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☆ China's politburo meeting leaves many economic headaches unaddressed
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Encouraging higher wages requires unleashing the private sector from tight Communist Party controls, as well as boosting workers' bargaining power. Another headache for the Communist Party is youth unemployment surpassing 20%. The onus is on the private sector to provide those jobs, but many businesses lack confidence after years of crackdowns on the tech, financial and other industries. Chinese courts answer to the Communist Party. More profound structural reforms will have to wait until a key Party conference in December.

Persons: weren't, Marius Zaharia, Lincoln Organizations: Communist Party, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, CHINA, China, United States, Japan, Beijing, crackdowns

☆ US officials almost altered plans for Ukraine's NATO membership timeline after Zelenskyy's fiery tweet: report
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Zelenskyy called the invitation "unprecedented and absurd," but his tone changed during the summit. He expressed frustrations at NATO's proposed timeline for Ukraine's membership — which, given the final copy of the summit's communiqué, isn't really a timeline at all. "It's unprecedented and absurd when time frame is not set neither for the invitation nor for Ukraine's membership. "This means that a window of opportunity is being left to bargain Ukraine's membership in NATO in negotiations with Russia. Prior to Kyiv arriving, there were informal discussions on how best to respond, leading to US officials suggesting they revisit or remove any mention of Ukraine's invitation to membership at all.

Persons: invitiation, Zelenskyy, Volodymyr Zelenskyy's, —, NATO's, isn't, George W, Vladimir Putin Organizations: Washington Post, White House, NATO, Service, Alliance, Kyiv Locations: Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, Lithuania, NATO, Russia, Kyiv, Crimea, Ukraine's

If you're looking to score the best Amazon Prime Day deals for your pet, now is a great time to shop for flea and tick medicine. Today, an eight-pack of Frontline Plus for Cats is down to $62.50 on Amazon. Frontline Plus is a budget-friendly medicine that kills five types of pervasive parasites: adult fleas, flea eggs, flea larvae, ticks, and chewing lice. It's important to keep in mind that Frontline Plus doesn't get rid of worms and isn't safe for kittens under 8 weeks of age. A great deal on Frontline Plus flea and tick treatment for Prime DayIs flea medicine necessary for cats?

☆ More firms report on deforestation, yet few have plan to stop it - CDP
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( Simon Jessop | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Summary 1,043 companies report on deforestation to CDP in 2022Less than 10% have a 'robust' plan to end it by 2025Collective $80 bln hit flagged by 269 companiesLONDON, July 6 (Reuters) - The number of companies reporting on their management of deforestation risk has risen 300% over the last five years, yet most have no plan in place to stop it, environmental disclosure platform CDP said on Thursday. A total of 1,043 companies responded to an annual survey by CDP covering their operations in 2022. Of those to report, 269 firms estimated the potential cost of leaving risks unaddressed at almost $80 billion combined, or an average of $300 million per company, CDP added. Estimates on the cost of responding to risks from 342 companies totalled $5.9 billion or an average of $17.4 million each. Thomas Maddox, Global Director, Forests and Land Use at CDP, said the "record-breaking" year for disclosures was encouraging for transparency.

Persons: Thomas Maddox, Maddox, Simon Jessop, Emma Rumney Organizations: Global, European Union, Britain, Companies, Thomson Locations: Montreal

☆ Myanmar Supreme Court to hear Suu Kyi appeal this week - source
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

July 3 (Reuters) - The Supreme Court in military-ruled Myanmar will hear an appeal this week by former leader Aung San Suu Kyi against two of her convictions, a source familiar with the case said on Monday, as the Nobel laureate seeks to reduce her 33 years of jail time. The 78-year-old has been convicted of a litany of offences from incitement and election fraud to multiple counts of corruption since the military arrested her during a February 2021 coup against her elected government. Suu Kyi's allies and Western governments have condemned her incarceration as a junta play to prevent any comeback by the popular figurehead of Myanmar's decades-long struggle for democracy. The Supreme Court has announced it will hear appeals on Wednesday against Suu Kyi's conviction for a breach of the official secrets act and for electoral fraud. The source, who declined to be identified because of sensitivities over her cases, said a decision could take two months.

