about 40,000crs of receivables of private power plants, moratorium for three months to distribution utilities for payment of dues without any back-to-back package for generators is bound to disrupt power supply. Therefore deferred payment facilities for coal and freight for equivalent period or linked to disbursal of funds from discoms needs to be provided to private plants."Meanwhile, Coal India recorded highest daily production of 3.54 million tonnes on March 27, with its arm South Eastern Coalfields contributing one million tonne. Another arm Northern Coalfields Ltd achieved coal production target of 106.25 million tonnes days ahead of fiscal completion. Due to high output and lower demand from industries, coal stocks have piled over 107 million tonnes, an all-time high.A senior government official said that the coal companies have already extended relief to consumers and state and central power generating companies are being supplied coal without advanced payments. The company has been giving more time to consumers for payments under spot auctions and lifting of coal.Based on requests from non-power consumers, CIL has asked Indian Railways to defer coal loading of rakes for non-power consumers who do not have their own unloading systems inside their plants or have to unload rakes at other sidings.
Mumbai: The 14% bounce in Indian stock indices in the last four sessions could face hurdles in the days ahead amid rising cases of coronavirus in India and elsewhere. Analysts expect the Nifty to fall back below 8,000 levels and even touch 7,500, as the global economy faces its worst phase since the global financial crisis of 2008-09. The Nifty ended up 0.2% at 8,660 on Friday and the Sensex ended down 0.4% at 29,815.Overseas investors have reduced their selling of stocks over the past two trading sessions, which have soothed nerves, but various indicators are still not giving market participants the comfort to assume that the worst is over. FPIs are still holding their short positions after the March series expiry which saw the Nifty logging its worst series decline since 2008. For the stock market to keep the positive momentum going, the Nifty has to cross 9,000."Unless we go above 9,000, it will go down again. 9,000 level is 38% retracement from the previous sell-off. Failure to cross 9,000 would mean it would head back to 7,500 or a lower range," said Rohit Srivastava, founder, Indiacharts.Options data show highest open interest among Nifty call options at 9,000 strike in the April series; while among put options, the 7,500 strike holds the highest open interest.Rajesh Palviya, head-technical and derivatives research at Axis Securities, says it remains to be seen if FIIs continue to be net buyers after Friday. "Until we cross 9,200, we cannot say bottom is made. If things worsen on the coronavirus front, we can again go to 7,500."On Friday, the Reserve Bank of India joined global central banks in easing monetary policy, slashing interest rates by 75 basis points and pumping additional liquidity into the banking system to cushion the financial system from the downturn caused by the pandemic. The government earlier announced a relief package to help the poor on Thursday. Investors think rate cuts alone will not help and are rooting for a stimulus by the government for the industry, which has been devastated by the 21-day lockdown."Although the government's Rs 1.7 trillion package (0.83% of GDP) addressess some of the most basic issues, it pales in comparison with both the scale of the problem and what is being done by other countries. Among the various measures announced, some do not bear much incremental cost to the government and also have little impact in terms of creating a stimulus," said Emkay Global in a note. Moreover, the moratorium will defer but not remove the asset quality risk for banks, said Emkay.Brokerage reports following the announcement of 21-day lockdown also indicate that the worst is not yet over. Many are expecting the lockdown to be extended further."Markets will remain volatile as the economic impact of the lockdown will be severe while stimulus packages will help to contain the damage. How long the closure of businesses are done needs to be seen," said Rajat Rajgarhia, CEO, Motilal Oswal Institutional Equities."These are unprecedented events - every macro-economic parameter is all over the place for next 1-2 quarters... A clear downtrend in the Covid-19 cases are critical for markets to have an uptrend," said Rajgarhia.
