Hello and welcome to the Intelligence on Economist Radio.

I'm your host, Jason Palmer.

Every weekday we provide a fresh perspective on the events shaping your world.

The vast majority of the 20 million or so people in the world's waste industries are informal workers,

given little security and even less respect.

We look at a sector in which the pandemic has made hard work much harder and more dangerous.

And for old-fashioned low-tech communication at a distance, what you need is a megaphone.

And if the intended recipient is two kilometers away, you need a megaphone.

We examine the new technology behind a very loud hailer.

First up, though.

In March, as the world shut down, stranding millions, it seemed as if public markets would also freeze in the face of uncertainty.

Then, a month later, Carnival Cruise Lines secured a multi-billion-dollar lifeline.

As the cruise industry shuts down, Carnival was quick to free up its access to cash to tide it over.

It's raising $6 billion in stock and debt.

At the time, it seemed mystifying.

Cruise ships with names like World Dream and Oasis of the Seas became synonymous with anything but pleasure.

But in retrospect, that loan was a spark that lit capital markets aflame.

Fast forward to the end of 2020, those markets are soaring.

Cash has been flowing in to old stalwarts such as AT&T, tech giants such as Amazon,

and some newly public companies.

The European B has now filed its IPO and this is a highly anticipated listing of course you could value JD Health at nearly $29 billion.

Door dash has expected a price at IPO after the market closed.

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