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☆ California sues 3M, Dupont over toxic 'forever chemicals'
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Nov 10 (Reuters) - California's attorney general on Thursday sued 3M Co (MMM.N), DuPont de Nemours Inc (DD.N) and several other companies to recoup the "staggering" clean-up costs from toxic pollutants known as "forever chemicals." The substances are known as forever chemicals because of how long they stay in the human body and environment. "The damage caused by 3M, DuPont, and other manufacturers of PFAS is nothing short of staggering, and without drastic action, California will be dealing with the harms of these toxic chemicals for generations," Bonta said. In June, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency warned that forever chemicals could be dangerous even at undetectable levels. The Biden administration is expected to issue the first enforceable drinking water regulations for PFAS in public water systems this year.

☆ UK asset managers urge company bosses to show restraint on pay hikes
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Huw Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"With the cost-of-living crisis hitting UK households, investors want to see companies show restraint on executive pay and bonuses, ensuring that executive pay packets are balanced against the experiences of their wider workforce, customers, and other stakeholders," Andrew Ninian, IA director for stewardship and corporate governance, said on Thursday. With UK inflation more than 10% at a 40-year high, the IA said pay increases in line with rising prices may not be appropriate. The retention and motivation of employees below the executive level will be key and board decisions could affect productivity of the whole workforce, the IA said. Companies should also spell out how executive bonuses will be linked to meeting their environment, social and governance targets in future years, the IA said. ($1 = 0.8740 pounds)Reporting by Huw Jones Editing by Bernadette BaumOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ California sues 3M, DuPont over toxic ‘forever chemicals’
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

DuPont has never manufactured PFOA, PFOS or firefighting foam, said spokesperson Daniel Turner, referring to two PFAS substances. “The damage caused by 3M, DuPont, and other manufacturers of PFAS is nothing short of staggering, and without drastic action, California will be dealing with the harms of these toxic chemicals for generations,” Bonta said. Thursday’s lawsuit was filed in Alameda County, which includes Oakland, and is the first statewide legal action over PFAS contamination. In June, the US Environmental Protection Agency warned that forever chemicals could be dangerous even at undetectable levels. The Biden administration is expected to issue the first enforceable drinking water regulations for PFAS in public water systems this year.

☆ Trump was the biggest loser of the 2022 midterm elections
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Arick Wierson | Arick Wierson Is A Six-Time Emmy Award-Winning Television Producer | A Former Senior Aide To Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. He Advises Political | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

Mehmet Oz, Trump’s handpicked Senate candidate in Pennsylvania, fell to Democratic Lt. Gov. In Georgia, Trump foe Brian Kemp, the Republican governor, easily cruised to another term, besting Democrat Stacey Abrams. Meanwhile, Trump’s pick for Senate in the state, former football star Herschel Walker, is headed into a December runoff with Sen. Raphael Warnock. The storyline of Trump versus DeSantis battling for control of the GOP is already shaping up to be one that will dominate the national political conversation over the next two years. The other storyline should be how the outcome of the elections was a much better one for Democrats than the Beltway intelligentsia had been predicting.

☆ How Time magazine made more than $100 million with docuseries for Netflix, Amazon, and more by mining its 100-year-old archive
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Time Studios has become Time's biggest driver, generating more than $100 million, or 25% of its revenue. It's sold dozens of projects to the likes of Netflix, Amazon, and HBO, including "jeen-yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy." Time Studios has been developing some projects you might not expect from a 100-year-old legendary magazine brand. And of course there's "jeen-yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy," the doc series about now-disgraced Ye that sold to Netflix for a reported $30 million in 2021 after a robust bidding war. The Benioffs' support has allowed Time Studios to deficit-finance, or self-fund, about half its doc projects, enabling it to move at startup speed.

Candidates and voters braced for a late surge of campaigning in the final 48 hours before Election Day, with surrogates from both parties barnstorming key states in the battle for control of Congress. With voters expressing concern about inflation and dissatisfaction with President Biden’s stewardship of the economy, Republicans are heavily favored by nonpartisan analysts to win control of the House of Representatives in Tuesday’s elections. Democrats had better odds of keeping their Senate majority, but Republican candidates were making late polling gains in such states as New Hampshire, Arizona and Pennsylvania.

