January, 2021

• 24 January

  New-home sales in London slump as virus curbs deter investors

  

  Bloomberg New-home sales in London are plummeting as lockdowns hurt demand and investors hold back from building apartments. Sales of newly built homes totaled 4,190 in the fourth quarter, down 27% from a year earlier, according to preliminary data compiled by researcher Molior London. The figures are based on transactions at developments with at least 20 units, which are predominantly ...

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• 24 January

  EU plants flag with social bonds in defining year of debt sales

  

  Bloomberg The European Union (EU), set to become one of the largest issuers of green and sustainable bonds, will sell debt for the first time in 2021 off the back of record-breaking demand last year. The bloc will likely issue 14 billion euros ($17 billion) of seven-year and 30-year social bonds for a job support program in the coming week. ...

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• 24 January

  Grocery delivery firm Instacart to cut 1,900 jobs

  Bloomberg Instacart is cutting about 1,900 employees’ jobs, including 10 workers who formed a union, as the company seeks to boost its ranks of contract workers. The grocery delivery company already classifies most of its workers as independent contractors, whose numbers have ballooned to more than 500,000 during the coronavirus pandemic. But starting in 2015, the company hired a small ...

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• 24 January

  VW posts $12.2bn profit in show of pandemic resilience

  

  Bloomberg Volkswagen AG said a robust sales recovery toward the end of the year helped cushion annual results from the effects of the pandemic. Operating profit before one-time items related to VW’s diesel-emissions scandal falls to about 10 billion euros ($12.2 billion) last year, VW said in a statement, from 19.3 billion euros in 2019. Automotive net cash flow shrunk ...

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• 24 January

  Tencent seeks video breakthrough after $240bn Lite app hit

  

  Bloomberg WeChat creator Allen Zhang is counting on a breakthrough in video to thwart TikTok owner ByteDance Ltd., building on the success of his last big overhaul of the all-in-one messaging app. Zhang, celebrated in China for inventing Tencent Holdings Ltd.’s signature creation, has toyed for years with ways to keep and expand WeChat’s industry lead, particularly as upstarts like ...

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• 24 January

  AT&T holds talks to sell DirecTV stake to TPG

  

  Bloomberg AT&T Inc. is holding exclusive talks to sell a significant stake in DirecTV to private equity firm TPG, the latest stage of a months-long push to unload at least part of the struggling pay-TV business. A potential deal is weeks away, and the talks could still fall apart, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the ...

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• 24 January

  Microsoft boosts price of Xbox Live Gold

  

  Bloomberg Microsoft Corp. is raising the price for subscriptions to Xbox Live Gold, its paid online gaming platform, doubling the cost for an annual pass and prompting swift outrage from users. The price bump brings the cost of a six-month subscription to $60. Last year, Microsoft removed the option for a full-year subscription at that price from the online store. ...

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• 24 January

  Tesla claims engineer stole secrets just days into the job

  

  Bloomberg A former Tesla Inc. software engineer was ordered to appear before a judge to face allegations that three days into his job, he started stealing confidential files and transferring them to a personal storage account. During his two-week employment, Alex Khatilov stole more than 6,000 scripts, or files of code, that automate a broad range of business functions, Tesla ...

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• 24 January

  Mercedes joins Tesla, VW in compact electric-car race

  

  Bloomberg Mercedes-Benz is taking on one of the most complex industry challenges with the rollout of its battery-powered EQA: selling small electric cars without a big profit squeeze. The brand’s first fully electric compact model will hit European showrooms this spring, flanking the mid-size EQC sport-utility vehicle and the EQV van, the Daimler AG unit said. Unlike Tesla Inc.’s Model ...

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• 21 January

  We support world’s drive to a low-carbon future: Al Mazrouei

  

  ABU DHABI / WAM Suhail Al Mazrouei, Minister of Energy and Infrastructure, has said that the UAE seeks to reduce the carbon footprint through the implementation of the Energy Strategy 2050, which aims to reduce carbon dioxide in the country by 70%. “The world aspires to accelerate the energy transition towards a low-carbon future and seeks to reduce emissions,” he ...

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