The recent surge in gasoline prices suggests we might see a reversal in consumers’ years-long shift towards trucks or sports-utility vehicles (SUV) back to more modest, fuel-efficient vehicles. But don’t expect automakers to go along. We’re not likely to have an adequate supply of the basic gasoline-powered family sedan ever again, thanks to the transition to electric vehicles, continuing supply ...

Perhaps the saying, “There is no such thing as bad publicity,” holds true for controversial technology companies. New York-based Clearview AI has been criticised by privacy advocates for years because of the way it has scraped billions of images from social-media networks to build a search engine for faces used by police departments. It was the subject of a New ...

  Let’s talk about presidenting during a crisis. A crisis, the late political scientist Nelson W Polsby used to say, is “a period where everybody believes that something must be done.” The Russian invasion of Ukraine certainly fits that definition — and it’s both an opportunity and a danger for a presidency. The opportunity side of it is captured in ...

  Bloomberg Oyo, the high-profile affordable lodging startup that filed for an initial public offering last year, is considering slashing its fundraising target by half or even shelving the debut, according to people familiar with the matter. Faced with headwinds including slumping stock markets, Oyo-operator Oravel Stays Ltd could clip its Indian IPO from the nearly $1 billion initially sought ...

  Bloomberg The initial public offering of FabIndia Ltd, a retailer of clothing and furniture inspired by traditional Indian crafts, is a natural fit for global investors focused on environmental, social and governance criteria, according to its chief financial officer. “We are ESG in the way we operate in terms of connecting the artisans, the farmers,” Gopal Mishra said in ...

Bloomberg Only half of Chinese aged 80 and older are fully vaccinated against Covid-19, highlighting a key vulnerability as the country grapples with its worst outbreak since Wuhan and the prospect of reopening to the world. About 51% of over 80-year-olds have received two shots and some 20% have gotten boosters, health officials told reporters at a briefing in Beijing. ...

Bloomberg Southeast Asia’s tourist havens from Bali to Bangkok are moving to further reopen, rolling back Covid-19 restrictions to attract more visitors and bolster growth in their tourism-reliant economies. Thailand announced that it will further ease entry rules for vaccinated visitors starting from April 1. Foreign tourists will no longer be required to hold a Covid-free certificate issued within 72 ...

  Bloomberg Toyota Motor Corp has unveiled a project to introduce India’s first hydrogen-powered fuel cell electric car as one of the biggest emerging car markets looks to expedite its transition to clean transport. Local unit Toyota Kirloskar Motor Pvt will work with the government’s testing agency International Centre for Automotive Technology to study the fuel cell electric car Mirai ...

Bloomberg US President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping began a closely watched phone call on Friday, their first since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last month. The call, which started shortly after 9 am Washington time, is an opportunity for Biden to assess where Beijing stands on the war and how Xi views his country’s role, after some Chinese ...

Bloomberg China’s muted response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has hardened views within the Biden administration that President Xi Jinping may be moving closer to supporting Moscow as the conflict continues, according to several people familiar with the matter. Even as the Chinese government publicly voices some support for the Ukrainian people and calls for a peaceful solution, top American ...