Advanced preliminary release for Q4 2019 quarterly data on total credit to the non-financial sectors; comprising private non-financial sector and general government for 44 economies and regional aggregates have been updated. Data are available for the following borrowing subsectors: general government, private non-financial sector (series on credit from domestic banks as lending sector are also available), non-financial corporations and households. Data are presented in three versions: in billions of local currency and US dollars, and as a percentage of GDP.

Close to 300 series at various frequencies for 60 countries have been updated.

Advanced preliminary release for Q4 2019 quarterly data on credit-to-GDP gaps covering 44 economies have been updated. These time-series data show the difference between the credit-to-GDP ratio and its long-run trend, which can serve as an early warning indicator of financial crises. As input, the data used are the credit-to-GDP ratio as published in the BIS database of total credit to the private non-financial sector. The credit series capture total borrowing by the private non-financial sector (ie households and non-financial corporations) from all sources.

BCBS Press release "Basel Committee publishes stocktake report on climate-related financial risk initiatives'", 30 April 2020

This report summarises the main results of a stocktake conducted by the Basel Committee of its members' initiatives on climate-related financial risks.

Are financial intermediaries inherently unstable and, if so, why? To address this, we analyse whether model economies with financial intermediation are particularly prone to multiple, cyclic or stochastic equilibria.

We document that corporate pension contributions respond to tax-based incentives using the 2017 Tax Cut & Jobs Act (TCJA) as a natural experiment. The TCJA cut the U.S. federal corporate tax rate, temporarily increasing contribution incentives for sponsors of defined-benefit retirement plans. We exploit cross-sectional variation in ex-ante exposure to these incentives.

Bank of Italy Working Papers by Andrea Gazzani and Alejandro Vicondoa

Bank of England Working Papers by Nicola Garbarino and Benjamin Guin

Central Bank of Chile Working Papers by Carlos Madeira

My childhood friend has joined America’s “deaths of despair.”

Whether you're a casual smartphone shooter or a professional using an SLR, software can get the most out of your images. We help you find the best photo editing software for your needs.

Trump washes his hands of responsibility.

Heaven help us, we’re at the mercy of the Slim Suit crowd.

Penn State is implementing a new opt-in grading system for the spring 2020 semester that will give students flexibility, help preserve GPAs and minimize impacts to students’ transcripts during the academic challenges presented by the novel coronavirus public health crisis.

Amanda Moore, of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, is on track to graduate from Penn State Mont Alto this May with a degree in psychology. She credits her academic success with Mont Alto's strong focus on research and varied program offerings.

As college campuses closed and the COVID-19 virus began casting a larger shadow in south central Pennsylvania, members of the nursing and physical therapist assistant programs at Penn State Mont Alto took stock of all the medical personal protection equipment (PPE) items in their labs. The two programs were supplied with hundreds of gloves and dozens of medical gowns and masks, plus other items such as disposable stethoscopes, shoe covers and safety glasses — items no longer needed as the campus transitioned to remote instruction.

The Penn State Mont Alto campus held its annual Academic and Leadership Awards Ceremony online on Sunday, April 19. Eighty-eight students were recognized for their academic achievements and campus leadership during the 2019-20 academic year. Three faculty members and one staff member were also recognized for their above-and-beyond contributions to the learning environment at Penn State Mont Alto.

Staying active and maintaining physical fitness has many benefits to all elements of wellness, including mental and emotional well-being that may be taxed during social distancing. At Penn State Mont Alto, the athletic department has been releasing weekly at-home workout and challenge videos that are accessible on our Facebook and Instagram pages to keep our student-athletes engaged.

Anti-government ideology is crippling pandemic policy.

Penn State’s PROmoting School-community-university Partnerships to Enhance Resilience (PROSPER) project is continuing to connect and engage Pennsylvania families and keep schools informed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Balancing finicky kid appetites with proper nutrition can be a challenge in the best of times. But now, with the majority of schools and day cares closed across Pennsylvania, many parents working from home, and schedules thrown in disarray, it may seem downright impossible. A Penn State nutritionist offers tips for feeding kids during stressful times.

The 2020 Special Olympics Summer Games, slated for June 11 to 13, are being canceled due to concerns related to coronavirus. The games will shift to virtual events, with details to be announced in the near future.

On the fourth day of NCAA Division III Week on Thursday, April 16, the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference released its All-Sportsmanship teams for winter and spring sports. Between winter and spring sports, a total of nine Penn State Altoona student-athletes were selected as representatives to the teams.

Five members of the Penn State football team were selected in this past weekend's NFL Draft, marking the third straight year that the Nittany Lions have had at least five draft picks.

Two Mont Alto student-athletes named to the USCAA All-Academic Team; Corrine Custer-Grassmyer recognized as John Fritz Sportsmanship Award Honoree.

