Businesses with COVID antibodies and Businesses suffering from long-covid

Over the past 16 months the global pandemic has affected everyone, however when looking at some businesses at the very start and very end of the pandemic, it is clear some of them appear to have the covid-19 antibodies, while the others have been hit by the virus.

Retail

Amazon

As world leaders ordered their citizens to stay indoors and shut stores, Amazon became the emergency port of call for those desperate to stock up on vital household essentials and luxuries. While revenues reached a new high for the Chief executive, Jeff Bezos, Amazon also faced a substantial amount of costs, where Bezos warned as much as $4billion could be spent on virus mitigation, such as testing labs and thermal cameras — potentially pushing Amazon into its first quarterly loss since 2015. Still, the accelerated shift to online shopping and the increased importance of its cloud computing business in the remote work era drove Amazon’s stock to all-time highs.

Food

Restaurants

Not eating out may slim down our waistlines, but it may also trim profits to the tune of $240 billion in North America by the end of 2020. The probability of default level for this industry has gone from 2.17% in January to 6.36% in August. This has prompted many restaurants to rethink their strategies for survival. Since the start of the pandemic, delivery and takeout orders have increased 14% to 68%.

Delivery

Just Eat, coming in at 92nd in the Financial Times’ ‘Prospering in the pandemic: the top 100 companies’ merger with rival Takeaway.com, agreed in December 2020, created Europe’s largest food delivery group at just the right moment to capitalise on surging demand from restaurants and diners for new food delivery options during lockdowns. Now Takeaway founder Jitse Groen is looking to take a bite out of Uber in the US, with its blockbuster bid for Grubhub.

Workplace solutions

Zoom became a video conferencing leader during COVID-19. In fact, Zoom’s adoption rate surpassed previous industry frontrunners GoToWebinar and Cisco during the past three months when companies scheduled virtual meetings when it became impossible to host in-person gatherings.

Travel

Airlines

As every country worldwide continues to struggle with getting the pandemic under control, travel, especially air travel, has been ground down. With planes sitting on the sidelines, airline employees staying home self-isolating, and airports operating at a fraction of the traveler volume, it’s anticipated that $252 billion in revenue will be lost in 2020 alone. Survival will depend on airlines putting people first, transforming their supply chain, leveraging loyalty, and recalibrating their brands, among other things.

Entertainment

As the entertainment industry had to close its curtains, people have looked to other ways of watching the latest films.

Netflix added nearly 16 million new subscribers during the first quarter of 2020, and its growth numbers more than doubled what the company predicted in January. The first quarter of 2020 was the largest three-month jump in the streaming service’s 13-year history, as people looked for entertainment options while theatres, cinemas, nightclubs, and concert venues went dark…

Oil and Gas Drilling

The COVID pandemic is not the first time the oil and gas industry has experienced a collapse; this is the third price collapse in 12 years, according to McKinsey. November 2020, however, oil prices have hit 30-year lows; it’s a time of crisis, and the pandemic has accelerated what’s looking like one of the industry’s most transformative points in time. There were many environmental and operational challenges before the pandemic. Now, companies within this industry will need to look for new emerging partnerships, change their focus, and reshape their portfolios and find ways to become more resilient. 

Hand-Sanitizing Products

During the pandemic, the number of hand-sanitizing kiosks has grown to 90,000 nationwide and is expected to approach 150,000 kiosks by the end of the year. The privately held company is providing hand-sanitizing products for mass transportation and expects to add several colleges and universities as schools look to prepare for the fall semester.

“The hand-sanitizing billboards are unlike others; they are totally functional. It’s a win-win for everyone involved: the retailer, the advertiser, and the consumer who benefits from using the wipes,” said Brian Morrison, Terraboost Media’s CEO, who estimates that 126 million people per day engage with Terraboost Media’s hand-sanitizing billboards, resulting in 3.7 billion monthly impressions.

“In today’s current environment, people are using them everywhere they go. It’s guaranteed engagement; almost every person uses a wipe. The engagement is almost equal to foot traffic,” Morrison added. “The hand-sanitizing billboards reach a vast audience, and 94% of shoppers have a positive opinion of the company sponsoring them.”