Persons: Aung San, Aung San Suu Kyi, Suu Kyi's, Suu, Martin Petty, Kanupriya Kapoor Organizations: National League for Democracy, Reuters Staff, Thomson Locations: Myanmar, Aung San Suu

☆ Congress has the power to forgive student loans, but it’s exceedingly unlikely to do so.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Kayla Guo | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Supreme Court’s decision on Friday striking down President Biden’s student debt cancellation initiative effectively punts the issue to Congress, where it is all but certain to go unaddressed. In overturning Mr. Biden’s $400 billion proposal to cancel student loans for 40 million Americans, the court said that he had overstepped his authority and that such an expansive program needed explicit approval by Congress. Republicans had said they would block the proposal if the Supreme Court did not, though their multiple efforts to do so have not succeeded. In their initial bill to lift the debt ceiling, approved along party lines in April, House Republicans included a measure that would have axed the debt cancellation plan and lifted a temporary pause on payments put in place during the pandemic. But that bill died once debt ceiling negotiations began between the White House and Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

Persons: Biden’s, Kevin McCarthy Organizations: Congress, Republicans, White

☆ Jeffrey Epstein likely rehearsed his suicide on July 23, but he was still left to accomplish the real thing weeks later, federal inspectors found
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Michelle Mark | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Jeffrey Epstein likely rehearsed his suicide weeks before he died, an inspector's report says. Epstein was placed on suicide watch, but was later left unmonitored and with excess linens in his cell. The report documented a number of errors from jail staff, including "significant misconduct." The jail's chief psychologist had determined Epstein likely rehearsed his suicide in the early morning hours on July 23, 2019. Epstein initially told staff his cellmate had tried to kill him, but the cellmate told staff that he felt something hit his legs while he was asleep.

Persons: Jeffrey Epstein, Epstein, —, Mary Altaffer, unmonitored Organizations: Service, Metropolitan Correctional Center, Staff, Metropolitan Correctional, Associated Press, Reuters

☆ Why some central banks are rushing to hike rates now
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-25 | by ( Elisabeth Buchwald | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Even though inflation is slowing in many countries after more than a year of interest rate hikes, it remains above the 2% level many central banks are targeting. Raising interest rates is the primary tool central bankers have at their disposal to get inflation down. That’s why the Federal Reserve paused interest rate hikes at its June meeting after 10 consecutive hikes since last March. It’s harder for central banks to clamp down on inflation when it becomes sticky, or persistently high. That’s because research shows that inflation, if unaddressed, could become even more sticky and harder for central banks to control with rate hikes.

Persons: Andrew Bailey, Bailey, don’t, Christine Lagarde, ” Lagarde, it’s, Michael Bordo, “, ” Organizations: New, New York CNN, ” Bank of England, Federal Reserve, European Central Bank, Center for Monetary, Rutgers University, CNN Locations: New York

But it sent the case back to a lower court to determine whether the contested agreement violates asylum seekers' right to equal treatment under the law. But the court also found an unaddressed question when it comes to whether the agreement violates equality rights. The agreement stands and the case will return to federal court to determine whether the agreement violates asylum seekers' right to equal treatment under the law. Refugee advocates claimed the agreement violates that right because they argue the United States is less receptive to refugee claims predicated on gender. In March, Royal Canadian Mounted Police intercepted 4,173 asylum seekers on their way to file refugee claims in Canada after crossing irregularly.

Persons: Jamie Chai Yun Liew, Anna Mehler, Denny Thomas, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: TORONTO, Rights, Refugee, Supreme, Reuters, Freedoms, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Canada Border Services Agency, U.S . Customs, Border Patrol, U.S . Border Patrol, Customs, Thomson Locations: Canada, United States, Canada's, U.S

Those weaknesses were previously verified by federal cybersecurity officials, who urged election officials across the country to update their systems. Georgia election officials insist it is highly unlikely that the vulnerabilities will be exploited in real attacks. Georgia officials have dismissed the potential for these weaknesses to be exploited. But Georgia has not implemented the recommended security patch and state officials said they are waiting to do so until after 2024. The report was placed under seal by a judge “given the serious election security concerns” raised by its potential release, according to court records.

Persons: Brad Raffensperger, Mike Hassinger, ” Gabriel Sterling, Alex Halderman, ”, Halderman, Mitre Organizations: Washington CNN, Republican, CNN, Dominion, Systems, University of Michigan, Mitre Corp Locations: Georgia

☆ Has America Ignored the Workplace for Too Long?
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Robin Kaiser-Schatzlein | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

In that context, watching Sheila’s meeting spiral out of control feels almost as subversive and revelatory as Terkel’s book. The problem arises when the show attempts to explain what, specifically, has gone wrong to make that eruption possible. The series wants to hang around working people, as Terkel did, to understand their hopes and dreams and contradictions. This issue goes unaddressed, but the series does touch on the idea that popular media has long neglected the workplace. Neither are developments like the erosion of job security, the rise of erratic scheduling, the invasive workplace surveillance — changes that marked Obama’s very own era in the White House.

