Buying the debt of some of Europe’s biggest companies is an unprecedented move and comes on top of the ECB purchasing 80bn Euros worth of mostly government bonds each month.
Traders said the ECB has been buying the bonds of utility, insurance and telecoms companies, including Italy’s leading insurance company Generali and Spain’s Telefonica. Other names being mentioned were Belgian brewer Anheuser-Busch InBev, French carmaker Renault and German engineering firm Siemens. Power companies Engie from France and Germany’s RWE were also believed to have been bought, along with chemical and property firms.
Thailand stops transmission of HIV virus
Thailand becomes first Asian country to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV
The World Health Organisation saluted the country for its remarkable achievement, saying it is the first country with an HIV epidemic to ensure an AIDS-free generation. It said that routine screening and universal free medication for pregnant women with HIV was crucial in stopping the transmission of the virus to their children.
Tesla’s Panasonic pledge hits Samsung shares
Tesla reveals it is working exclusively with Japan’s Panasonic to supply batteries for the Model 3, its first mass-market car
The news sent Panasonic’s shares higher by 3.5 percent. This came one day after a report that South Korea’s Samsung was making progress in talks with Tesla to supply batteries for the electric car, as well as for Tesla’s energy storage systems.
A source informs that Tesla, which currently buys batteries from Panasonic, was likely to add Samsung as a supplier for Model 3 if and when Tesla’s battery plants were not able to produce enough batteries to meet demand. Moreover, Samsung could possibly provide batteries for Tesla Energy.
Shares in Samsung tumbled eight percent recently, having surged over six percent one day earlier. A Samsung spokesman declined to comment.
