(Bloomberg) — Undocumented workers in the U.S. are running out of options to help them survive the coronavirus pandemic.Largely left out of federal relief programs, undocumented families have relied on money from philanthropic organizations and local governments to help buy food and to pay their bills. But now some of those funds are drying up, exacerbating the public health crisis and further threatening an economic recovery that’s become shakier with the recent surge in virus infections and a renewed wave of layoffs.Programs backed by municipalities with support from community-based organizations in Minneapolis; Austin, Texas; Chicago; and Montgomery County, Maryland, are being halted or almost out of money. The programs, which have provided funds to help immigrants pay rent and other expenses, have not been able to keep up with such high demand.In California, a statewide effort to give $1,000 per family stopped taking applications in June. Nonprofits face funding challenges themselves, with some donors potentially becoming more tightfisted as the pandemic lasts longer than many expected.Undocumented immigrants in the U.S. often pay taxes but don’t have access to unemployment insurance or benefits like the stimulus checks the government has provided to many Americans. The $2 trillion stimulus that Congress passed earlier this year denied aid to 15.4 million people in mixed-status families, including 9.9 million unauthorized immigrants, 3.7 million children and 1.7 million spouses who are U.S. citizens or green card holders, according to the Migration Policy Institute.As Congress debates another round of financial support for Americans, House Democrats have proposed legislation that would give immigrants stimulus checks, but Senate Republicans — who have offered a $1 trillion virus relief package — oppose such aid.Margarita, an immigrant from Mexico and single mother of three, was laid off in March from her job working at a warehouse in New Jersey that ships Italian products. She said she struggled to pay rent and feed her children, ages 20, 15 and 4. She returned to her job in June but has continued to work with advocacy groups calling on lawmakers to extend relief to undocumented immigrants. She declined to provide her full name due to her citizenship status.“I’ve been out to marches and rallies, and banged pots and pans when we couldn’t go outside,” said Margarita, 39, who is a member of Make the Road New Jersey, a community group for immigrants. “No one should be left behind.”The mounting financial pressure on this group can impede efforts to contain the virus because they feel compelled to go to work when they are sick, according to Jill Campbell, director of the immigration and citizenship program at BakerRipley, a community development organization in Houston.“We have clients that call us and say, ‘I am terrified, terrified to go into work because I know that my coworkers have Covid right now but I have no other options,’” said Campbell, adding that because many immigrants live in multigenerational households they have a higher risk of spreading the virus to elderly family members.“They’re really choosing between their own health and their family’s health — and being able to pay the rent,” she said.Aiding immigrants throughout the pandemic is critical for the U.S. economic recovery because it means more people are working and spending money, said Cris Ramón, senior policy analyst at the Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington. About 4.6% of U.S. workers are undocumented immigrants, according to Pew Research Center.Running out of fundsAustin’s program to help these immigrants has run out of funding and no longer accepting applications after previously providing $1.4 million in financial assistance. St. Paul, Minnesota, and Chicago have also stopped taking applications to their programs.Houston’s $15 million rental assistance program ran out of money within two hours of starting to take applications in early May. Harris County, which includes the city, passed additional funding for its program this week as demand for relief persists.Some organizations, including one in South Dakota and another in New Jersey, are still taking applications and raising money to support undocumented workers. But for those immigrants who do receive funds, it’s likely a one-time payment that doesn’t compare to unemployment benefits most Americans receive, said Muzaffar Chishti, senior fellow at the Migration Policy Institute.Putting food on the table has been especially difficult during the pandemic, even for undocumented immigrants who are employed. Demand has increased 40% since March at Manna Food Center, a food bank in Montgomery County that serves immigrants, according to Chief Executive Officer Jackie DeCarlo. The area’s emergency assistance program, which provided one-time payments of up to $1,450 to residents ineligible for federal aid, exhausted its funds in June.Rocio, an immigrant from Jalisco, Mexico, was laid off from her job at a Sacramento, California, buffet restaurant in March. She and her husband support three children, as well as her 80-year-old father in Mexico. Rocio has turned to a community center for help with food and has delayed paying rent. She also declined to provide her full name because she fears legal repercussions.“In three months our life changed,” said Rocio, 50. “Covid has brought an end to many years and many dreams.”For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
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On Friday, Deutsche Bank analysts led by Lloyd Walmsley raised their price target on shares of Amazon from $3,333 to $4,000, just one day after the e-commerce giant reported a blowout second quarter, which would the value it at $2 trillion. The firm said “it’s tough to see anything this quarter that was not positive”, although it did cite key risks to its call including higher competition and regulation. The Final Round panel discusses the bullish call.Developers advise exchanges to pause ETC deposits and withdrawals.