Persons: Obama, Milton Friedman, Terkel, Norman Lear, ”, Reagan, “, Henry Mayhew, London “, Barbara Ehrenreich, Dwight Macdonald Organizations: Television, “, Morning Chronicle Locations: ‘, London

☆ Social Security, Medicare reform fight shows divisions among Trump, DeSantis and Pence
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( Kevin Breuninger | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

DeSantis has since reversed himself, assuring in recent months that Republicans are "not going to mess with Social Security." Tens of millions of U.S. seniors depend on Social Security and Medicare benefits, and that number is growing as the population ages. Strong majorities of U.S. adults across the political spectrum consistently say they oppose cutting Medicare and Social Security benefits. But many others, including party leaders, have bristled at accusations that the GOP wants to gut Social Security and Medicare. "Social Security, I would do the same thing," he added.

Persons: Mike Pence's, Ron DeSantis, Pence, Donald Trump, Trump, Joe Biden, DeSantis, Trump pollster, Donald Trump's, Steven Teles, Teles, Andrew Caballero, reynolds, We're, Nikki Haley, South Carolina Sen, Tim Scott, meanwhile, Biden, Sen, Rick Scott, Mitch McConnell, Scott's, Kevin McCarthy, Steve Scalise, Elise Stefanik, Jonathan Ernst, Andrew Bates, Paul Ryan, Ryan, Mitt Romney's, Barack Obama, Lady Casey DeSantis, Peter Zay Organizations: Social Security, Republican, Florida Gov, GOP, Great Society, White, Republican Party, Johns Hopkins University, Niskanen, Team Trump Volunteer Leadership, Grimes Community, AFP, Getty, Social, Medicare's, Insurance, Former South Carolina Gov, Republicans, Senate, U.S . Rep, U.S, Capitol, Reuters, Anadolu Agency Locations: Grimes , Iowa, South Carolina, Ky, Washington , U.S, Congress, Lexington, SC

☆ Opinion: Ambitious, tech-savvy and jobless. Why India’s young people could reshape the internet
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Opinion Snigdha Poonam | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

Her book, “Dreamers: How Young Indians Are Changing Their World,” was longlisted in 2019 for the PEN America Literary Awards. Unlike China, which leveraged its demographic dividend through large-scale factory employment, India’s economic growth does not rely on young workers manufacturing goods. Catering to a market of 750 million smartphone users, India’s fast-growing gig economy is attracting young workers in great numbers. As incidents of abuse and exploitation pile up, many of India’s gig workers are questioning their career choice. Feeding the social media monsterThere are other ways in which India’s young people are shaping the future of technology.

Persons: ”, Raju Rai, Rai, “, ” Rai, Dhiraj Singh, Mithun Kumar, Kumar, hyperlocal, Jewel Samad, Mohit Yadav, Monu Manesar Organizations: PEN, CNN, Delhi CNN, Facebook, Catering, Bloomberg, Getty, YouTube, Big Tech, Twitter, New York Times Locations: Delhi, India, Thailand, Indian, Varanasi, Bangkok, Myanmar, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Southeast Asia, Europe, China, Mumbai, Bihar, Covid, AFP

☆ Fresh round of debt ceiling talks kick off as US default worries grow
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

A failure to lift the debt ceiling would trigger a default that would shake financial markets and drive interest rates higher on everything from car payments to credit cards. Any deal to raise the $31.4 trillion debt limit must pass both chambers of Congress before Biden could sign it into law. A plan passed by the House last month would cut a wide swath of government spending by 8% next year. Biden has said he would consider spending cuts alongside tax adjustments but that Republicans' latest offer was "unacceptable." McCarthy told reporters debt ceiling talks have not included discussions about tax cuts passed under former President Donald Trump, a Republican.

Section Four of 14th Amendment, adopted after the 1861-1865 Civil War, states that the "validity of the public debt of the United States ... shall not be questioned." WHERE DOES THE WHITE HOUSE STAND ON THE 14TH AMENDMENT? HOW WOULD MARKETS REACT IF BIDEN USES THE 14TH AMENDMENT? Administration officials and economists have said that a default triggered by a debt-ceiling breach would roil the world financial system and plunge the United States into recession. That immediate catastrophe might be avoided if Biden invoked the 14th Amendment.

The union in the complaint said it will seek an order temporarily blocking the debt limit law while the case proceeds. The union said in the lawsuit that Congress cannot impose a debt limit "without at least setting the order and priority of payments once that limit is reached, instead of leaving it to the president to do so." The union is seeking to strike down the law setting a debt limit and to block the Biden administration from limiting borrowing in the event of a default so it can continue funding government agencies. The U.S. reached its debt limit in January, and Yellen at the time told Congress that she would suspend investments in federal government workers' retirement and health benefit funds to avoid an immediate default. But Biden and other Democrats have insisted that raising the debt limit should not be linked to budget talks.

