Coronavirus pandemic, electronically signed documents, house prices, commercial electric vehicles: your commercial news round-up

With the World Health Organisation declaring the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic and coronavirus updates still at the forefront of everyone’s minds – among other news – this week’s commercial round-up looks at the impact that the virus is having on the business and legal world.

• In an attempt to slow the spread of the coronavirus, President Donal Trump has banned all travel to the United States from mainland Europe, with the exclusion of the United Kingdom. As a result of Trump’s travel ban, London’s FTSE 100 index plummeted more than 6% in the first half-hour of trade, with other European markets experiencing similar declines. Among the biggest fallers in the FTSE 100 were travel companies, including the airline groups AIG and TUI.

The United Kingdom is not the only country to experience the tumbling of shares. Stocks in Asia have seen big falls. On Wednesday the United States experienced steep losses, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunging by 5.8%. Among others, indexes in both Paris and Frankfurt recently dropped around 7%.

• Following the expected impact on flight bookings, British airline Virgin Atlantic revealed that it has been forced to operate near-empty flights or so-called ‘ghost planes’ in order to maintain take-off and landing slots at major airports, including Heathrow. UK transport secretary Grant Shapps wrote to the European Commission, requesting the relaxation of rules on slot allocation in light of coronavirus. He tweeted: “Temporary relief now makes both environmental and financial sense.”

• In other news, the lord chancellor has confirmed that electronically signed documents now have legal force in England and Wales. While the chancellor explained that electronic signatures “are permissible and can be used in confidence in commercial and consumer documents”, some issues still require additional consideration.

• In a survey by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, 39% of London contributors reported a rise in London house prices in February. According to City AM, prices are expected to continue to rise by an additional 27% over the next few months.

• In a switch from fossil fuel vehicles to clean electric vehicles, UK companies are expected to spend more than £12 billion over the next two years. The transport minister Rachel Maclean stated: “It is encouraging to see UK businesses investing in electric vehicles and embracing greener technology to decarbonise our transport network.

“Businesses having confidence in electric vehicles is crucial to end the UK’s contribution to climate change and improve air quality for all.”

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