February, 2020

• 3 February

  Facebook to pay $550m in biometric privacy accord

  Bloomberg Facebook Inc agreed to pay $550 million to resolve claims it collected user biometric data without consent in one of the largest consumer privacy settlements in US history. The accord, which requires a judge’s approval, will avert a trial that may have exposed the social networking company to billions of dollars in damages. Facebook fought unsuccessfully to persuade the ...

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• 3 February

  Merkel’s Huawei plan gets pushback from within her own ranks

  

  Bloomberg Chancellor Angela Merkel’s efforts to rule out a ban on Huawei Technologies Co have hit a wall of resistance in parliament. While the UK and the European Union introduced policies that allow Huawei’s partial participation in next-generation wireless networks, Merkel has failed to forge a compromise with hard-line lawmakers in her Christian Democratic-led bloc who want to ban China’s ...

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• 3 February

  Ford’s lending arm generates half the automaker’s profit

  Bloomberg Aside from F-Series pickups hauling in gobs of profit, Ford Motor Co’s automotive business isn’t carrying much weight lately. Thank goodness for the finance guys. Ford Credit, the lending arm that’s become accustomed to propping up the company in good times and bad, now generates about half the automaker’s profit, up from 15% to 20% in the past. Ford ...

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• 3 February

  UK manufacturing output avoids contraction

  

  Bloomberg UK manufacturing output unexpectedly avoided a contraction for the first time since April at the start of 2020, providing further evidence that ebbing political uncertainty is supporting the economy. IHS Markit said its Purchasing Managers Index for the sector climbed to 50 in January, right at the level that separates contraction from expansion. That’s also an improvement from an ...

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• 3 February

  Trump’s impeachment trial has more utility than futility

  

  When the Senate acquits the president, he will launch a vindication tour proclaiming that his prosecution was persecution that validated his coveted victim status: Crybaby conservatism’s leader has been tormented by unhinged elites. The entire impeachment episode might boost his reelection chances, but only slightly, because voters who are undecided about him are thin on the ground. Nevertheless, there is ...

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• 3 February

  China is prepared to fight last virus

  

  China has a bigger and more sophisticated toolbox to combat any economic slowdown from the coronavirus than in 2003, when it battled the Sars pandemic. The challenge now is a worsening backdrop both domestically and abroad, and how both hamper the effectiveness of Beijing’s response. It’s hard to be precise about the damage given the situation is still unfolding. Bloomberg ...

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• 3 February

  Aston’s new boss races away with a cool $46m

  The maker of Aston Martin sportscars is finally moving to remedy a botched initial public offering that gave it neither the money nor the investors it needed. January 31 brought a cash injection, a new shareholder and a shift in strategy. Crisis measures never come cheap and the rescue comes with many strings attached. Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings Plc, ...

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• 3 February

  Amazon’s retail business has a secret weapon

  Another blowout quarter for Amazon.com Inc. earnings spurred a 10% jump in its shares in post-market trading, pushing the retail giant’s value past $1 trillion. To gauge just how powerful Amazon.com Inc. truly is, though, look beyond its market cap, top-line sales or membership revenue and look at the so-called Amazon Tax. This is how much the company gets from ...

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• 3 February

  Amazon HQ2 and Foxconn should never happen again

  

  There have been two prominent instances in recent years of governments offering huge monetary incentives in exchange for an office or factory. Both have turned out badly. The first was former Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker’s $4.5 billion package to win a factory from Taiwanese electronics manufacturer Foxconn. The factory never made economic sense and — to no one’s surprise — ...

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• 3 February

  Nomura can focus on a bigger prize

  

  Nomura Holdings Inc.’s overseas operations are at last solidly in the black after years of flip-flopping between expansion and retrenchment. After a fourth straight quarterly profit, the Japanese brokerage is primed for its biggest international test: building a wealth management business in China. This time, it has a real chance of success. Last week, Nomura reported net income of $524 ...

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