104. Could we have a vaccine before Christmas?

Could we have a vaccine before Christmas? Is this the final stage of the COVID turndown? After all the doom and gloom and recent months, Giles Rothbarth, co-manager of BlackRock European Dynamic, gives us hope: “Never has so much human capital and effort been focused on solving just one problem,” he said. “We have five shots on goal between now and Christmas with an 80% chance of hitting the back of the net.”
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BlackRock European Dynamic invests in companies of all shapes and sizes across Europe. The managers look for companies that are either undervalued and/or have good growth potential. Their approach is flexible, varying through market and economic cycles to position the portfolio appropriately. Giles Rothbarth became a co-manager on the fund in 2019 and will become lead manager at the end of this year, when co-manager Alister Hibbert steps back from fund management.

Read more about BlackRock European Dynamic

What’s covered in this podcast:

  • How many COVID vaccines are in development [0:42]
  • Which five vaccines BlackRock is focusing on and how close they are to phase 3 (when thousands of people receive the vaccine and it is tested for efficacy and safety) [1:31]
  • How confident BlackRock is that one will work [4:23]
  • How people could be encouraged to take a vaccine [5:21]
  • Who may get a vaccine first [7:16]
  • How a second lockdown might impact European companies [8:12]
  • Why economies may be more resilient this time – using Ireland as an example [10:07]
  • What impact a vaccine may have on stock markets [11:13]
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