February, 2020

• 11 February

  Morally ethical self-driving cars are next real challenge

  

  Not too long ago, tech enthusiasts were telling us that by 2020, we’d see self-driving cars hit the mainstream, with some 10 million on the roads. That turned out to be a wild overestimation. The actual number of vehicles in testing is thousands of times smaller, and they’re still driving mostly in controlled conditions. Companies have also scaled back their ...

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• 11 February

  US equity futures advance before Fed’s Powell speaks

  

  Bloomberg US equity futures climbed alongside stocks in Europe and Asia as investors pushed benchmarks to record highs before commentary from Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell. Oil rose and Treasuries slipped. Contracts on the three main American gauges pared earlier gains but remained in the green ahead of Powell’s testimony before Congress, where the Fed chair will likely give hints ...

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• 11 February

  India’s Sensex gains as investors’ focus on demand revival

  

  Bloomberg India stocks rose, rebounding from two days of losses, as investors assessed the impact of the federal budget on demand while earnings season for companies enters its last leg. The S&P BSE Sensex advanced 0.6%, the most in nearly a week, to 41,216.14 in Mumbai. It had risen as much as 1.1% on Tuesday. The NSE Nifty 50 Index ...

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• 11 February

  Bitcoin drops from $10,000

  Bloomberg Euphoria around Bitcoin’s break above $10,000 over the weekend appears to be short-lived. The largest cryptocurrency found resistance just above that level, reaching as high as $10,194 on Sunday before pulling back, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. It similarly struggled with that level in September when it crossed $10,000 — the month that followed saw it lose more ...

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• 11 February

  Virus anxiety disrupts Asia’s biggest airshow in Singapore

  

  Bloomberg The timing couldn’t be much worse for Asia’s biggest airshow as the novel coronavirus roils the aviation industry. The outbreak has prompted scores of companies and VIPs to pull out of the Singapore Airshow, including F-35 fighter-jet maker Lockheed Martin Corp and Commercial Aircraft Corp of China (Comac). Industry leaders Boeing Co and Airbus SE, which usually count on ...

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• 11 February

  Watchdog to audit FAA pilot-training standards

  

  Bloomberg The US Transportation Department’s Inspector General is opening a new review of how regulators decided on pilot-training requirements for Boeing Co’s grounded 737 Max. The Inspector General is beginning an audit of domestic and international pilot training standards, it said in a press release. The evaluation was requested by Democratic and Republican lawmakers. The audit will focus on the ...

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• 11 February

  Philippine carriers suspend Taiwan flights due to virus

  Bloomberg Philippine Airlines Inc and Cebu Air Inc have suspended their Taiwan flights after the Southeast Asian nation expanded its travel ban on the novel coronavirus. The order temporary barring the entry and departure of foreign nationals from China, Hong Kong and Macau will also cover Taiwan, the Bureau of Immigration said. Both carriers suspended the Taiwan flights starting from ...

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• 11 February

  Simon buying Taubman for $3.6bn to fight retail slump

  

  Bloomberg Simon Property Group Inc agreed to buy rival US shopping-mall operator Taubman Centers Inc for about $3.6 billion, a combination that comes as e-commerce continues to roil brick-and-mortar retail. Simon will pay $52.50 a share in cash for all of Taubman’s common stock, the companies said in a statement. That’s about 51% more than Taubman’s closing share price on ...

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• 11 February

  JD Sports takeover of Footasylum raises concern

  Bloomberg JD Sports Fashion Plc’s purchase of Footasylum may harm competition and leave shoppers worse off, the UK’s antitrust regulator said. The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said its provisional view is that the transaction could lead to “a substantial lessening of competition in the retail supply of sports-inspired casual footwear.” The regulator, asked for feedback on its findings. ...

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• 11 February

  Ocado expects 15% retail growth as M&S deal advances

  

  Bloomberg Ocado Group Plc forecast retail revenue growth of as much as 15% this year as it starts to sell products from Marks & Spencer Group Plc and sets up the first of its robot-run delivery systems for supermarkets abroad. The UK online grocer says it’s on track to launch its joint venture (JV) with M&S in September and open ...

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