December, 2018

• 12 December

  Google CEO rebuts bias, data tracking claims

  

  Bloomberg Google Chief Executive Officer Sundar Pichai kicked off his first appearance before Congress refuting claims of bias, explaining the company’s privacy approach and stressing its American roots. As the hearing began, the heads of both political parties led with questions about Google’s data collection. Republican Bob Goodlatte asked how much personal information Google absorbs via its Android mobile software. ...

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• 12 December

  Cisco in talks to purchase optical chipmaker Luxtera

  

  Bloomberg Cisco Systems Inc, the biggest maker of networking equipment, is in talks to purchase optical chip technology company Luxtera Inc, according to people familiar with the plans. A final price for the closely held company hasn’t been determined but a deal will likely value Luxtera in the hundreds of millions of dollars, said the people, who asked not to ...

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• 12 December

  Dell set to return to public markets

  

  Bloomberg Dell Technologies Inc won a shareholder vote to return to public markets, putting founder Michael Dell on the winning side of a transformative transaction that polarised investors for the second time in five years. Under terms of the deal, Dell will buy out shareholders of the stock that tracks Dell’s stake in software maker VMware Inc, known by its ...

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• 12 December

  Uber picks Morgan Stanley to lead next year’s IPO

  

  Bloomberg Uber Technologies Inc has selected Morgan Stanley to lead its public offering next year, according to two people familiar with the matter, meaning the investment bank will reap a larger share of the fees associated with a listing valuing the company at as much as $120 billion. It’s another big win for Morgan Stanley banker Michael Grimes, who has ...

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• 12 December

  Theresa May faces confidence vote in UK on her leadership

  

  Bloomberg Theresa May was expected to face a vote of confidence in her leadership of the Conservative Party as the embattled UK prime minister warned the rebels who want her out that they will be putting Brexit at risk. Tory members of Parliament were expected to vote on Wednesday evening on whether they have confidence in May. If she loses, ...

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• 12 December

  Catalan tensions back as Spain warns to send over police

  

  Bloomberg Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez threatened to deploy national police to the restive Catalonia region, as tensions escalate between Madrid and Barcelona. The central government sent three letters to the pro-independence Catalan administration this week warning that the regional Mossos police had failed to ensure basic security during recent protests, which paralysed several highways for hours with impunity. Sanchez ...

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• 12 December

  Orban tightens grip on Hungary courts

  

  Bloomberg Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s long march towards one-man rule in the heart of the European Union hit a new milestone. Shrugging off the threat of sanctions from Brussels, Orban’s lawmakers approved a law that will further tighten his hold over the country’s court system. Opposition lawmakers tried to prevent the opening of the parliamentary session and then whistled ...

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• 12 December

  Kim Jong-un unlikely to visit S Korea this year

  Bloomberg North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is not expected to visit the South before the end of the year, South Korean President Moon Jae-in’s office said. Kim may still travel to Seoul in January for what could mark the first trip by any North Korean leader to the South’s capital, presidential spokesman Yoon Young-chan said in a text message. Yonhap ...

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• 12 December

  Scandal hits Africa’s ‘party for the poor’

  

  Bloomberg The top leaders of South Africa’s Economic Freedom Fighters, famous for abrasive politics and brawling in parliament, have become embroiled in a string of scandals that has dented the party’s efforts to portray itself as a voice of the poor ahead of elections in May. Deputy party leader Floyd Shivambu allegedly secured funds looted from the failed VBS Mutual ...

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• 12 December

  Salvini may seek new election over ‘budget’

  

  Bloomberg As Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte prepared to present his budget in Brussels, one of the main powers behind Italy’s government, League leader Matteo Salvini, may be looking beyond the crisis a failed spending plan could trigger and toward new elections early next year, la Repubblica reported. With both Salvini and fellow Deputy Prime Minister Luigi Di Maio of the ...

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