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Bloomberg IPhone users in the US are rushing to install messaging app WeChat days before President Donald Trump is set to ban downloads in the country. WeChat downloads surged to make it the 100th most-downloaded app in the US, according to mobile analytics firm SensorTower. It has typically ranked between 1,000th and 1,500th this year. This is the first time …

Bloomberg Apple Inc. and the government of Singapore have partnered on a two-year health initiative dubbed LumiHealth, which is built around tracking and rewarding user behaviour through the Apple Watch gadget and an iPhone app. As part of the scheme, Singapore residents will be able to earn as much as S$380 ($280) in rewards and vouchers by completing goals and …

Bloomberg Amazon.com Inc.’s self-driving-car unit, Zoox Inc., is getting a green light from California to test autonomous vehicles on public roads without a safety driver, becoming the fourth company to receive the state’s blessing for truly driverless testing. The permit allows Zoox to operate two vehicles without a driver behind the wheel, a step up from approval it received four …

Bloomberg Apple Inc. announced a revamp to the iPad Air that makes the tablet look like the pricer iPad Pro line by removing long-time features such as the Home Button and adding an edge-to-edge screen. The updated iPad Air has a 10.9-inch edge-to-edge screen similar to the iPad Pro. That’s up from 10.5-inches on last year’s models. Prices start at …

Bloomberg Oil extended gains to trade near $39 a barrel in New York, buoyed by an industry report of a surprise drop in US crude stockpiles and advances in other financial markets. The American Petroleum Institute reported crude stockpiles declined by 9.52 million barrels last week, according to people familiar with the numbers. That contrasts with an increase forecast in …

Bloomberg The European Union’s (EU) executive proposed toughening the bloc’s targets for fighting climate change in a move to cut industrial pollution and spur a green economic recovery. The 27-nation EU should tighten its emissions-cutting goal to at least 55% by 2030, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday. The current objective, agreed just six years ago, …

Bloomberg Deutsche Lufthansa AG is preparing for more drastic cutbacks in its global workforce and airline fleet than it previously planned, after a hoped-for recovery of air traffic fizzled out. Recent rules that forced travellers into quarantine have had a catastrophic effect on bookings, Chief Executive Officer Carsten Spohr told staff at a meeting, according to people in attendance. For …

Bloomberg Qantas Airways Ltd is considering shifting its headquarters from Sydney in an effort to cut costs as the pandemic forces it to scale down operations. The carrier announced a three-month review of its property footprint across the country, and said it was seeking to trim its annual A$40 million ($29 million) bill for rented office space. Qantas appointed Colliers …

Bloomberg SpiceJet Ltd, one of the world’s biggest customers for Boeing Co’s now-grounded 737 Max jets, said an interim offer of compensation from the US planemaker is higher than what the Indian budget carrier recognised earlier. SpiceJet, India’s second biggest airline, has been using an unusual accounting method to book income on expected compensation from Boeing in the past few …

Bloomberg Airbus SE is offering French employees a bonus of two months’ salary if they accept voluntary severance by the end of next month, stepping up efforts to thin its ranks with fewer forced layoffs. The pandemic-hit planemaker is also offering to top up monthly wages by as much as 350 euros ($415) for up to a year if workers …