☆ Linde's potential delisting from Germany's biggest stock exchange matters for shareholders like us
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( Jeff Marks | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

The Club holding is currently listed on two different stock exchanges: the New York Stock Exchange in the U.S. and Germany's Frankfurt Stock Exchange. The main stock index in Germany is the DAX, roughly equivalent to the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Additionally, most actively managed mutual fund managers in Europe prohibit any one company stock from comprising more than 10% of a fund. Management believes this cap and associated pressure has negatively impacted Linde's valuation, and shares could realize their full potential by delisting from the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. But the trading action in Europe is the completely wrong way to approach Linde's stock.

The "Voting Choice" program announced last year by the $8 trillion asset manager could reshape corporate elections both by making shareholders more involved and by diminishing the political criticism BlackRock faces from U.S. liberals and conservatives alike. BlackRock said in a statement that at the end of September clients with around $1.8 trillion in equity index assets managed by the company were eligible for voting choices and that clients with $452 billion were doing so. Last month for instance Charles Schwab Corp's (SCHW.N) asset-management arm said it would start polling shareholders of certain funds about their voting preferences. "Our clients have diverse perspectives, and a growing number would like the option to weigh in on how their index funds vote," Vanguard said in a statement. In addition, BlackRock said it would offer voting choice to more investment strategies and work with investor communications platform Proxymity to extend choice to retail investors in some British mutual funds.

☆ The White House is touting a huge boost to Social Security checks. It's happening because inflation is sky high.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Jason Lalljee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

That's despite Social Security cost of living adjustments being directly tied to inflation since 1972. The boon to Social Security is accurate, but it's one that would happen regardless of Biden's stewardship. The direct relationship between inflation and Social Security has existed since 1972, when President Richard Nixon signed automatic benefit adjustments. It's the largest rise in Social Security payments in about that same amount of time, and will increase monthly Social Security checks by about $145 per month on average, according to the AARP. And protecting Medicare and Social Security are top issues for them, according to an AARP survey analysis.

☆ Netanyahu poised for comeback in Israeli election, exit polls show
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Former Israeli Prime Minister and Likud party leader Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife speak to the press after casting their vote in the Israeli general election on November 1, 2022 in Jerusalem, Israel. Former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared well placed to return to power after exit polls following Tuesday's election showed his right-wing bloc heading for a narrow majority lifted by a strong showing from his far-right allies. Israel's longest-serving premier, on trial over corruption charges which he denies, was poised to take 61-62 seats in the 120-seat Knesset, according to Israeli television exit polls. The early exit polls may differ from the final result of the election, which is not expected until later in the week. Security on the streets and soaring prices topped the list of voter concerns in a campaign triggered by defections from centrist Prime Minister Yair Lapid's unlikely ruling coalition of right-wing, liberal and Arab parties.

☆ Andersen Global CEO Discusses Legacy of Defunct Audit Giant, Overseas Expansion and EY’s Planned Split
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( Mark Maurer | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +8 min

Back then, Arthur Andersen was convicted by a Houston jury of obstructing the government’s investigation into Enron. Mr. Vorsatz—who worked at Arthur Andersen from 1979 to 2002, including as a partner—and several other former partners bought the rights to the name in 2014. WSJ: Andersen Global, unlike Arthur Andersen, has no audit business. Arthur Andersen had a training facility in St. Charles, Ill. WSJ: Do you consider it ironic that Arthur Andersen became the biggest firm and ultimately folded?

☆ Brazil's far-right leader Jair Bolsonaro loses tight election to leftist 2-time former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva after contentious campaigning
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( Taiyler Simone Mitchell | Isabella Zavarise | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Brazil elected Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva as president following Jair Bolsonaro's rocky presidency. Lula's victory marks his third win as president, despite serving time in jail for corruption, per NYT. In a remarkably close race, da Silva, also known as"Lula," received 50.83% of the votes, compared to Bolsonaro's 49.17%, according to CNN. During an October 2 election, neither candidate received a majority of votes, prompting the run-off election on Sunday, CNN explained. Throughout his campaign, Lula promised to crack down on illegal deforestation and rebuild the country's environmental protection agency.