Liquor Stores

It is well documented that home alcohol consumption rose during the pandemic as stressed-out parents worried about their employment status and the added responsibility of home-schooling their children as they tried to work. Liquor stores were designated as essential businesses, and people starving for socialization began hosting virtual cocktail parties via Zoom. With flexible working hours and working from home, it is fair to say the cocktail hour did not have to wait until 5:00 p.m.

As the vaccine rollout is well and truly on its way to vaccinating large chunks of the population these will hopefully be the last we see of lockdowns. Now time for recovery and to see which businesses are suffering from long-covid and which businesses will come back stronger than pre-pandemic.

78% ‘Peaceful’ Voting In 5th Phase Of Bengal Polls

West Bengal saw 78.36 per cent voter turnout till 6.30 pm in the fifth phase of the assembly election on Saturday.

Chief Electoral Officer Ariz Aftab said that the polling “was held peacefully” in 15,789 polling stations spread across 45 assembly constituencies.
The polling was held in six districts – Jalpaiguri, Kalimpong, Darjeeling, Nadia, North 24 Parganas and Purba Bardhaman.

Jalpaiguri recorded the highest turnout with 81.71 per cent, while Purba Bardhaman and Nadia registered 81.67 per cent and 81.50 per cent.

A total of 319 candidates, including 38 women, contested in this phase.

Among the 45 constituencies, Maynaguri reported the highest turnout of voters at 85.65 per cent while the Matigara-Naxalbari constituency recorded 81.65 per cent and Barasat recorded 77.71 per cent. Bidhanagar saw 61.10 per cent of voters and Siliguri 74.83 per cent turnout.

The Election Commission (EC) had invoked powers under Article 324 to curtail the timing of the campaign to curb the spread of COVID-19, extending the silence period to 72 hours for the remaining three phases. The fourth phase of polling had seen violence in which five persons were killed.

Few minor incidents were reported in the fifth phase election on Saturday.

Aftab said a country-made firearm was recovered from booth number 44 and 45A in Ranaghat. Police have seized the firearm and an independent candidate Kaushik Bhaumik has been arrested.

“In Ranaghat, a man was attacked and he suffered an injury in his left leg was injured. He has been admitted to Shantipur State General Hospital. His condition is stable and three people have been arrested in this regard. Another man’s house was damaged in Ranaghat. Two people have been detained,” he added

Locals in the Deganga constituency alleged that the central forces opened fire in the area and chased away people from a polling booth, although no one was injured. They also claimed that the forces vandalised polling booth number 81 in Kumarpur in the Deganga constituency.

However, the Barasat Superintendent of Police (SP) wrote a letter to the Special Police Observer in West Bengal, saying that the allegation of blank firing in the Deganga constituency “is found to be not based on facts”.

A minor scuffle between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Trinamool Congress (TMC) supporters was earlier reported at Bidhannagar.

“TMC goons stopped me here at Nayapatti. They are also stopping the voters,” BJP candidate from Bidhannagar Sabyasachi Dutta told ANI.

TMC candidate Sujit Bose blamed the BJP workers. “Two of our people were injured in stone-pelting by BJP supporters at booth numbers 265 and 272. We have informed the election observer and police. The situation is normal now,” Bose told ANI.

The convoy of BJP candidate from Kamarhati, Raju Banerjee, was also allegedly attacked during the fifth phase of voting

On the day of polling, the BJP and Trinamool Congress sparred over a purported audiotape of a conversation between Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and TMC candidate Partha Pratim Ray. It was released by BJP.

A BJP delegation met the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) in Kolkata requesting the Election Commission to constitute a Special Investigation Team (SIT) for probing the purported audiotape of Banerjee, in which she can be heard telling the TMC candidate from the Sitalkuchi constituency to hold protests with bodies of the four killed in Cooch Behar violence.

TMC said it was “illegal and unlawful recording” and blamed the BJP’s “dirty tricks department” for the audio tape.

A TMC delegation called on the Commission to take necessary action.

