August, 2021

• 12 August

  Cathay Pacific’s dire run eases as first-half losses narrow

  

  Bloomberg Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd’s first-half loss narrowed from a year earlier as the Hong Kong-based carrier slashed costs and cargo operations helped offset feeble passenger traffic. The airline reported a net loss of HK$7.6 billion ($977 million) in the six months through June, compared with a HK$9.9 billion deficit in the same half of 2020. Sales dropped 43% to ...

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• 12 August

  Super Coffee nabs over $500m valuation

  Bloomberg Kitu Life Inc, the startup behind Super Coffee that counts Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez among its investors, has more than doubled its valuation to over $500 million with its latest round of funding. Henry Ellenbogen’s Durable Capital Partners led the $106 million round. Other participants include LivWell Ventures, the family office of Nutrabolt Chief Executive Officer Doss Cunningham, ...

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• 12 August

  North Korea threatens ‘crisis’ in last-ditch bid to sway Seoul

  

  Bloomberg North Korea threated a “security crisis” over US-led military drills, in what appeared to be a campaign to pressure South Korea’s pro-engagement president for greater support before he leaves office next year. Training exercises scheduled to start on Monday risk sinking a two-week-old deal between Seoul and Pyongyang to improve ties, said Kim Yong Chol, a North Korean ruling ...

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• 12 August

  Russia files new charges against Putin opponent Navalny

  

  Bloomberg Russia filed new charges against jailed opposition leader Alexey Navalny using a law that has mostly been applied to cults, as the Kremlin moves to crush dissent ahead of parliamentary elections next month. Navalny and his allies are accused of creating “a non-profit organisation that infringes on the persons and rights of citizens,” Russia’s Investigative Committee said in a ...

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• 12 August

  China leaves room to release Canadian after spy conviction

  

  Bloomberg A Chinese court jailed a Canadian tour organiser for 11 years for spying, while leaving room for his eventual deportation — a ruling that appeared timed to pressure Ottawa in extradition proceedings against a top Huawei Technologies Co. executive. Michael Spavor, who organised tours to North Korea, was sentenced after being found guilty of stealing and illegally providing state ...

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• 12 August

  Macron defends handling of pandemic

  

  Bloomberg French President Emmanuel Macron rebuffed accusations that he’s handling the Covid-19 crisis in an authoritarian way on Wednesday and renewed his call for people to get vaccinated to beat the pandemic. “Never before in our history was a crisis of such magnitude fought in such a democratic way,” Macron said at the beginning of a virtual defense cabinet meeting ...

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• 12 August

  Afghan finance minister quits, leaves country

  

  Bloomberg Afghanistan’s acting finance minister Khalid Payenda has resigned and left the country after the Taliban captured key customs posts bleeding the administration of revenue, reinforcing the government’s isolation as the extremists make swift gains. Payenda has “resigned and left the country because Afghanistan is grappling with declining revenues after the takeover of the custom posts,” Finance Ministry spokesman Mohammad ...

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• 12 August

  Senate Democrats pass $3.5tr blueprint for Biden’s agenda

  

  Bloomberg Senate Democrats took a major step towards the biggest expansion in decades of federal efforts to reduce poverty, care for the elderly and protect the environment, passing a $3.5 trillion budget framework that opens the way for President Joe Biden’s economic agenda. The party-line 50-49 vote marks an abrupt reversal from the tax-cutting philosophy of Republicans when they controlled ...

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• 12 August

  European SPAC to merge with ADS-TEC in $580m agreement

  

  Bloomberg European Sustainable Growth Acquisition Corp is buying Germany’s ADS-TEC Energy GmbH, which creates technology used for electric charging platforms, in a deal that will give the combined firm a market value of about $580 million. The transaction with the special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC, includes a $156 million private investment in public equity, or PIPE, with investors such ...

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• 12 August

  Merkel increases pressure on Germans to get Covid shots

  

  Bloomberg Germany will expand Covid-19 testing requirements for non-vaccinated people and end free tests to prod more residents to roll up their sleeves. Starting later this month, negative results will be required for people who haven’t been inoculated or can show they’ve recovered from the disease to eat in restaurants, go to the hairdresser and attend sporting events. The government ...

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