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"I can confirm a shipment of the BioNTech vaccine is on its way to China," the person told journalists in Berlin. In return, Chinese citizens in Europe can be vaccinated with China's SinoVac (SVA.O), the spokesperson said. Experts predict that the country of 1.4 billion people could face more than a million COVID deaths next year. China is stuck between rising Covid-19 cases and stalled vaccination ratesNO WESTERN SHOTSChina has nine domestically developed COVID vaccines approved for use, more than any other country. While the shots became available in Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, the regulatory review for mainland China has not been concluded.

☆ Central Park gate honors wrongly imprisoned ‘Exonerated 5’
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

They arrived in the chill of a late fall morning, some singing hymns, to dedicate a park entry to the men once known as the Central Park Five, but now remembered as the Exonerated Five. Master drummer Baba Don Babatunde, left, and civil rights activist Queen Mother Moore, right, lead a spiritual moment, during the Central Park gate-naming ceremony on Dec. 19, 2022, in New York. Raymond Santana Jr., left, one of five men exonerated, during a naming ceremony for the northeast gateway of Central Park, Monday. Bebeto Matthews / APSoon after, the convictions of the Central Park Five were thrown out in 2002 after the men served six to 13 years in prison. Other entrances to the park have been labeled to reflect groups of people who live and work in the city, with names like Artisans’ Gate, Scholars’ Gate and Strangers’ Gate.

☆ Lufthansa board to get bonuses despite state aid - Handelsblatt
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, Dec 20 (Reuters) - Executive board members at German airline Lufthansa (LHAG.DE) will each receive several million euros in bonuses for 2021 and 2022 despite pandemic-related state aid payments to the carrier during that time, daily Handelsblatt reported on Tuesday. The supervisory board approved the payments at a meeting in early December, Handelsblatt said, citing company sources. A Lufthansa spokesperson told Reuters he could not comment on discussions within the supervisory board. Government sources played down the bonus report, saying Lufthansa's board had worked well and the state had come out of the investment with a profit. A Lufthansa spokesperson told Handelsblatt that the money would not be paid out until 2025, if everything went well until then, meaning the payments were not retroactive but rather part of a long-term bonus.

☆ Lufthansa exec board to receive bonuses for 2021, 2022 despite state aid - Handelsblatt
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, Dec 20 (Reuters) - Executive board members at German airline Lufthansa (LHAG.DE) will each receive several million euros as a bonus for 2021 and 2022 despite the company receiving pandemic-related state aid during that time, German daily Handelsblatt reported on Tuesday. The supervisory board approved the payments at a meeting in early December, Handelsblatt reported, citing company sources. However, some employee representatives voted against the payment, as they saw it in violation of the rescue package conditions, according to the daily. The German government's economic stabilisation fund saved Lufthansa from bankruptcy during the pandemic with a bailout package totalling 9 billion euros ($9.53 billion). A Lufthansa spokesperson told Handelsblatt that the money would not be paid out until 2025, if everything went well until then, meaning the payments were not retroactive but rather part of a long-term bonus.

Russia's Gazprom (GAZP.MM) was once Uniper's biggest supplier of gas, but a big drop in deliveries after Moscow's invasion of Ukraine forced the German gas importer to buy gas elsewhere at much higher prices to honour its contracts. Uniper's investors voted in favour of the two main measures at Monday's meeting, an 8 billion euro capital injection by the German state and allowing a further injection of up to 25 billion euros by Berlin. Maubach said Uniper currently had access to around 2.5 billion euros of funds. As part of the bailout, the German government will end up owning just below 99% of Uniper, Germany's largest gas trader, following two share issues. The loss of Russian gas, Moscow's retaliation for Western sanctions over its invasion of Ukraine, triggered a 40 billion euro net loss for the importer, which provides around a third of Germany's gas, the largest loss in German corporate history.

☆ Uniper boss tells investors to back German bailout or risk all
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

FRANKFURT/BERLIN, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Germany's Uniper (UN01.DE) called on shareholders to approve a bailout and nationalisation that will cost the government more than 50 billion euros ($53 billion), warning that it will otherwise have to consider filing for insolvency. Gazprom (GAZP.MM) was once its biggest supplier, but a big drop in deliveries after Russia's invasion of Ukraine forced Uniper to buy gas elsewhere at much higher prices to meet its contracts. "In the Management Board's view, a possible insolvency could lead to a complete loss for shareholders." If the bailout is approved, the German government will end up owning just below 99% of Uniper, Germany's largest gas trader, following two share issues. Germany's Finance Ministry will be responsible for the stake, Uniper said on Monday.