The voting for the sixth of the eight phase election in the state will be held on April 22. (ANI)

Setback For Mamata Predicted in Exit Polls

Outsider Goons Spreading Covid-19 In Bengal: Mamata

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday blamed ‘bohiragoto’ (outsiders) goons for spreading COVID-19 in the state, adding that people from outside will now require an RT-PCR test to enter the state.

Speaking at a public gathering in Galsi, Banerjee said: “The Centre promised to deliver vaccines to all mothers and sisters but it still has not given. There are around 10,000 people, such ‘bohiragoto’ goons from outside the state are residing in the state, a maximum of whom have brought COVID-19 here. They are spreading the virus in Bengal.”

“PM Modi uses people outside the state to stage public meetings. Around 12 to 14 of whom have contracted the virus. We have mandated that people coming from outside the state will have to undergo an RT-PCR test and will be allowed entry after he clears the coronavirus test,” she added.

She further slammed the Election Commission (EC) for not allowing the remaining phases of the West Bengal Assembly elections to be merged into a single phase.

“We asked to merge the election phases. These are our areas. We do not people to face problems. They did not do so. They reduced timings. Why? When elections took place in BJP’s areas, then you (EC) took 8-10 days and now in four phases you have reduced campaigning. You have ruined four days of our campaigning. If you can disrupt four days of campaigning, why can you not club the elections?” she questioned.

The Chief Minister further said that two candidates have already succumbed to the virus and that the EC will be responsible for any major adverse incident while accusing the Commission of trying to stop her.

“You (EC) cut four days of our campaigning because there were no more meetings by PM Modi and Amit Shah. You have done this to stop me. You are doing whatever BJP is asking you to do. You do not have the capacity to think on your own on clubbing phases,” she remarked.

Speaking on her leaked audiotape, Banerjee said BJP has no issue to talk about, so they are resorting to tactics such as recording her conversation with another candidate.

“This means all of your phones are tapped. The Central government even has knowledge of what food is being cooked in your house. It is a big scam and I will call for a CID inquiry. I want to know who tapped my phone. I will not leave this matter,” she promised.

On the day of polling, the BJP and Trinamool Congress sparred over a purported audiotape of a conversation between Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and TMC candidate Partha Pratim Ray. It was released by BJP.

A BJP delegation met the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) in Kolkata requesting the Election Commission to constitute a Special Investigation Team (SIT) for probing the purported audiotape of Banerjee, in which she can be heard telling the TMC candidate from the Sitalkuchi constituency to hold protests with bodies of the four killed in Cooch Behar violence.

TMC said it was “illegal and unlawful recording” and blamed the BJP’s “dirty tricks department” for the audiotape.

West Bengal saw 78.36 per cent voter turnout till 6.30 pm in the fifth phase of the assembly election on Saturday. Chief Electoral Officer Ariz Aftab said that the polling “was held peacefully” in 15,789 polling stations spread across 45 assembly constituencies.

The voting for the sixth phase will be held on April 22, wherein 306 candidates will contest for 43 constituencies across four districts. (ANI)

DRDO Sets Up Covid-19 Facility In Delhi With Oxygen Beds

Amid the surging COVID-19 cases, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has set up a facility in New Delhi with all basic facilities free of charge.

The facility set up by DRDO in Delhi has all oxygen beds, a large number of ventilators, zero charges, basic testing facilities and air-conditioning, as per WHO standards.
If a patient suffers a neuro or cardiac case, the patient will be referred to the All India Institute Of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).

This comes amid the rapidly deteriorating COVID-19 situation in Delhi. Over 24,000 fresh COVID-19 cases were reported in the last 24 hours, the highest single-day surge in the national capital to date. There are now 69,799 active cases in Delhi.

The total cases now stand at 8,27,998, including 7,46,239 recoveries while the death toll stands at 11,960.

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had, earlier in the day, flagged a shortage of oxygen and anti-viral drug Remdesivir. (ANI)

Bhumi Recovers From Covid-19

Bollywood actor Bhumi Pednekar, who had tested positive for the novel coronavirus earlier this month, on Saturday informed her fans and followers that she has finally recovered from COVID-19.

