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Porsche to cull diesel cars in shift to electric vehicles

Bloomberg Porsche AG will stop offering diesel versions of its cars, marking the latest blow for the technology that has come under intense scrutiny by regulators and environmental groups. Porsche will focus on gasoline, electric and hybrid vehicles because demand for diesel is declining, the Stuttgart, Germany-based manufacturer said in an emailed statement. For the sportscar manufacturer diesel “has traditionally ...

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MIT, Yale double estimates of US undocumented immigrants

Bloomberg The US may have double the number of undocumented immigrants as commonly estimated, according to a new study that has the potential to further fuel the debate over one of the nation’s most politically charged topics. While the US government and several outside groups have put the number of undocumented migrants at about 11 million or 12 million, the ...

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Is the denuclearisation process of Korea for real?

After the big bang of the Singapore summit in June, with its showy but vague North Korean commitment to denuclearisation, many analysts doubted that the deal had any real substance. But we’re beginning to see the first signs of what a serious accord would look like. This week’s North-South summit meeting in Pyongyang produced accord on some basic essentials of ...

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Drip, drip, drip of funds fleeing UK

The UK finance industry still has few clues about what the post-Brexit landscape will look like other than the certainty that doing business with the European Union will have more friction than it does now. Fund managers aren’t hanging around for the conclusion of the divorce negotiations, and the slow hemorrhaging of jobs and assets poses a clear and present ...

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Japan’s economy just might be starting new chapter

The world’s third-largest economy has suffered from a caricature. Yes, Japan fell from its pinnacle in the 1990s because of a property crash, enfeebled banks and a dwindling population. But that was then. It’s not falling anymore. When Japan’s economy was stumbling, China became the darling of the commentariat, investors and multinational companies developing supply chains. The mood towards China, ...

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US makes it harder for China to cut a trade deal

As promised, US President Donald Trump has escalated his trade war against China — announcing tariffs of 10 percent on another $200 billion in goods, plus a threat to raise the levy to 25 percent next year. Nearly half of China’s exports to the US now face Trump’s taxes on trade. The president boasts that the latest measure will bring ...

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Five essential numbers for measuring an economy

When you hear about economic growth, or the size of the economy, it’s referring to gross domestic product. Invented in the 1930s, GDP measures the market value of everything produced in a country (or region, or state) in a given year. When you hear about the labor market, it usually involves the unemployment rate, which is the percent of people ...

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Crumbling demand dogs Indian cement maker

One of India’s most acquisitive companies is buying up cement kilns across the country, going from big to bigger. It’s got the right plan, but who’s buying the cement and actually building? Ultratech Cement Ltd. is one of the world’s biggest cement manufacturers, with the capacity to put out 90 million tons a year from plants sprinkled across India. It ...

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What Jeff Bezos gets right about philanthropy

The response to Jeff Bezos’s announcement of a $2 billion fund to create preschools and help homeless families has been muted if not skeptical. Some critics say that Bezos should give raises to Amazon workers first. Others argue that he should be taxed instead and the revenue put towards education. I’d like to speak up for private philanthropy, with the ...

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