More than 40 million borrowers like Morales-Bartlett were eligible to cancel up to $20,000 in federal student loan debt under President Joe Biden’s one-time student loan forgiveness plan. Meanwhile, the pandemic-era federal student loan repayment pause has been extended while the government awaits the court’s decision. The average federal student loan debt nears $30,000. Brown’s son still has about $50,000 in student debt despite being one of the thousands of North Carolinians who received some student loan relief as part of a multistate settlement with Navient, one of the nation’s largest student loan servicers, over allegations of unfair and deceptive student loan servicing and predatory lending practices, according to Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Stein's office. He also applied to the currently blocked student loan forgiveness program and is waiting to hear back.

☆ Heat pumps are an energy upgrade for homeowners that's becoming a climate and financial winner
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-10 | by ( Cheryl Winokur Munk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Heat pumps are becoming more popular for residential housing with energy prices increasing and the need to reduce use of fossil fuel heating systems. Thinking about a home heat pump? The use of heat pumps will become more common as governments legislate their adoption. Here are four important things to know about upgrading your home to a heat pump system. "While there's an upfront cost, millions of homeowners would save money with a heat pump over the life of the device," he said.

☆ Germany could become Europe's big semiconductor producer - Scholz
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BERLIN, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Germany could become Europe's big producer of semiconductors thanks to investments being made in the field, said German Chancellor Olaf Scholz at a digital summit on Friday. "This would create an ecosystem that would help the serenity of the European Union, that we are not dependent on other regions," said Scholz, who added that Germany was working intensely on re-establishing semiconductor production. Reporting by Miranda Murray, editing by Rachel MoreOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ SAP to stop developing new functions for Business ByDesign software -Handelsblatt
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BERLIN, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Software maker SAP (SAPG.DE) will not develop any new functions for its Business ByDesign software for small and medium-sized firms from the second quarter of 2023, German daily Handelsblatt reported on Friday. Updates to adhere to legal requirements or close security gaps, for example, will continue to be available without an end date, Handelsblatt reported. The German software group is also transferring a considerable part of service related to the software to the Indian IT service provider HCL, Handelsblatt reported, citing business and industry sources. Writing by Miranda Murray, editing by Rachel MoreOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ A janitor laid off at Twitter's headquarters said one of Elon Musk's team members told him he'd be replaced by robots
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Grace Kay | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A janitor told BBC that a member of Elon Musk's team said his job would eventually be replaced by robots. Four former Twitter cleaners told the publication they were laid off without severance on Monday. Four former Twitter janitors told the publication they were laid off without severance on Monday. Multiple workers told the publication that they are concerned about how they will be able to pay bills in the coming weeks, particularly with the holidays coming up. "Overnight we don't have anything," Adrianna Villarreal, a cleaner who had worked at Twitter since 2018, told BBC.

☆ German economy ministry calls for joint EU response to U.S. inflation act
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BERLIN, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Germany wants a joint European response to the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act that would involve simplifying rules on state support and expanding funding opportunities, according to a German economy ministry document seen by Reuters on Friday. The ministry document also suggests member states could anchor sustainability criteria more firmly in public tenders at the national level as well as extend or increase traditional subsidy programmes, but warned against local content requirements which favour domestic industry. These would not only likely contradict World Trade Organization (WTO) law, according to the document, but also contribute to "a further erosion of the world trade order". The EU and Washington have established a joint task force in hope of resolving the dispute over the $430 billion act. (This story has been corrected to specify that the document is from the economy ministry, not finance ministry; and to clarify in the headline that the ministry calls for, not lays out, a joint response.)