☆ Biden says not yet ready to invoke 14th Amendment to avoid debt default
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"I've not gotten there yet," Biden said in an interview with MSNBC when asked about the possibility of invoking the amendment. If Congress fails to act, some legal experts say Biden has another option to avert a crisis: Invoke the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution to ensure the United States can continue to pay its bills. Section Four of the amendment, adopted after the 1861-1865 Civil War, states that the "validity of the public debt of the United States ... shall not be questioned." Some experts have suggested that Biden could invoke this amendment to raise the debt ceiling on his own if Congress does not act. Biden and top Republicans and Democrats from the U.S. Congress will sit down on Tuesday next week to try to end the three-month standoff over the federal debt ceiling and avoid a crippling default before the end of the month.

If Congress fails to act, some legal experts say Democratic President Joe Biden has another option to avert a crisis: Invoke the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution to ensure the United States can continue to pay its bills. Section Four of 14th Amendment, adopted after the 1861-1865 Civil War, states that the "validity of the public debt of the United States ... shall not be questioned." HOW WOULD MARKETS REACT IF BIDEN USES THE 14TH AMENDMENT? Administration officials and economists have warned that a default triggered by a debt-ceiling breach would roil the world financial system and plunge the United States into recession. That immediate catastrophe might be avoided if Biden invoked the 14th Amendment.

☆ Times Asks Judge in Fox-Dominion Case to Rule on Redactions
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Jeremy W. Peters | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The New York Times and a consortium of media organizations are asking a judge to rule whether Fox News improperly redacted portions of texts and email exchanges that were introduced as evidence in Dominion Voting Systems’ defamation lawsuit against the network. Dominion and Fox settled the case last month for $787.5 million, in what is believed to be the largest out-of-court payout in a defamation case. But left unaddressed was a legal challenge filed by The Times in January that sought to unseal some of what Fox and Dominion had marked as confidential in their legal filings. On Monday, a lawyer representing The Times wrote to Judge Eric M. Davis of Delaware Superior Court saying that the issue was not moot simply because the case had been settled. There is strong legal precedent, the letter said, affirming the public’s right to understand what unfolded in cases that are resolved before they go to trial.

☆ Opinion: Biden’s secret weapon to defuse the age issue
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-30 | by ( Opinion Dean Obeidallah | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Recent polls tell us that many Americans have questions about the age of the 80-year-old Biden heading into the 2024 election. It’s in everybody’s mind and by everyone, I mean The New York Times.” Biden then added, “Headline: ‘Biden’s advanced age is a big issue. Biden’s reelection campaign (he announced his bid last week) is not the first time that age has been front and center in a presidential campaign. It became even more acute after the first presidential debate in October 1984. At the second presidential debate, however, Reagan was ready for the age question.

☆ Analysis: Fed report on SVB collapse could buoy shareholder lawsuits
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-29 | by ( Jack Queen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

FILE PHOTO: The Silicon Valley Bank headquarters seen from the street in Santa Clara, California, U.S. March 13, 2023. The bank’s parent company, SVB Financial Group, entered bankruptcy on March 17. The Fed’s report concluded that SVB did not adequately hedge against risk, failed its own liquidity stress tests, and chased short-term profits at the expense of long-term stability. Rather than address these risks, the bank changed how it measured them, the report found. “I see this (Fed) report as being extraordinarily useful evidence to dangle in front of a judge or jury on class action lawsuits against accounting firms,” Cox said.

☆ Senator Patty Murray says it's impossible to keep the economy growing without affordable, well-paid childcare
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-29 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Senator Patty Murray is once again pushing legislation to make childcare affordable and accessible. She told Insider the growth of the US economy relies on workers having access to childcare. Under the Child Care for Working Families Act, families' childcare costs would be capped at 7% of their income, and families that earn under 85% of their state's median would pay nothing at all. "Childcare was a crisis long ago, but it was a silent crisis," Murray told Insider. "Women are in the workforce to provide for their families," Murray said.

Depositors had pulled $100 billion from accounts at the bank in the panic triggered by the SVB and Signature failures, imperiling its survival. Both SVB and Signature failed last month. Both SVB and Signature grew quickly in recent years, outpacing the ability of regulators to keep up, especially with shrinking resources. Regulators closed Signature two days after SVB was shuttered. Signature lost 20% of its total deposits in a matter of hours on the day that SVB failed, FDIC Chair Martin Gruenberg has said.

Both SVB and Signature failed last month. Regulators shut SVB on March 10, a day after customers withdrew $42 billion and queued requests for another $100 billion the following morning. Both SVB and Signature grew quickly in recent years, outpacing the ability of regulators to keep up, especially with shrinking resources. Regulators closed Signature two days after SVB was shuttered. Signature lost 20% of its total deposits in a matter of hours on the day that SVB failed, FDIC Chair Martin Gruenberg has said.

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