It has been almost a week since the major American television networks projected that Joe Biden would win the U.S. presidential election.

Despite all the noise in the news about the current president's refusal to recognize the election results, and the dire consequences this attitude can have, the fact is that the Democratic candidate won the election.

Given that COVID-19 cases are skyrocketing in the country, and in much of the world, it is a relief to know that very soon there will be a president there with a concrete plan to deal with the pandemic.

A friend of mine who works at the European Union shared an interesting article about life expectancy in the different EU regions.

The latest data available, from 2018, shows that Switzerland (83.8), Spain (83.5), and Italy (83.4) had the highest life expectancy, as you can see on the map above.

According to the ECDC website, in many countries across the EU/EEA and the UK, an increase in COVID-19 cases is being observed following the lifting of lockdowns and the relaxation of preventive measures such as physical distancing.

This new "wave" has been reported in countries such as Spain and France, where the time series graph of confirmed cases shows a clear upward curve. I personally understand the "COVID-19 fatigue", but the virus is still there, and it's not possible to forget about it.

Both in Basel city and Zurich, it is required to wear a face mask in order to reduce COVID-19 transmission. The country flattened the curve, but as soon as it began to reopen, cases started to go up again. The cantons of Geneva, Vaud, and Zurich are the most affected, as can be seen in the graph above.

A couple of days ago Eurostat released a preliminary report on the GDP growth rate in the EU and the euro area. It's not surprising, but the COVID-19 situation and the required mitigation measures have taken a toll on the economy in Europe. The report discussed how "Seasonally adjusted GDP decreased by 12.1% in the euro area and by 11.9% in the EU, compared with the previous quarter". The graph above shows this dramatic trend.

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