☆ Penguin Random House CEO to quit after merger blocked
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BERLIN, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Penguin Random House head Markus Dohle will step down at the end of the year after a U.S. judge blocked a planned $2.2 billion merger of the world's largest publisher and rival Simon & Schuster, the company said in a statement on Friday. Nihar Malaviya, who is president and chief operating officer of Penguin Random House U.S., will take over as interim CEO from Jan. 1, the company said. Thomas Rabe, chief executive of Penguin's German owner Bertelsmann (BTGGg.F), expressed full confidence in Malaviya, who he said had a chance of permanently becoming CEO. With the deal's dissolution, Penguin will pay a $200 million termination fee to Paramount. Reporting by Klaus Lauer, Writing by Miranda Murray, Editing by Rachel More and Barbara LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Climate activists glue themselves to airport tarmac in Berlin and Munich
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/6] Activists of "Letzte Generation" (Last Generation) glued themselves to the tarmac of the airport to protest for a speed limit on highways as well as for affordable public transport, in Munich, Germany, December 8, 2022. REUTERS/Anja GuderBERLIN, Dec 8 (Reuters) - Climate activists took their protest against cheap air travel to two of Germany's largest airports on Thursday, with some gluing themselves to the tarmac in Munich and Berlin. According to local media, flights at Munich airport were disrupted. Police in southern Germany said the protesters were currently being unglued from the Munich airport tarmac and taken into custody, and the protests were dispersed. Thursday's actions are the latest effort by activists to raise awareness by blocking runways and streets in Germany.

☆ More arrests expected in German coup plot in coming days, say authorities
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Police escorts a person after 25 suspected members and supporters of a far-right group were detained during raids across Germany, in Karlsruhe, Germany December 7, 2022. REUTERS/Heiko BeckerBERLIN, Dec 8 (Reuters) - German authorities expect further arrests and raids in the coming days in connection with a far-right group that prosecutors say were preparing a violent overthrow of the state to install a former member of a German royal family as national leader. "Based on my experience, there is usually a second wave of arrests," Georg Maier, the interior minister of the eastern German state of Thuringia, told broadcaster Deutschlandfunk on Thursday. Twenty-five members and supporters of the group were detained on Wednesday in raids involving some 3,000 security personnel that Maier described as unprecedented in modern German history. Reporting by Miranda Murray, editing by Kirsti Knolle and Toby ChopraOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Germany wants Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania to join Schengen - interior minister
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BERLIN, Dec 8 (Reuters) - Germany supports bids by Bulgaria, Croatia and Romania to join the Schengen area, German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said in Brussels on Thursday, adding that she did not share Austria's opposition to enlargement of the visa-free travel zone. "I cannot understand Austria's position in this respect," Faeser told reporters ahead of talks with her EU counterparts. "I know that Austria has big domestic debates over the issue." She added: "We will support Croatia, Romania and Bulgaria, all three." Reporting by Rachel More and Sabine Siebold Editing by Miranda MurrayOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Volkswagen expects difficult 2023 for financial services unit
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Dec 8 (Reuters) - Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) expects a difficult 2023 for its financial services unit on the back of economic downturn, higher energy prices and rising interest rates. "We see that people are more cautious due to recession expectations, and we are not selling so many cars," said Frank Fiedler, chief financial officer of Volkswagen Financial Services, in Braunschweig on Wednesday evening. The financial unit is still benefiting from high prices for used cars and lower costs for credit and residual value risks in the current year. Operating profit should be in a range of between 5 billion and 5.5 billion euros, Fiedler said. That compares with a previous forecast of about 5 billion euros, and operating profit of 5.7 billion euros in 2021.

☆ Volkswagen to invest $482 million in electrifying Wolfsburg plant
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, Dec 7 (Reuters) - Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) will invest 460 million euros ($482 million) by early 2025 in its Wolfsburg plant, with most of the funds going into preparation for the production of the electric ID.3 model, brand chief Thomas Schaefer said on Wednesday. The MEB+ platform will provide faster charging times and longer ranges, according to the statement. The new model will add to our bestseller ID.4 and ID.4 models and expand our market position," he said. The timeline for production of the ID.3 is on track, with partial production to take place in Wolfsburg from 2023 and full production expected in 2024. ($1 = 0.9535 euros)Reporting by Victoria Waldersee; Editing by Christoph Steitz and Miranda MurrayOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

The Great Recession left an impression on millennials like me, but I'm still not not worried about the next one. They've been rare and brief in my lifetime, except for the 19-month Great Recession, which turned out to be the most severe economic collapse since the Great Depression. This isn't the Great RecessionThe main reason I'm not terrified of whatever the economy will do next is that recessions aren't always the Great Recession. We're not afraid of the next recession in my house because my partner and I are both self-employed — he's a freelance graphic designer and I run a financial education startup. Because my partner and I are both service-based business owners, our income is diversified across multiple companies and business sectors.