☆ Elon’s erratic entry leaves Twitter in chaos as he vows to free suspended users from ‘Twitter jail’
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Not only do politicians sometimes stretch the rules in the run-up to elections, but foreign actors aiming to disrupt the process often run operations on social media aiming to spread disinformation. Musk on Friday addressed the Trump question with an effective non-answer: “Twitter will be forming a content moderation council with widely diverse viewpoints,” Musk tweeted. He has said he will run Twitter in a way that hues closer to free speech absolutism. There still has not been an all-hands meeting at Twitter to inform staff of the key decisions and changes underway. Twitter is often referred to as a social media website.

☆ Canada's fiscal update won't make central bank's job harder -sources
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Steve Scherer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

OTTAWA, Oct 27 (Reuters) - Canada's Liberal-led government will keep its powder dry when it unveils a fiscal update next month, and though it could contain additional targeted spending, it will not make the central bank's job harder, two senior government sources told Reuters this week. "The FES will not make the Bank of Canada's job of fighting inflation harder," said one source. "It behooves the federal government to continue to demonstrate some responsible fiscal stewardship right now," said a first source familiar with the draft document. Neither source would elaborate on where any "targeted" spending might go. The government's limited spending plans will be a relief to investors, as it would further aid the Bank of Canada's efforts to fight inflation.

☆ Time Studios made $100 million selling documentaries to Netflix and more. Now it's planning to mine the magazine's 100-year-old archives for fictional storytelling.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Time Studios has become Time's biggest driver, generating more than $100 million, or 25% of its revenue. In its most ambitious move yet, Time Studios is also making a push into fictional storytelling. Ian Orefice, president and COO, Time and Time Studios TimeIan Orefice, president and COO of Time and Time Studios, sees scripted as a "massive opportunity. The Benioffs' support has allowed Time Studios to deficit-finance, or self-fund, about half its doc projects, enabling it to move at startup speed. Time Studios also has a huge promotional advantage in Time's existing audience of some 100 million readers and followers on social media.

☆ China’s Leaders: Xi Jinping and His Men
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-23 | by ( Chun Han Wong | Keith Zhai | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Xi Jinping, 69, general secretary: The most formidable Chinese leader of the post-Mao era has taken a third term as head of the Communist Party without designating an obvious successor, a move that eviscerates the party’s decadeslong efforts to ensure regular leadership succession and prevent a return to Mao-style dictatorship. Since taking power in 2012, he has reversed the party’s embrace of collective leadership, concentrated decision-making authority in his own hands and scrapped constitutional term limits on the presidency. Having dominated the latest leadership shuffle, he enjoys a firm hand to pursue his agenda, which includes a more egalitarian society, a state-led economy and a muscular foreign policy—under the stewardship of a strong, centralized party.

☆ Dietrich Mateschitz, co-founder of Red Bull and F1 team owner, dies at 78
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-22 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

AUSTIN, Texas — Austrian billionaire Dietrich Mateschitz, the co-founder of energy drink company Red Bull and founder and owner of the Red Bull Formula One racing team, has died. Officials with the Red Bull racing team at the United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas, said Saturday that Mateschitz had died. With the growing success of Red Bull, he significantly expanded his investments in sports. Red Bull now operates football clubs, ice hockey teams and F1 racing teams, and has contracts with hundreds of athletes in various sports. The Austrian Servus TV station, owned by Red Bull Media House GmbH, is known for promoting right-wing provocative views.

☆ Sterling rallies as pressure on UK PM Truss mounts
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Lucy Raitano | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

British Prime Minister Liz Truss is meeting Graham Brady, the head of the 1922 Committee of Conservative lawmakers, a source in Truss's Downing Street office said. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterAgainst this backdrop, the pound rose 0.5% to $1.1260 , having earlier traded 0.4% down. Analysts said a dialling back of aggressive rate hike bets following comments from the BoE's Ben Broadbent also weighed on sterling. Investors reined in further their bets of a full percentage-point interest rate increase by the BoE next month following the comments. Rating agencies S&P and Moody's review UK sovereign ratings on Friday, another potential headwind for British markets.