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(Bloomberg) — One of the world’s major credit-rating companies fired a warning shot regarding the U.S.’s worsening public finances on Friday, just as lawmakers in Washington contemplate spending more to combat the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.Fitch Ratings revised its outlook on the country’s credit score to negative from stable, citing a “deterioration in the U.S. public finances and the absence of a credible fiscal consolidation plan.” The country’s ranking remains AAA.“High fiscal deficits and debt were already on a rising medium-term path even before the onset of the huge economic shock precipitated by the coronavirus,” Fitch said. “They have started to erode the traditional credit strengths of the U.S.”Unemployment has skyrocketed and the U.S. economy just notched up its worst quarter on record, with pandemic-related shutdowns helping drive an annualized gross domestic product contraction of 32.9% in the three-month period through June. And with infections still spreading rapidly in many states, the virus’s damaging impact on output looks set to continue.Support from Congress has buoyed the economy in recent months, but further action will be critical in determining the path toward recovery. Crucial lifelines for jobless workers, like an extra $600 in weekly unemployment benefits, are expiring, and lawmakers have made little progress on agreeing to another stimulus package.But while further measures — if settled on — could help support the economy, they would also likely add to the nation’s debt pile and worsen the fiscal deficits that caused Fitch additional concern. There is, however, no sign yet of a deal as upcoming elections for the presidency and Congress help sharpen partisan divisions.Stimulus BurdenGeneral government debt is expected to exceed 130% of GDP by 2021, Fitch said, noting that the U.S. had the highest government debt of any AAA rated sovereign heading into the current crisis.“Financing flexibility, assisted by Federal Reserve intervention to restore liquidity to financial markets, does not entirely dispel risks to medium-term debt sustainability, and there is a growing risk that U.S. policy makers will not consolidate public finances sufficiently to stabilize public debt after the pandemic shock has passed,” Fitch said.The U.S. central bank this week reiterated its promise to use all its tools to support the recovery, keeping interest rates near zero and noting that the economy’s path is “extraordinarily uncertain” in the face of virus risks.Fitch is not the first major ratings company to take a less-than-stellar view of America’s public finances. S&P Global Ratings has already gone further, taking an ax to the country’s AAA score back in 2011 and downgrading it to AA+. Moody’s Investors Service, meanwhile, continues to rank the U.S. as Aaa — its top grade.Fitch’s warning, just as the U.S. Treasury is preparing to release its quarterly financing plans next week, comes even as borrowing costs fall to unprecedented levels. Nominal yields on Treasuries are close to historic lows, while the real rate on 10-year debt — which factors in the impact of inflation — fell to around minus 1% on Friday.Yet even with an assumption that real rates will remain negative and support public debt, and the credit assessor’s view that America’s debt tolerance is higher than other AAA sovereigns, Fitch has become less optimistic about the U.S. outlook.(Updates throughout.)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
The Japanese conglomerate is currently negotiating terms with Nvidia after receiving an approach last month, the report said, citing an unidentified source familiar with the matter, adding that it is possible that SoftBank would take stake in Nvidia after it bought Arm. The report did not mention how much stake the company will retain in Arm.
It’s a mixed start to the day for the majors. A fall through the daily pivot levels would bring support levels into play.