☆ Janitors who clean Twitter's HQ are on strike after failed negotiations mean they face losing their jobs, union says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Kate Duffy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Janitors cleaning Twitter's HQ went on strike over unfair labor practice, SEIU Local 87 says. Twitter ended the contract with the firm employing the janitors, per the California Labor Federation (CLF). The janitors face losing their jobs on Friday when the contract with the janitorial company is set to end. The union shared a picture of people who appeared to be demonstrating outside Twitter's headquarters in San Francisco. It wasn't clear which janitorial company Twitter has picked as its new contractor.

☆ Germany's Scholz: We must avoid dividing world into Cold War-style blocs
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, Dec 5 (Reuters) - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz warned against creating a new Cold War by dividing the world into blocs and called for every effort to be made to build new partnerships, writing in an opinion piece for Foreign Affairs magazine published online on Monday. The West must stand up for democratic values and protect open societies, "but we must also avoid the temptation to once again divide the world into blocs," wrote Scholz in the piece. "This means making every effort to build new partnerships, pragmatically and without ideological blinders," he added. Scholz singled out China and Russia in particular as two countries that pose a threat to a multipolar world, which requires stronger European and transatlantic unity to overcome. "Germans are intent on becoming the guarantor of European security that our allies expect us to be, a bridge builder within the European Union and an advocate for multilateral solutions to global problems," wrote Scholz.

☆ Volkswagen to discuss new software roadmap on Dec. 15 -Handelsblatt
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, Dec 5 (Reuters) - Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) Chief Executive Oliver Blume will present a long-delayed new software strategy for the carmaker at a supervisory board meeting on Dec. 15, Handelsblatt newspaper reported on Monday, citing company sources. The Audi brand will hand over leadership on autonomous driving software to Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, the report added. The supervisory board called in May for management to present a roadmap for the carmakers' software unit Cariad, after multiple years of delays to planned new software iterations and overspending. The board expected a new roadmap by the summer break, Reuters reported, but former Chief Executive Herbert Diess' departure from the company delayed plans. New chief Blume wants to first determine what the software will look like, and then the car models will follow, Handelsblatt reported.

☆ German exports fall as demand cools in Europe, U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies Exports down 0.6% m/m, twice as much as forecastImports post strongest m/m fall since JanuaryBERLIN, Dec 2 (Reuters) - German exports fell more than forecast in October, official data showed on Friday, as high inflation and supply chain snags hit demand in key trading partners, further raising the spectre of recession for Europe's largest economy. Exports declined by 0.6% on the month, twice as much as analysts predicted in a Reuters poll, the data from the Federal Statistics Office showed. Germany's top export partner, the United States, saw the sharpest fall in German exports at 3.9%, while exports to other European Union member states were down 2.4%. The German chambers of commerce and industry (DIHK) said last month Germany's exports were likely to fall 2% next year due to a sluggish global economy, with nearly half of German companies that sell abroad expecting an economic downturn. Also last month, German industrial group Thyssenkrupp (TKAG.DE) warned its sales and profit would "nosedive" next year as high inflation and energy costs are compounded by expected recession in Europe.

☆ German government not planning blanket Huawei ban
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

BERLIN, Dec 2 (Reuters) - Germany does not want to follow the United States in generally banning products made by Chinese telecoms equipment makers such as Huawei, but will continue making such decisions on a case-by-case basis, an Economy Ministry spokesperson said on Friday. A German Economy Ministry strategy paper seen by Reuters on Thursday detailed recommendations to increase the level of scrutiny on the use of components from certain states. The paper mentions legislation introduced in Germany in 2020 that set high hurdles for makers of telecommunications equipment for next-generation networks, such as Huawei. When asked whether it expected a tightening of rules or even a ban in Germany or the European Union, Huawei told Reuters on Friday it relied on constructive and facts-oriented dialogue. Representative Michael McCaul, top Republican on the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee, said Germany was "jeopardizing its own national security and that of Europe's" in its decision on Huawei.

☆ German exports fall more than expected as demand cools in Europe, U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"The German export engine is noticeably juddering," said German chambers of commerce and industry (DIHK) trade chief Volker Trier. "High inflation rates and a tight monetary policy in important sales markets are dampening international demand." DIHK said last month Germany's exports were likely to fall 2% next year due to a sluggish global economy, with nearly half of German companies that sell abroad expecting an economic downturn. Also last month, German industrial group Thyssenkrupp (TKAG.DE) warned its sales and profit would "nosedive" next year as high inflation and energy costs are compounded by an expected recession in Europe. A survey published on Thursday showed Germany's manufacturing sector reported continued weaker demand in November but the downturn slowed as signs of fewer material shortages fuelled hopes that cost pressures could also ease.

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