Marriott CEO, Hillary Clinton Are on Tap to Speak: NEF Update

(Bloomberg) -- The Bloomberg New Economy Forum continues the second half of its Cities day at 7 p.m. New York time on Tuesday with speakers including Marriott International Inc. Chief Executive Officer Arne Sorenson and former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. More information can be found online at www.neweconomyforum.com. The New Economy Forum is being organized by Bloomberg Media Group, a division of Bloomberg LP, the parent company of Bloomberg News.

ECB’s Lagarde Sees Risk of ‘Financial Spillover’ (1 p.m.)

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde warned that a key challenge facing policy makers is to stop the current economic crisis due to the coronavirus pandemic morphing into a financial crisis.

A “risk I see is that potential financial spillover, which we managed to avoid so far,” Lagarde said at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum on Tuesday. “We need to stay really clear of that because that would be an aggravating factor.”

New lockdowns to curb the spread of the coronavirus have put the euro zone on the verge of another slump as winter starts. While the prospect of effective vaccines soon is encouraging, they’ll come too late to avoid more economic damage.

Lagarde reiterated that her institution will “recalibrate” its stimulus in December, widely understood as meaning it will add more monetary support for the economy. She signaled that policy makers expect to focus on their 1.35 trillion-euro ($1.6 trillion) emergency bond-buying program and their long-term bank loans as the main tools. Investors see an interest rate cut unlikely. — Paul Gordon

Atlanta Mayor Maps Path to Recovery From Pandemic (12 p.m.)

Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said that the Georgia city has developed a roadmap for recovery as it struggled with the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. But the number of people and businesses that need assistance is substantial and growing.

“It’s going to be relevant to many more people who didn’t expect to see themselves in this position,” Bottoms said during a Bloomberg New Economy Forum panel on Tuesday. “There’s going to be a large economic impact that will likely last for years.”

The mayor of the southeastern U.S. city said that the combination of the virus and social unrest “made us focus on what our goals were.” Affordable housing, jobs and funding for economic development projects are priorities of Atlanta’s plan. As the pandemic continues, Bottoms said she believes that the region’s technology sector will prove resilient, but other areas of the local economy, such as the many small minority-owned businesses at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, will need more assistance to recover. Many airline workers have been furloughed and passenger traffic is down substantially. 

Bottoms also noted that there have been a few side benefits of the pandemic: Many construction and infrastructure projects have been able to move forward at a faster pace, for example, because of diminished traffic in the city. — Brett Pulley

Coronavirus Pandemic Is an ‘Attack on Humanity’ (11:20 a.m.)

Efficient government involvement during the coronavirus pandemic is key in controlling this public health crisis, Mohamed Alabbar, chairman of Dubai-based real estate company Emaar Properties, said during the Bloomberg New Economy Forum on Tuesday.

“Leadership is so critical,” Alabbar said. Since the spread of the pandemic, which he described as an “attack on humanity,” the United Arab Emirates, where Dubai is located, has been “very serious about managing its affairs.”

The chairman also emphasized the importance of housing security: In Egypt, for every home Emaar Properties sells, “we build one social house,” Alabbar said. — Abeer Abu Omar

With Covid Under Control, Travel Recovers in China (10:50 a.m.) 

In China, the travel and transportation industries are showing signs of life as the coronavirus pandemic heads toward the end of its first year.

Jean Liu, president of Chinese ride-hailing company Didi Chuxing Inc., said in a panel at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum. That business fell “off a cliff” when the pandemic started in January and February. But Liu gradually saw a recovery in April, and Didi is now racking up 60 million rides every day. “Right now we are fully back,” she said.

Liu said she is most proud of the initiative her company came up with to shuttle healthcare workers around the city when there was no public transportation. Around 140,000 drivers volunteered, she said.

Neil Shen, founding and managing partner at Sequoia Capital China, said business travel in China got back to normal by the second quarter and leisure travel has also been picking up. “The good thing is Covid is well under control,” he said. “We see travel coming back pretty quickly.” —Isabelle Lee

‘15-Minute Cities’ Can Speed the Urban Comeback (10 a.m.)

Covid-19 has devastated communities across the globe, but as with disease outbreaks of the past, cities can not only survive but see themselves transformed for the better.

“In every crisis there is also an opportunity,” Lord Mayor Hazel Chu of Dublin said in a panel at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum. Dublin, Chu said, has been rolling out a series of transportation improvements in light of the pandemic to help people move around. Among the ideas the city is pursuing is the establishment of a “15-minute city,” in which the needs of all residents can be met within a walking or biking system.

But it’s critical to prevent the 15-minute concept from becoming a “bubble” for wealthy citizens, Chu said: The Covid crisis is also exposing the deep inequalities inside cities, and accelerated the need for healthier buildings, more efficient public transit to prevent crowding, and better integration among communities of different socioeconomic backgrounds.  

Harvard University economist Edward Glaeser emphasized that urban density is not an impediment to pandemic resistance: The beauty of cities, he said, is that they allow large numbers of people to share spaces and resources. But cities will need better protocols and public health practices to help people protect themselves. “They don’t work if people are terrified of being next to each other,” he said. — Linda Poon

India’s Modi Seeks Funding to Build Smart Cities (9 a.m.)

The second day of the four-day Bloomberg New Economy Forum is focused on the most pressing challenges facing cities in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. In an opening address, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he is keen to attract foreign investment to modernize India’s urban centers following the coronavirus pandemic.

Covid-19 has given governments the chance to accelerate the “process of making cities more livable for people,” Modi said in his speech on Tuesday. “We are looking at a future where a major chunk of education, healthcare, shopping, may happen online. Our cities need to be ready for the convergence of the physical and digital worlds.”

India, the world’s second-most populous nation, has completed work on two-thirds of its $30 billion of planned projects to build 100 smart cities, Modi said. —Archana Chaudhary and Bibhudatta Pradhan

India's Modi to Open ‘Cities’ Day of Bloomberg Forum (7:30 a.m.)

The second day of the New Economy Forum will focus on the most pressing challenges facing cities in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will give today’s opening address as part of the four-day summit, which brings together leaders from government, finance and industry. Also participating in today’s program are Harvard University professor Edward Glaeser, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, Bridgewater Associates co-Chairman Ray Dalio, Fidelity International Chief Executive Officer Anne Richards and European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde.

Welcome remarks from three-term New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg begin at 8 a.m. New York time. More information can be found online at www.neweconomyforum.com.

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.

With assistance from Bloomberg