Coronavirus - 3 November

• Coats# – “Apparel and Footwear showed continued performance improvement throughout the period. This follows the first half, in which sales were significantly impacted by brands and manufacturers cancelling or deferring orders from mid-March, as well as enforced government lockdowns affecting a number of our sites. Our manufacturing footprint is now effectively fully operational and we have seen an encouraging improvement in brand and manufacturer order confidence into the peak trading season of September-November, where production is primarily for the spring/summer 2021 season. Heightened industry inventory levels from significant Covid-related market disruption in the first half appear to be clearing this year broadly as we anticipated.”

• Senior – “Aerospace sales for the Period were 36% lower than for the same period in 2019 on a constant currency basis. On a quarterly basis, Aerospace sales declined 22% in Q1, 40% in Q2 and 45% in Q3, YoY. This was as expected, with our 2020 Aerospace revenues significantly reduced as a result of the ongoing impact of Covid-19 and the 737 MAX situation. On a sequential basis, Aerospace sales in Q3 declined 18% relative to Q2 reflecting the ongoing production cuts by civil aerospace original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) along with the rebalancing of inventory throughout the supply chain; an activity that is continuing.

There is some evidence that when people are able to fly, demand will recover strongly: for instance, domestic air travel in China is now above pre-Covid levels. However, overall, IATA (International Air Travel Association) anticipates demand for air travel in 2020 to fall by 66% YoY as a result of the impact of the pandemic.”

• Weir – “In total, the Group’s third quarter orders were 11% lower on an underlying2 basis (-26% as reported). Underlying OE orders were down 8% (-55% as reported) while AM orders were down 12%. The Continuing Operations’ book-to-bill ratio in the period was 0.82 reflecting the ongoing delivery of the Iron Bridge OE project and destocking. The group remains on track to deliver its previously announced 2020 cost saving programme.”

• Carnival – Today announced that its North American cruise line brands will extend their existing pause in operations, suspending cruise voyages between December 1 and December 31, 2020.

• Austria has enforced a new national lockdown. The measures include a curfew between 20:00 and 06:00, and cafes and restaurants closing apart from for takeaway.

• The Institute for Fiscal Studies has published a report on education spending in England, warning that universities could be exposed to a range of financial losses, such as falling international student numbers and more students failing to complete their degrees. The report also says student numbers in further education colleges and sixth forms are likely to increase this year, partly due to rising numbers of young people and partly due to “unusually high GCSE results” and significant reductions in training and employment opportunities.

• Liverpool is to be the first UK city to trial mass testing. Residents will be offered tests, whether or not they have symptoms, with follow-up tests every two weeks or so.

• International tourist arrivals to Spain fell 87% YoY in September, official data showed, and tourists spent 90% less in September than in the same month a year ago, INE said.

• Spain’s government has approved a €475m aid package for Air Europa.

• The northern Spanish region of Castile and León has ordered a shutdown of bars and restaurants.

• Imperial College London carried out tests last month on London Underground and the city’s buses and found no traces of Covid-19 on surfaces or in the air. This is the second time it has conducted the test; the first time also produced negative results.

• Georgia has imposed additional national restrictions. It will be mandatory to wear masks outdoors, as well as indoors, and all restaurants and cafes across the country must close at 10pm. The measures will continue until 25 November.

• John Lewis, Currys PC World and the Entertainer are among retailers that are extending their opening hours to meet a surge in demand ahead of the lockdown in England.