Europe’s Awakening, U.K.’s Cash Splash, Swiss Franc: Eco Day

(Bloomberg) -- Welcome to Tuesday, Europe. Here’s the latest news and analysis from Bloomberg Economics to help you start the day:

• Europe is slowly waking up from its forced hibernation to contain the coronavirus
• The U.K. can ramp up spending to fight the coronavirus pandemic without risking unsustainable levels of debt, thanks to historically low interest rates
  • The number of Britons seeking jobless benefits spiked the most on record last month
• Coronavirus-fractured supply chains are providing a wake-up call to British business and leaders with just seven months to go before Brexit triggers the biggest shakeup of trading relationships in a generation
  • The U.K. set out its tariffs plan for global trade when it fully leaves the EU at the end of this year
• European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said she’ll continue with the institution’s bond-buying programs, even after Germany’s top court questioned one such program’s legality
• The Bank of England’s debate over negative interest rates stepped up a gear, with one policy maker saying they’ve had a positive effect elsewhere
• Germany accounts for more than half the 1.95 trillion euros ($2.1 trillion) in virus-related state aid approved by EU regulators, a sign the bloc’s biggest economy is far outspending poorer nations to help its national companies survive the pandemic
• The Swiss National Bank has spent almost a half-trillion dollars since 2009 to curb the franc’s advance, but traders pushing the currency toward parity with the euro may still win
• Jerome Powell said he’s ready to use the Fed’s full range of tools and leave the key interest rate near zero until the economy is back on track
• When Chinese Premier Li Keqiang delivers his annual report on economic policy Friday, the document’s most important number might be missing
• A dashboard of high-frequency indicators for the U.S. economy shows most have begun to stabilize or show slight improvement from the rapid pace of deterioration seen in recent weeks

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