The ‘Bala’ actor took to her Instagram handle and announced the health update by sharing a sunkissed selfie of her, along with the caption, “Am negative but super positive about life. #NoCorona #HealthyAndWise #IsolationOver.”

Bhumi had announced the news of her being tested positive for COVID-19 on April 5, via a statement on her Instagram that read, “I HAVE TESTED POSITIVE FOR COVID-19. As of today, I have mild symptoms, but am feeling ok and have isolated myself. I am following the protocol given by my doctor and health professionals. If you have been in contact with me, request you to please get tested immediately.”

Requesting people to practice caution, she had added, “Steam, Vit – C, Food and a Happy Mood are my go-to. Please don’t take the current situation lightly, even though I followed utmost precaution and care I’ve contracted it. Wear a mask, keep washing your hands, maintain social distancing and be mindful of your general behaviour.”

The second wave of coronavirus has infected many people, and the number of COVID-19 positive cases has been rapidly rising. In Bollywood, an array of celebrities have got infected within a span of a few weeks.

Recently, apart from Bhumi, Manish Malhotra, Katrina Kaif, Akshay Kumar, Govinda, Paresh Rawal, Alia Bhatt, Ranbir Kapoor, and Rohit Saraf, among others had tested positive for COVID-19. Earlier, Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, Arjun Kapoor, Malaika Arora, and some others were also infected with the virus.

Meanwhile, on the work front, Bhumi, who was last seen in Amazon Prime’s horror thriller ‘Durgamati’, will be soon seen in her upcoming rom-com drama ‘Badhaai Do’ opposite Rajkummar Rao.

The movie directed by Harshavardhan Kulkarni is slated for a September release this year. Besides this, she also has Karan Johar’s multi-starrer ‘Takht’ in the pipeline. (ANI)

Arjun Day-Dreams Of Rakul Preet

The music video of the T-series produced song ‘Dil Hai Deewana’ released on Saturday. The upbeat track featuring Bollywood actors Arjun Kapoor and Rakul Preet Singh gives fans a love story that is filled with fun.

Arjun took to his Instagram handle and shared the music video along with the caption, “Annnnnd it’s here guys! The bomb that I have been waiting for is all set to make a blast! #DilHaiDeewana is out now! Tune in now!”

The premise of the video is that Rakul, who only likes bad boys, is the manager of a company where Arjun works and is head over heels in love with her. It then shows him daydreaming about dancing with his lady love throughout various sequences of the video. At the end of the video Arjun, even though a good guy, is able to get a date with Rakul.

Regarding the song, it features undertones of Anil Kapoor’s popular tune ‘Dhina Dhin Da’ from the film ‘Ram Lakhan’ and is overall a catchy and peppy number, well-suited for a Bollywood dance night.

‘Dil Hai Deewana’, composed by Tanishk Bagchi and penned by Shabbir Ahmed, reunites Arjun with his ‘Aurangzeb’ co-star turned singer, Zara Khan, who has lent the female vocals for the song along with Darshan Raval. The music video of the song has been directed by Radhika Rao and Vinay Sapru.

Earlier, Arjun had shared the teaser of the romantic dance track that was recently shot in Mumbai. He had also later divulged that it was his dream to someday get to work with Darshan, as he had been floored by the singer’s performance in 2014 at a popular reality singing show, where Arjun was a guest judge.

Meanwhile, on the film front, Arjun and Rakul will be seen together in the Netflix movie ‘Sardar and Grandson’, directed by debutante filmmaker Kaashvie Nair. The film also stars Aditi Rao Hydari and John Abraham in pivotal roles.

Apart from that, Arjun who was recently seen in ‘Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar’, co-starring Parineeti Chopra, also has ‘Ek Villain Returns’, and ‘Bhoot Police’ in the pipeline. Rakul also has an interesting line-up of films like ‘MayDay’, ‘Doctor G’ and ‘Thank God’. (ANI)

Fresh Bail Paves Way For Lalu’s Release From Jail

The Jharkhand High Court today granted bail to RJD Supremo and former Chief Minister of Bihar Lalu Prasad Yadav in the case of fraudulent withdrawal from Dumka Treasury, one of the cases related to the fodder scam for which he was convicted. The bail has paved his way out of jail.