In what could herald a course reversal for the UK's National Health Service, health officials in that country have reportedly asked a team of developers to "investigate" switching its contact tracing app to a cross-platform API provided by Apple and Google.

Apple has been hit with a class-action lawsuit claiming that the company concealed the so-called "stage lighting" issue experienced by some 2016 MacBook Pro owners.

Apple's higher-end 13-inch MacBook Pros are equipped to take advantage of 87W power adapters, though users won't see any charging speed benefits from the change.

Apple's latest iOS 13.5 beta release includes a new Health app feature that allows iPhone and Apple Watch users to automatically send Medical ID information to first responders.

A number of popular iOS apps, including TikTok, Pinterest and Spotify, began to crash on Wednesday after an update to Facebook's SDK rolled out, software that many developers rely on to streamline the user login process.

Brydge on Wednesday launched a new update to improve its Brydge Pro+ keyboard with trackpad that recently starting shipping for iPad Pro. AppleInsider goes hands-on with the latest firmware to see how Brydge's improvements have strengthened the user experience of its flagship product.

Apple's first product to integrate Mini LED display technology might see a later-than-expected launch timeline due to setbacks caused by the coronavirus pandemic, according to new research from TF Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

A pair of model numbers recently discovered in multiple international regulatory filings hinted at a next-generation Beats headphone, but new information suggests the device may actually be related to an existing product that's already in circulation.

Qualcomm CEO Steve Mollenkopf in an interview on Thursday said the chipmaker's relationship with Apple has greatly improved since the two companies ended a bitter legal battle over patent licensing and royalties in 2019.

While Apple has not revealed any viewing figures for Apple TV+, industry sources say the new "Defending Jacob" drama is a hit with higher viewing figures, and audience engagement, than most shows on the service.

Apple has refreshed the 13-inch MacBook Pro with Magic Keyboard, the start of Apple's online WWDC has been announced, the iPad Pro Smart Keyboard gets a teardown, and your hosts provide a massive roundup of HomeKit and smart home devices.

Last March, analysts and tech bloggers dumped out arrogant contempt over Apple's latest product introduction. This year, those new offerings helped save Apple's Q2 earnings and are projected to bolster its June quarter performance despite the pandemic.

Before Monday's 13-inch MacBook Pro update, the choice between the 2019 model and the 2020 MacBook Air was very clear. It is less clear today -- but we can help.

Amid one of the worst economic downturns in years, Apple has outperformed most expectations that analysts have placed on it. Just shy of two months into the COVID-19 pandemic, its share price has returned to levels not seen since before the crisis.

Apple's next release in the AirPods family could be its long-rumored over-ear headphones, a leaker claims, with the larger personal audio accessory tipped to have the name "AirPods Studio."

Local people notice the unity in Christ of OM Montenegro as the team work and relax together.

OM Montenegro has discovered that if they are faithful and patient, they can eventually walk through doors that had once seemed closed.

OM uses a team car to transport teenagers with autism to Montenegro's only special needs school. But a better car is needed to continue.

CNA Staff, May 8, 2020 / 06:00 am (CNA).- EWTN Global Catholic Network, the world’s largest Catholic media organization, announced Friday that Andrew Walther – an experienced Catholic journalist, media executive, and advocate for persecuted Christians – has been named president and chief operating officer of EWTN News, Inc. The appointment is effective June 1.

Walther began his Catholic media career as a journalist writing for the National Catholic Register two decades ago. Most recently he has served as vice president for communications and strategic planning at the Knights of Columbus.

In his role as president of the news division, Walther will oversee EWTN’s vast news media platforms, which create content in English, Spanish, German, French, Portuguese and Italian. Its holdings include Catholic News Agency, the National Catholic Register, the ACI Group, ChurchPop and EWTN’s lineup of television and radio news programming.

“As well as being an accomplished Catholic journalist and media executive, Andrew Walther brings to this role unique expertise in the global Church,” said EWTN Chairman and CEO Michael P. Warsaw.

“His leadership experience with a global Catholic communications and media operation – and his previous work with the National Catholic Register and EWTN News Nightly – gives him the added advantage of already knowing the Catholic media world and many of the people within the EWTN family. We look forward to having him lead and strengthen our news division,” Warsaw said.

Since 2005, Walther has worked in senior roles at the Knights of Columbus. During his tenure at the Knights, Walther helped launch the organization’s modern communications department, overseeing work with Catholic and secular media outlets, the launch of social media channels and video production, and the organization’s global media work, especially in Europe and the Middle East. He was also heavily involved in the organization’s charitable work and disaster relief initiatives.

Walther also organized and led the Knights’ work on behalf of persecuted Christians in the Middle East, traveling to Iraq several times and successfully leading a public effort to have ISIS’ campaign of persecution declared  a genocide by Secretary of State John Kerry.

