May, 2019

• 29 May

  Bolton warns Iran’s proxies they risk strong US response

  

  Bloomberg US National Security Adviser John Bolton warned Iran’s proxies not to attack US interests, saying any assault on their patron’s behalf would “risk a very strong response.” Bolton, in a briefing with reporters in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday, said the US is “very concerned” that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps would use allied Shiite militia groups in Iraq to ...

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• 29 May

  Indian PM may wait for land, labour reforms

  

  Bloomberg PM Narendra Modi has once again taken control of India’s lower house of parliament. But it’s the upper house, which has thwarted him in the past, that might now define his reform agenda — and his position there is set to improve. That could place long-awaited but politically controversial land and labour reforms back on the political agenda, a ...

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• 29 May

  Voter apathy clouds Buhari’s new term

  Bloomberg As the Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari began his second term on Wednesday, he did so with the blessing of just 8 percent of the nation’s 201 million people. While Buhari won 56 percent of the ballots, only 15.2 million of the 29 million registered voters backed him. The 35 percent turnout, down from 44 percent in the last elections ...

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• 29 May

  Johnson’s leadership ambitions hit snag

  

  Bloomberg Boris Johnson’s leadership ambitions were dealt an embarrassing setback when a London judge ruled that he must attend court to face allegations of misconduct in public office. Conservative Party favourite Johnson will face a preliminary hearing and then a criminal trial, District Judge Margot Coleman said on Wednesday, allowing an unprecedented private prosecution attempt to proceed against the politician. ...

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• 29 May

  Salvini girds for first clash with Five Star

  

  Bloomberg Just days after a rousing European election victory, Italian Deputy PM Matteo Salvini is gearing up for a new clash with his weakened coalition ally over a corruption case involving an official from his own League party. The tussle over Deputy Infrastructure Minister Edoardo Rixi, who’s among politicians linked to a probe dubbed “Crazy Expenses,” has triggered new tension ...

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• 29 May

  The US-China trade war will remake the world

  

  President Donald Trump has long said the goal of his trade policy is simply to get better deals for Americans. But as the trade war intensifies, it seems increasingly likely that his policies will lead to something more: a lasting break with China and a new alignment of global power. First, consider the evidence for the break. The current impasse ...

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• 29 May

  Salvini faces his crunch moment

  

  The European Parliament elections were hardly a triumph for the populist parties. But in Italy, the far-right nationalists were on a roll. The League won 34.3% of the vote, doubling its share in last year’s general election. The 5 Star Movement collapsed to just 17.1%, but Brothers of Italy, a smaller far-right party, took 6.5%. Two in five voters chose ...

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• 29 May

  Lenovo cannot justify goodwill in these times

  Lenovo Group Ltd. just reported March quarter profit that climbed threefold to beat the highest analyst estimate. The Chinese computer maker’s focus on higher-margin products will offer investors some comfort that management’s turnaround strategy has been successful. That’s not wrong. But a lot has changed in the past year. The world is facing a tougher economic outlook, which will impact ...

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• 29 May

  Ban ‘non-electric’ cars to reduce emissions

  Most modern cities have measures to reduce congestion. But if their goal is to dramatically improve air quality and extend lives shortened by pollution, then tolls and parking meters simply aren’t enough. It’s worth asking what a more ambitious target would look like. Amsterdam has made itself a test case, proposing an outright ban on gas and diesel vehicles by ...

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• 29 May

  World’s most contested coal mine doesn’t add up

  

  Is the world’s most bitterly contested coal mine finally getting the go-ahead? After the opposition Labour party suffered heavy losses in coal-mining regions in Australian federal elections, the Carmichael project looks to be getting closer than ever to approval. In the view of the government’s resources minister Matt Canavan, the pit being developed by Adani Mining Pty., a unit of ...

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