A bench of Justice Apresh Kumar Singh, while pronouncing the bail, directed him neither to leave the country without permission nor change his address and mobile number during the bail period. The Court has imposed the condition to deposit two sureties of Rs 1 lakh each and a fine of Rs 10 lakh.
According to Lalu’s lawyers, it may take two or three days for him to come out as he is currently undergoing medical treatment at AIIMS, Delhi. Bail bond and other procedures will start soon after the court faxes the order copy.

Commenting on this IG Prisons Jharkhand, Birendra Bhushan said, “We will go through the order copy, once we receive it. Following the procedure, we will inform the RIMS and AIIMS, Delhi that now he is not a prisoner. Till now AIIMS has been sending Lalu’s health updates. He may be released from AIIMS directly.”

He has already been granted bail in the Chaibasa Treasury Scam case in October 2020, and in the Deoghar Treasury Scam case in February 2020. The trial in the Doranda Treasury Ranchi case is still going on.

Meanwhile RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav expressed happiness at the Court’s decision and thanked it for granting bail to his father and the party supremo.

“We were confident that we’ll get justice. Lalu ji has served half of his sentence, High Court granted him bail on that ground. We thank High Court. He’s admitted at AIIMS. We are happy he got bail but we are worried about his health,” said Tejashwi Yadav speaking to reporters here.

He further added, “He is suffering from serious ailments. His treatment will continue. People, especially the poor, are happy that their messiah will come out now.” (ANI)

‘If Vaccine Doc Has Modi’s Photo, Death Certificate Must Carry It Too’

Slamming Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the rising number of Covid cases and deaths across the country, Maharashtra Minister and NCP leader Nawab Malik on Saturday said that if the vaccination certificates carry Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s photo, then the death certificates of the COVID victims should also carry his image.

He further stated that if the Prime Minister wans to take credit for vaccination then he should also take respnsibility for COVID fatalities.
“The way PM Modi’s photo is put on vaccination certificates, we demand that PM’s photo should be put on death certificates also. If they are taking credit for COVID19 vaccination, then, they will have to take responsibility for deaths too,” the NCP leader told ANI.

“As the number of COVID cases are rising in the country, the number of deaths are also increasing on large scale. The way videos are going viral that funeral sites are running out of space to accomodate the dead, and people are in queues. The Centre is answerable for the present situation arisen due to the circumstances and it cannot run away from answering it,” Malik added.

Speaking about the fifth phase of West Bengal assembly elections, Malik said, “Polling is underway for the fifith phase of West Bengal assembly elections. Looking at the situation of COVID, we would like to request to the voters to maintaing social distancing while casting their votes. Come out of your houses, vote the candidate of your choice and strengthen democracy.”

Voting for the fifth phase of West Bengal assembly polls began on Saturday amid tight security. Polling is underway in a total of 45 constituencies covering the districts of Jalpaiguri, Kalimpong, Darjeeling and a segment of Nadia, North 24 Parganas and Purba Bardhaman in the fifth phase. A total of 319 candidates, including 39 women are in the fray in Phase-V.

Meanwhile, India reported its highest-ever single-day spike of COVID-19 cases with over 2.34 lakh new cases and more than 1,300 deaths in the last 24 hours, according to the Union Health Ministry on Saturday.

In the last 24 hours, 1,341 COVID-related deaths were reported in the country taking the death toll to 1,75,649. As many as 2,34,692 new COVID-19 cases have been reported in India in the last 24 hours. With this, the total number of cases has gone up to 1,45,26,609.

The active number of cases stands at 16,79,740.

In the last 24 hours, 1,23,354 people recovered from the disease. With this, the total recoveries reached 1,26,71,220. (ANI)

Katrina Recovers From Covid-19, Thanks Fans

Bollywood star Katrina Kaif on Saturday announced that she has finally tested negative for COVID-19 after contracting the deadly virus earlier this month.