☆ Trump's yearslong crusade against Ukraine has finally come home to roost as Republicans call for abandoning Kyiv
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( John Haltiwanger | Sonam Sheth | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

US aid to Ukraine could be in jeopardy if Republicans win the House in the midterms. Several GOP lawmakers and candidates have signaled they would support reducing or cutting off Ukraine aid. In April, 10 House Republicans voted against a bill allowing the Biden administration to more easily lend military equipment to Ukraine. The following month, 57 House Republicans voted "no" on a nearly $40 billion aid package for Ukraine. Some GOP opposition to continuing aid to Ukraine is tied to Trump's "America First" policy vis-a-vis foreign affairs.

☆ 'The School for Good and Evil' review
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( Review Brian Lowry | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Although immersed in fantasy, “The School for Good and Evil” gets lost in a nether realm somewhere between Disney Channel fare like “Descendants” and more epic theatricals like Harry Potter. There’s plenty of action along the way, as well as more wasted cameos, like Patti LuPone and Michelle Yeoh. Yet if you’re going to arrive this late to the party, at least bring something significantly new to it. Granted, that’s not an easy assignment at this stage of the game, but “The School for Good and Evil” doesn’t pass the test. “The School for Good and Evil” premieres October 19 on Netflix.

☆ 'The Midnight Club' review: Mike Flanagan adapts Christopher Pike's tale of terminal teens in another 'Stranger Things' wannabe
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-07 | by ( Review Brian Lowry | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —The curse of “Stranger Things” means every sci-fi/macabre concept involving teenagers will seemingly have its day on TV, with “The Midnight Club” as the latest example. The diverse makeup of the key group and approach to things like LGBTQ rights give “Midnight Club” a contemporary feel, despite its foundation in the past. As for the broader secrets, “Midnight Club” is in no hurry to disgorge those, perhaps hoping curiosity will pull viewers into a second season. Stranger things have happened, but if not, this could be the latest series in this genre that struggles to keep the midnight oil burning. “The Midnight Club” premieres October 7 on Netflix.

☆ Twitter’s future isn’t just Elon Musk’s problem
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-06 | by ( John Foley | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Buying Twitter is financially onerous, too, but compared with buying a bank, it’s pretty simple stuff. Social media companies, conversely, are a place where people tweet poop emojis and exchange cat GIFs. Congress isn’t blind to the legal vacuum in which large social media companies operate. But while politicians squabble, social media continues to shape society in ways that may only become apparent years later. In a tweet later that day, the Tesla chief said that buying Twitter would accelerate the creation of X, an "everything app."

☆ Fox News owner Rupert Murdoch shared his succession plans for his media empire with Donald Trump, book says
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-29 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Fox News owner Rupert Murdoch attended a 2017 meeting with Donald Trump, a new book says. At the meeting, Murdoch shared his succession plans, says the book by Maggie Haberman. CNN's "Reliable Sources" newsletter on Wednesday published extracts from "Confidence Man," New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman's new book about Donald Trump. "'It's going to become too liberal when James [Murdoch] takes over,'" Trump reportedly told Murdoch, referring to the media magnate's son, who was widely expected to take over from his father. Donald Trump with Rupert Murdoch at one of his golf courses near Aberdeen, Scotland in 2016.

"We are really a government in waiting and we have a chance to set out our ideas for the country. Labour is positioning itself as the party of fiscal responsibility and say it stands for "sound money". Almost half of voters say that Labour has not produced a clear set of policy ideas, according to polling from Savanta ComRes. In the most recent poll, Labour now has a six-point lead. But Curtis said the Conservatives still lead on the crucial question about who is best placed to make voters and the country wealthier.

☆ ESPN would help Disney and Comcast settle a score
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-23 | by ( Jennifer Saba | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

NEW YORK, Sept 23 (Reuters Breakingviews) - When it comes to modern corporate sagas, few deliver the drama between Walt Disney (DIS.N) and Comcast (CMCSA.O). Comcast Chief Executive Brian Roberts is in position to let his counterpart squirm, but there’s a neat solution to help settle the score: ESPN. He feared Comcast “would have paid more later.”Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterBefore long, Comcast clashed again with Disney. To settle the matter, the two parent companies agreed that in January 2024 Comcast could force Disney to buy its stake or Disney could require Comcast to sell based on a minimum valuation of $27.5 billion. Disney owns two-thirds of Hulu and Comcast owns the rest.

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