February, 2020

• 8 February

  Trump’s Mideast plan unacceptable: Mahathir

  

  Bloomberg Malaysian PM Mahathir Mohamad said the proposed Israel-Palestine peace deal that was announced by US President Donald Trump is “utterly unacceptable“ and “grossly unjust.” The plan, dubbed the “Deal of the Century” by Trump, hands the holy city of Jerusalem on a silver platter to Israel in absolute disregard for the feelings of millions of Muslims and Christians worldwide, ...

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• 8 February

  Trump ousts impeachment witnesses Sondland, Vindman

  

  Bloomberg President Donald Trump moved swiftly to exact retribution on those he blames for his impeachment, purging his administration of two witnesses who testified against him in the House inquiry just two days after his acquittal by the Senate. Gordon Sondland announced he had been ousted as US ambassador to the European Union just hours after the White House dismissed ...

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• 8 February

  HK protesters see virus fuelling movement

  

  Bloomberg Prominent activist Ventus Lau stood outside a restaurant, handing out surgical masks and asking recipients to shout pro-democracy slogans — including the popular rallying cry “Liberate Hong Kong! Revolution of our times!” For Lau, who has organised some of the biggest anti-government protests since they began last June, the demonstrations are on hold as fear of a new coronavirus ...

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• 8 February

  Varadkar risks defeat as Irish voters head to polls

  

  Bloomberg Ireland voted on Saturday, with PM Leo Varadkar’s party facing a struggle to retain power after almost a decade in office. Voting started at 7 am and was expected to finish at 10 pm. State broadcaster RTE was expected to release an exit poll immediately after voting ends. Counting is set to begin on Sunday, with a clear picture ...

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• 8 February

  Coronavirus crisis highlights flaws in the ‘Chinese model’

  

  The “Chinese model,” as enthusiasts sometimes describe Beijing’s autocratic system for dictating policy, can look eerily successful — until you consider catastrophic events such as the recent coronavirus outbreak. China’s response to the epidemic that began in Wuhan over a month ago shows some advantages of its police-state approach, and some severe disadvantages: Chinese authorities can commandeer resources to build ...

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• 8 February

  Is Macy’s too Macy’s to save Macy’s?

  

  With the traditional department store in its death throes, Macy’s Inc. is doing its best to keep the concept alive. The struggling retailer last week unveiled a strategic blueprint to defend its business against the twin threats of online and discount competitors. The centerpiece is closing 125 of its department stores over the next three years, including some 30 locations ...

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• 8 February

  Aston Martin, Funding Circle left painful scars

  It’s easy to announce an initial public offering in Europe, but far harder to complete it. Don’t be distracted by the handful of decent-sized share issues launched in January. The recent evidence suggests that the target audience for European IPOs is smaller, fussier and harder to reach than it used to be. Some 17 offerings totaling 1.4 billion euros were ...

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• 8 February

  Germany’s AfD causes a political earthquake

  Germany made post-war history on February 5. In a total shock, one of the country’s 16 state parliaments elected a premier with votes that included members of a hard-right populist party, the Alternative for Germany (AfD). Worse, one of the AfD leaders in that state, Thuringia, is Bjoern Hoecke, considered to be on the party’s extreme — indeed proto-Fascist — ...

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• 8 February

  Modi’s ‘thalinomics’ is a recipe for a bad economy

  

  Indian food, when done right, comes in a thali — a metal plate with half a dozen or more little bowls of vegetables, pickles, and so on. The word of the week in India is “thalinomics”: The government’s official survey of the Indian economy, published a few days ago, introduced the word to talk about how food was getting cheaper ...

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• 8 February

  Oil giant BP can afford to be radical on climate change

  

  Bob Dudley leaves BP Plc having almost settled the financial costs of the Deepwater Horizon tragedy in 2010 and overseen a necessary overhaul of safety, and more generally culture, in response to the disaster. Successor Bernard Looney inherits a financially strong company. That only increases the incoming CEO’s responsibility to upgrade BP’s strategy to meet the climate crisis. BP and ...

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