News Snapshot:
A look at the day ahead in markets from Sujata Rao. With swathes of China spending April under lockdown — 46 cities according to one estimate — it was inevitable that dining out, shopping, factory output and energy usage would all take big hits. The dire data overshadowed announcements that some COVID curbs would be loosened. A Q2 economic contraction looks inevitable. What’s more, the 6.7% urban unemployment rate — the highest since 2018 — won’t escape the notice of authorities, wary of any kind of unrest. So after a series of half-hearted measures, a decisive policy response might finally...