The ‘Ek Tha Tiger’ star took to Instagram and shared a stunning picture at her home.

The actor is seen dressed in pale yellow top and matching pants as she posed for the lens looking in a different direction than the camera. The actor was seen sporting a no-make-up look, as she keeps her locks open. The photo has a date stamp of 17.4,’21.’

The actor also extended thanks to the people who checked up on her.

Katrina wrote in the caption to the post, “Shining sun emoticon negative (Shining sun emoticon) (everyone who checked up on me thank u, it was really sweet felt a lot of (love) and a yellow heart emoticon).”

Celebrity followers including Gauri Khan and more than 81 thousand followers liked the post while scores of fans chimed into the comments section to congratulated the ‘Namaste London’ actor on her recovery.

Earlier on April 6, Katrina informed she tested positive for COVID-19 on her Instagram story.

“I have tested positive for Covid-19. Have immediately isolated myself and will be under home quarantine. I’m following all safety protocols under the advice of my doctors,” read Katrina’s statement.

Recently, Vicky Kaushal, Akshay Kumar, Govinda, Paresh Rawal, Alia Bhatt, Ranbir Kapoor, and Rohit Saraf, among others had tested positive for COVID-19. Earlier, Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, Arjun Kapoor, Malaika Arora, and some others were also infected with the virus.

On the work front, Katrina has ‘Tiger 3’, ‘Phone Bhoot’, ‘Sooryavanshi’ and a superhero movie with Ali Abbas Zafar coming up. (ANI)

China Hesitant To Barter Fighter Jet For Iran Oil

Beijing is hesitant to let Iran have its J-10C lightweight fighter jet in a barter trade for oil or natural gas, according to military analysts.

Minnie Chan in an article in South China Morning Post (SCMP) wrote that Tehran is said to be interested in buying 36 advanced Chinese fighter jets but finding the cash could be difficult.
As per SCMP, there were reports in Chinese media about Iran’s interest in J-10 jets after UN’s 13-year arms embargo on Tehran expired in October 2020. Th UN embargo prohibited Iran from buying foreign weapons like tanks and fighter jets.

Zhou Chenming, a researcher with the Yuan Wang think tank, a Beijing-based military science and technology institute, is of the view that deflation of Iran’s official currency, the rial, in recent years had forced the Tehran government to hold on to as many foreign currencies as possible.

Due to deflation, Iran wants to barter trade J-10C lightweight with its oil and natural gas, but China is hesitant to go ahead with it.

“The key problem is Iran can’t pay dollars or euros in cash to China, they prefer using oil and natural gas to exchange weapons,” said Zhou.

Military analysts say now is not the time to exchange weapons for oil but believe Beijing is considering the move.

“However, China has accumulated too much energy reserves… business is business, all arms deals want to make money. It’s impossible for China to get a bad bargain,” added Zhou.

Shanghai-based military expert Ni Lexiong said China should prioritise its own economic considerations, after its bruising trade war with the US, which started in 2018, and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

“Holding more cash and foreign currencies is always the top priority when dealing with an economic crisis. China doesn’t need so much raw petroleum amid current economic setbacks, with prices of oil and gas decreasing day after day,” Ni said.

Closer security ties between the two-countries were seen as part of the 25-year strategic cooperation agreement signed in March between Beijing and Tehran to address economic issues amid crippling US sanctions on Iran, wrote Minnie.

Concrete details of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership were not released, but according to China’s state broadcaster CCTV, it covers economic activity from oil and mining to promoting industrial activity in Iran, as well as transport and agricultural collaborations.

The J-10C is an upgraded version of China’s single-engine, lightweight, multi-role J-10, which was designed for air-to-air combat. The advanced version is powered by a modified engine designed for stealth and thrust vectoring.

Trade between Iran and China has been worth some USD 20 billion annually in recent years, down from nearly USD 52 billion in 2014 because of US sanctions imposed in 2018 after Trump unilaterally pulled the US out of a nuclear deal between Tehran and the world powers, saying it needed to be renegotiated, reported SCMP. (ANI)