Germany extends job-preserving aid to underpin recovery – Bloomberg

With the rising concerns of a wider coronavirus (COVID-19) wave 2.0, Germany announced an extension of its relief package to combat the pandemic. Bloomberg relies on the anonymous Social Democratic Party (SPD) official to confirm the same. “A press statement is planned later Tuesday (European Time),” said the news.

Key quotes

The subsidies, originally intended for 12 months, pay the bulk of paychecks and allow companies to hold on to workers during an economic shock.

Germany has used the compensation program to prevent mass layoffs before, helping the country weather the financial crisis in 2008 and 2009. There were about 5.6 million people receiving the benefits in July, compared with 7 million people in May, according to the Munich-based Ifo Institute for Economic Research.

The expanded benefits were part of a huge spending package aimed at helping the country emerge from the worst crisis in the post-war era, and the extension indicates that a rebound may take longer than initially anticipated.

FX implications

Despite being good news for the EUR/USD pair traders, the quote pays a little heed to the update while taking rounds to 1.1835 amid the early Wednesday morning in Asia.