MUMBAI: Big corporates and wealthy individuals, categorised as "client" by the NSE are trading very light on index futures — Nifty and Bank Nifty — amid curbs by Sebi to rein in excessive volatility and a nationwide lockdown.Clients most often take contrary positions to FIIs. However, their outstanding net longs in index futures were only 2,720 contracts on March 27 (Friday). They were net short 3,765 contracts on January 13, just four trading sessions before the Nifty hit a record high of 12,430.50 on January 20.The FIIs' cumulative net shorts on index futures were 51,991 contracts on March 27. Proprietary brokers were net short by 2,262 contracts. Those cumulatively net long were DIIs, holding 51,533 contracts.This means what index futures DIIs have net purchased were sold largely by FIIs and prop brokers.Market constituents were varied in their opinion for the light positions.Rajesh Palviya, Derivatives Head, Axis Securities, said the nationwide lockdown had impacted the market participation while Rohit Srivastava, Founder, IndiaCharts, attributed them to the Sebi's recent curbs on large players' positions.Whatever the reason, the impact is visible in shallow trading of index options also. Many a time traders long or short index futures partly or fully hedge themselves by taking offsetting positions on index options.NSE provisional data for Nifty options expiring April 30 show the sell quantity of 8,700 strike at-the -money call options at a paltry 75 shares while the bid quantity is 750 shares or 10 contracts. Similarly, on the 8,700 strike at the money out of same expiry the bid quantity is 750 shares while the sell quantity is just 150 shares, or two contracts. The aforesaid are for the best bid and ask quotes.The regulator has limited exposure to index futures at Rs 500 crore for longs who don't have cash equivalent and for shorts who don't have the underlying stocks.Palviya expects the market to trade in an 8,200-9,200 range in the short term.
Bengaluru: Top-selling smartphone manufacturers like Xiaomi and Realme are asking the government to classify handsets as an essential commodity which can be delivered to customers through ecommerce platforms amid the 21-day national lockdown in India.Industry bodies Manufacturers' Association of Information Technology (MAIT) and India Cellular & Electronics Association (ICEA) have written to the government seeking concessions in the delivery of smartphones among other electronics devices and removal of restrictions on the movement of components for inland and export purposes."Smartphones today are probably the most essential items after food and groceries that anybody needs," Manu Kumar Jain, the managing director-Indian subcontinent at Xiaomi, told ET. "We can increase social distancing and reduce the number of people going out if everyone is using a smartphone." Jain said India saw sales of over 1 crore devices a month, with close to 30-40% of those purchases made by first-time smartphone users. It would make sense for even a fraction of those people to get access to devices at this point of time. Xiaomi clarified that it wasn't just asking the government to allow smartphone sales as a business opportunity, but rather as fulfilling the essential needs of consumers.Realme chief executive Madhav Sheth said smartphones were essential and a gateway to other services that could be invaluable at this point of time. The company could make its devices available to customers immediately through online channels and was also requesting the government to allow opening up of some centres to support after-sales service, with all safety precautions being followed, he said. "We're seeing a lot of requests on Twitter from people who say their phones have been damaged and need devices because they're using them as Wi-Fi hotspots and for communications." In its letter dated March 27 to the government, MAIT, the apex body of electronic product makers, suggested that ecommerce companies be listed under essential services and enabled to carry out deliveries under a controlled logistics framework. The ICEA wrote to the government saying that states and district authorities were being overcautious by not allowing inbound or outbound movement of electronics goods, despite the home ministry's clarification over this. Both bodies said electronics manufacturers were sitting on large inventories meant for export and not allowing movement would jeopardise their ability to fulfil such shipments. ET has seen the letters written by both MAIT and ICEA.The ecommerce industry as a collective had also pitched to the government to expand the scope of essentials beyond food, grocery and medical supplies.
