Orbán’s power grab, Russia’s worsening outlook

The Hungarian parliament’s decision to allow Prime Minister Viktor Orbán to rule by decree indefinitely has caused uproar among EU officials. For now, the European Commission is likely to do little more than verbally rebuke the actions but when the dust from the coronavirus crisis settles, officials are likely to mount a harsher response. Meanwhile, Russia has further increased efforts to contain the coronavirus over the past week and there is growing evidence that economic activity is grinding to a halt. While policymakers seem increasingly worried about the collapse in oil prices, we expect fiscal and monetary support to be stepped up over the coming weeks.