Price check: Oil prices extended their rally today as economies hard hit by the coronavirus slowly reopen for business. Futures that will deliver U.S. crude in June gained 8.7% to $22.15 a barrel, putting them on course to rise for a fifth consecutive day, The Wall Street Journal reports. Brent crude, the benchmark for international energy markets, rose 6.8% to a three-week high of $29.04 a barrel. Demand for products such as gasoline and diesel is ticking up as parts of the U.S. and Europe relax restrictions on movement. At the same time, the production has dropped. Read the full story.
BESE: The president of Louisiana’s Board of Elementary and Secondary Education says the board plans to pick a new state superintendent of education May 20. BESE intends to hold committee meetings on May 19. On May 20, the full board will meet to select a successor to former state Superintendent of Education John White. Read the full story.
Undone: The plan to sell Victoria’s Secret to a private equity firm was mutually terminated on Monday after the buyer, Sycamore Partners, tried to back out of the deal because it said it did not agree with steps the lingerie brand took in response to the coronavirus pandemic, The New York Times reports. It marks the first major deal to unravel because of the virus. L Brands, which also owns Bath & Body Works, had agreed in February to sell a majority of Victoria’s Secret to Sycamore Partners for about $525 million. Read the full story.