By Avik ChandaAs the COVID-19 outbreak hits the country, businesses across the board are bracing themselves for what'll undoubtedly turn out to be the toughest summer in decades. The economic package announced by the Central Government may accord a momentary glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel. But industry leaders know that once the storm is over, it will be a long, hard road to recovery – and that it will take far more than building greater competencies in domain or technical skills, to get the job done. From the perspective of Human Resource stakeholders, it's fast becoming apparent that perhaps the single-most important investment involves a focus on building resilience, which will enable employees to cope better with the current crisis, and bounce back with renewed vigour and motivation.Advances in Positive Psychology At Work (PPW) have a direct bearing on such a project. While individuals may be intrinsically equipped with resilience, it's a quality embedded within their personality, trait or mindset, and rarely evident in a business-as-usual environment. The presence or extent of it isn't discernible, unless evaluated through psychometric means, and unlike a technical skill, such as a programming language, resilience cannot be inculcated through an intensive crash-course.Second, there's the consideration of synergies. Focused programmes on resilience will deliver results over a period of time, but it will essentially move the needle along a single attribute. However, research conducted by positive psychologist Barbara Fredrickson shows that enhancing attributes such as optimism, gratitude and level of interest in one's work, reaps relatively greater benefits, by broadening employees' perspective, as well as building longer-lasting attributes such as resilience. Amongst her other findings is that emphasis on positive emotions in the workplace leads to the formation of a psychological protective shield in situations of cumulative stress, since the underlying positivity of any individual facilitates faster personal recovery from adverse events, and has an amplifying effect on the team. A PricewaterhouseCoopers study also found significant returns on investment in a mentally healthy workplace.An effective approach to promoting positivity at work is the identification and development of individual 'signature strengths'. The Positive Leadership Program undertaken by IBM is a case in point. When employees work from their natural strengths – as opposed to tasks that don't come naturally – the goals are easier to achieve, and stress levels tend to be lower, improving well-being. This in turn hinges heavily on the level of engagement that leaders and managers have on the ground, with their teams. A 'Strengths @Work Survey' by the VIA institute found when managers had a meaningful discussion about employees' strengths, 78% of these team members reported feeling engaged and energized and 65% described themselves as 'flourishing' at work.Similarly, Gallup Research found that employees who feel ignored by their managers are twice as likely to be actively disengaged at work, while managers who focus on their employees' strengths cut active disengagement to 1%. The Corporate Leadership Council have also found that when managers focus on the weaknesses of an employee on average their performance declines by up to 27%, whereas when they focus on the strengths of an employee on average performance improves by up to 36%.Finally, there is the evidence linking resilience or mental toughness with positive behaviours and outcomes in the workplace. Research by P.J. Clough and his associates has reported remarkable positive predictive links between mental toughness and performance, well-being, and transition management, elevating the role of an individual employee to something of deeper value, and longer-term impact than a mere executor. For organizations to reap the right benefits from such a program, it needs to be managed according to a robust methodology, such as the following:Assessment and AnalysisThe employees undertake a comprehensive psychometric assessment, covering signature strengths, mindsets, and focus on attributes such as resilience and grit. Analysis of the scores at an individual level leads for calibrated goal-setting, aligned to signature strengths and mindsets, and embed them into organizational relationships, processes, and systems to improve their relationships and bring the best out in their teams.Interventions and CoachingThis stage entails a two-pronged approach. A series of structured group-level workshops are conducted, aligning the strength-based goals to business imperatives, as well as human capital such as recruitment, career progression, training and departmental reorganization. Participants are provided with a toolkit for developing resilience, based on the 4 C Model – Control, Commitment, Challenge, Confidence. These workshops are interspersed with individual coaching, to support sustained implementation of learning and development needs.Follow-up AssessmentEmployees undertake the psychometric assessment periodically, depending on the timelines of the program, and at its conclusion. Using a tracer mechanism, the system highlights the progress made on the key parameters, and overall effectiveness of the program.Following global best practices, there's now a growing recognition in India that programs for eliciting, enabling, and supporting individuals to flourish will provide the necessary armour in addressing the continually dynamic, fast paced, stressful, competitive and relentless work environments we find ourselves in. But such programs typically have a timeline spanning several months. Therefore, looking ahead, while the workforce develops resilience on the ground, and the economy struggles to finally get back to its feet in the painful aftermath of COVID-19 pandemic, leaders will have to dip into their own reservoirs of patience and perseverance.Avik Chanda is a business advisor, researcher, columnist and entrepreneur. He is the author of "From Command To Empathy: Using EQ in the Age of Disruption".
Covid-19 aftermath: Capital infusion into PSBs likely in next fiscal as well The government also believes that the biggest consolidation exercise in the public-sector banking space—the amalgamation of 10 PSBs to create four larger lenders with scale – from April 1 will support the credit appetite of the economy in the coming quarters.
