October, 2021

• 28 October

  Avianca seeks approval for plan that cuts airline’s debt by $3b

  

  Bloomberg Avianca Holdings SA asked a judge for permission to exit bankruptcy under a plan that the airline says will eliminate about $3 billion in debt and preserve over 10,000 jobs. Latin America’s second-largest airline before the pandemic presented its restructuring plan at a hearing in New York. If approved, the 102-year-old company is eyeing an exit from bankruptcy this ...

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• 28 October

  Xi’s China roadmap is awash in contradictions

  China’s Communist leaders have always been comfortable with contradictions. How else could a party that rules in the name of Marxism-Leninism have created a country with more billionaires and wider income disparities than many capitalist democracies? It’s even baked into the governing ideology, which sees dynamic opposing forces as ever-present, with society moving forward as these are resolved in a ...

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• 28 October

  Heathrow posts 1st quarter of traffic growth since Covid

  

  Bloomberg London’s Heathrow airport said it saw its first full quarter of passenger growth since 2019 as restrictions eased and travellers returned to flying. Traffic reached 28% of pre-pandemic levels in the third quarter, the airport said as it reported financial results. However, 3.4 billion pounds ($4.7 billion) in losses since the start of the Covid outbreak “underscore the long ...

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• 28 October

  Unvaccinated pilots costing United Airlines millions in paid leave

  

  Bloomberg United Airlines Inc told a federal judge the company is spending millions on paid leave for unvaccinated pilots because their colleagues “refuse to risk their safety” by flying with them. The leave is costing United about $1.4 million every two weeks — money it’s unlikely to recover even if it wins a lawsuit challenging the airline’s vaccine mandate for ...

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• 28 October

  US issues new pandemic travel rules for vaccination, testing

  

  Bloomberg The Biden administration issued new rules for travellers to the US requiring proof of full vaccination against Covid-19 in addition to a recent negative test for the virus. People from countries with low supplies of vaccines who aren’t traveling on tourist visas, and those under 18, will be exempt from the vaccine requirement, senior administration officials said. US citizens ...

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• 28 October

  Sneaker brand Allbirds seeks to raise up to $269m in IPO

  Bloomberg Shoemaker Allbirds and its existing shareholders are seeking to raise up to $269 million in an IPO, adding to a fast-paced season for consumer-oriented listings in the US The San Francisco-based company is marketing 15.4 million shares for $12 to $14 each, according to its filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Existing backers are selling an additional ...

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• 28 October

  Thrasio raises $1b in funding round

  Bloomberg Thrasio Holdings Inc, an aggregator of Amazon.com Inc products, has raised more than $1 billion in a private funding round led by technology investor Silver Lake. Silver Lake, a new investor in Thrasio, was joined by existing investors including Advent International, Upper90, Oaktree Capital Management and Peak6 in the Series D financing, according to a statement. The round valued ...

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• 28 October

  US support for Taiwan poses ‘huge risks’ to relations: China

  

  Bloomberg China condemned the US’s latest overture towards Taiwan, warning that ties between the two countries faced “huge risks” just weeks after Presidents Joe Biden and Xi Jinping agreed to hold a video summit. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s call for greater participation by Taiwan in UN organisations violated the “one China” understanding between Beijing and Washington, Foreign Ministry ...

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• 28 October

  Assange won’t face supermax prison if extradited, says US

  

  Bloomberg Julian Assange won’t face solitary confinement or supermax prison in Colorado if he’s jailed in the US, as lawyers for the country argued his extradition shouldn’t have been blocked by a London judge on mental health grounds. The US laid out several assurances over his potential confinement and access to psychological treatment at the start of the London appeal ...

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• 28 October

  Arrested Sudanese PM returns home

  Bloomberg The Sudanese prime minister arrested in the military coup was returned to his home but remains under close guard, the Information Ministry said. Abdalla Hamdok was allowed to go back to his residence in the capital, Khartoum, the ministry said on its Facebook page. A number of government ministers and political leaders are still being held at unspecified locations, ...

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