His advocacy for persecuted Christians and other religious minorities in the Middle East helped shape policy in both the Obama and Trump administrations, and he also helped play a role in forging a bipartisan legislative consensus on behalf of persecuted Christians and other victims of ISIS in the Middle East. Walther’s efforts included working with other governments and the UN as well as with Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant, Jewish and Muslim leaders to end violence and persecution and bring relief to persecuted Christian communities.

“Andrew Walther has been a good friend and a trusted colleague for many years,” said Archbishop José H. Gomez of Los Angeles, who is president of the U.S bishop’s conference and a longtime member of EWTN’s board of governors.

“Andrew is one of the Church’s finest strategic thinkers and a highly respected advocate for international religious liberty. All of this will serve him well as head of the world’s largest Catholic news organization. I wish him great success.”

While working closely over the years with many bishops, dioceses and Catholic organizations in North America, Walther also worked closely with the Vatican on several projects under both Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis.

“Mother Angelica created a network dedicated to ‘the advancement of truth’ and Catholic news is a vital part of this mission,” Walther said Friday.

“I look forward to working with the talented and dedicated team of journalists at EWTN News to provide news from a Catholic perspective and to highlight important stories that might otherwise be overlooked.”

In addition to his roles in media and religious freedom advocacy, Walther also oversaw the Knights’ polling and book publishing operations, which included several New York Times bestsellers. Together with his wife, Maureen, he co-authored “The Knights of Columbus: An Illustrated History,” a book released this year.

CNA Staff, May 8, 2020 / 12:30 pm (CNA).- A federal judge in Arkansas on Thursday upheld the state’s requirement that women obtain a negative coronavirus test before having an abortion.

Calling the decision “agonizingly difficult,” Judge Brian Miller for the Eastern District Court of Arkansas said the state’s testing mandate—which applies to all elective surgeries and not just abortions—is “reasonable” during the public health emergency and was not done “with an eye toward limiting abortions.

The judge noted that “it is undisputed that surgical abortions have still taken place.”

The abortion clinic Little Rock Family Planning Services had requested a temporary injunction on the state health department’s requirement that elective surgery patients obtain a negative new coronavirus (COVID-19) test result within 48 hours before the procedure.

Previously, the health department ordered a halt to non-essential surgeries on April 3 to preserve resources for treating COVID-19.

The Little Rock abortion clinic performed abortions while claiming they were offering “essential” procedures, and after the health department ordered them to stop on April 10, the clinic challenged the state in court. The diocese’s Respect Life Office noted that women were traveling to the clinic for abortions from nearby states such as Texas and Louisiana.

The clinic won its case for a temporary restraining order at the district court level, but the Eighth Circuit appeals court subsequently overruled that decision and sided with the state.

The April 3 directive was updated April 24 to allow for some elective surgeries provided certain conditions were met. Elective abortions were included in the “non-essential” surgeries that were allowed to continue on April 24.

These conditions included no overnight stays, no contact with COVID-19 patients in the previous 14 days, and a negative COVID-19 test for patients within 48 hours of the surgery.

According to the clinic, which asked for a temporary injunction, three women were seeking to obtain “dilation and evacuation” abortions but were prevented from meeting the state’s testing requirmenet. One woman said she was unable to get a COVID-19 test; another said the lab could not guarantee she would receive results in 48 hours. The third woman was unable to get an abortion in Texas, and drove to the Little Rock clinic; she was told the results of her test would not be available for several days.

In response, the state’s health department said that four surgical abortions had still been performed at the clinic between April 27 and May 1, with COVID-19 test results having been obtained within 48 hours of the abortions, and thus the directive was not an “undue burden” on women seeking abortion.

In his decision on Thursday, Judge Miller said that the pandemic is a serious threat, noting that at the time of the opinion more than 70,000 people had died in the U.S. from the virus including more than 3,500 people in Arkansas.

He said the case “presents the tug-of-war between individual liberty and the state’s police power to protect the public during the existing, grave health crisis,” and noted that the three women as well as others “are very troubled. There is a strong urge to rule for them because they are extremely sympathetic figures, but that would be unjust.”

eDrawings Pro 2020 now supports choosing your own 360˚ images as your custom environment in VR! This blog post will help walk you through the process of creating a 360˚ equirectangular image in SOLIDWORKS Visualize and adding it to your Virtual Reality scene in eDrawings Pro 2020.

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SOLIDWORKS Multibody Part Assembly An Exploded View is used to communicate your design or drawings in a more proper and precise way. It really helps to clearly understand the sequential order of the assembly. Moreover, the exploded view is used

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This SOLIDWORKS Tutorial for a Insulated ceramic coffee cup focuses on the combine tool, and uses an assembly to create the layout of the final design before saving back into a part, and turned in to a functional coffee cup. Decals for the tutorial are available to download in the description.

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A Special Purpose Machine, which is intended to perform a specific task, have a wide range of scope in the Industrial Applications like quantity packaging and bottle filling. It includes limit switches, sensors, logic controls where the process can be

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