Business news

• Judge appears receptive to Uber, Lyft warnings in California driver case

  06-08-2020 23:51 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  In a hearing in San Francisco Superior Court, the companies said the classification would irreparably undermine their business models, with Lyft's lawyer Rohit Singla saying it "would make things worse" for drivers and riders.Judge Ethan Schulman said he would try to rule within "days" on the injunction request from California Attorney General Xavier Becerra and the cities of Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco, in their lawsuit filed May 5.
  
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• California judge weighs Uber, Lyft driver classifications

  06-08-2020 23:51 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  The argument was made at a hearing in San Francisco Superior Court in a May 5 lawsuit accusing Uber and Lyft of violating a new state law requiring companies to treat workers as employees if they control how the workers do their jobs, or the work is part of companies' normal business.California Attorney General Xavier Becerra and the cities of Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco have said classifying drivers as contractors deprives them of essential benefits such as a minimum wage, overtime
  
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• Coronavirus: Uber customer activity falls sharply

  06-08-2020 23:31 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The firm said its customer activity had almost halved despite a food delivery boom.
  
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• Pressure grows on Sunak to extend UK furlough scheme

  06-08-2020 23:30
  Plans to end pandemic jobs support dubbed ‘grave mistake’ but Bank of England governor says time to look forward
  
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• Travelex strikes rescue deal, but 1,300 UK jobs to be cut

  06-08-2020 22:59 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  The purchaser is Travelex Acquisitionco Limited, a special purpose vehicle controlled by the Noteholders to the global Travelex Group.
  
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• NYSE-owner ICE to buy mortgage tech firm Ellie Mae for $11 billion

  06-08-2020 22:42 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Strengthening its position in mortgage servicing has been a key focus for the owner of the New York Stock Exchange in recent years, having made two acquisitions since 2016 to support its business in the sector.The purchase price is a significant jump on the $3.7 billion which private equity firm Thoma Bravo laid out to take Ellie Mae private 18 months ago, although ICE Chairman and Chief Executive Jeffrey Sprecher called the transaction a "one-of-a-kind opportunity."Sprecher told an analysts' ca
  
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• NYSE-owner ICE to buy Ellie Mae in $11 billion deal

  06-08-2020 22:42 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Strengthening its position in mortgage servicing has been a key focus for the owner of the New York Stock Exchange in recent years.Jeffrey Sprecher, chairman and chief executive of ICE, said in a statement the transaction represented a "one-of-a-kind opportunity" that would "enhance ICE’s growth strategy in mortgage technology".
  
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• Trump advisers urge delisting of U.S.-listed Chinese cos that fail to meet audit standards

  06-08-2020 22:36 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Trump administration officials have urged the president to delist Chinese companies that trade on U.S. exchanges and fail to meet U.S. auditing requirements by January 2022, Securities and Exchange Commission and Treasury officials said on Thursday.The remarks came after President Donald Trump tasked a group of key advisers, including Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and SEC Chairman Jay Clayton, with drafting a report with recommendations to protect U.S. investors from Chinese companies whose a
  
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• Trump advisers urge 2022 delisting of U.S.-listed Chinese cos that fail to meet U.S. audit standards

  06-08-2020 22:36 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Trump administration officials have urged the president to delist Chinese companies that trade on U.S. exchanges and fail to meet U.S. auditing requirements by January 2022, Securities and Exchange Commission and Treasury officials said on Thursday.The remarks came after President Donald Trump tasked a group of key advisers, including Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and SEC Chairman Jay Clayton, with drafting a report with recommendations to protect U.S. investors from Chinese companies whose a
  
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• Uber loses $1.8bn as rides business plummets during pandemic

  06-08-2020 22:24 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Uber lost $1.8bn (£1.37bn) in the second quarter, as its taxi business plummeted by 75pc and its food delivery business failed to make up the shortfall. The app-based taxi and food delivery company lost more than Wall Street expected as it disclosed the full impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, which brought its transport operations almost to a halt around the world. Its Eats food delivery business fared better, with revenue doubling, but this was cancelled out by a slump in prices and slow re
  
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• Travelex to cut 1,300 jobs as foreign exchange firm tries to stay afloat

  06-08-2020 22:11 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Travel money firm Travelex has struck a deal to stay afloat, but with the loss of more than 1,300 jobs in the UK.Administrators PwC said the impact of a cyber-attack followed by the coronavirus crisis had “acutely” hit the company.
  
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• Uber's food-delivery business doubles; COVID-19 eviscerates rides demand

  06-08-2020 22:08 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  The company said that despite those larger challenges it is sticking to its goal of being profitable on an adjusted basis before the end of 2021 thanks to stringent cost-cutting measures and a strong balance sheet.Uber recorded an adjusted loss in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortizationof $837 million (636 million pounds) in the second quarter.Ride-hailing trips, in the past responsible for nearly two-thirds of Uber's revenue, increased 5 percentage points from their low i
  
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• Uber rides demand eviscerated by COVID-19; food-delivery business doubles

  06-08-2020 22:08 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  The company said that despite those larger challenges it is sticking to its goal of being profitable on an adjusted basis before the end of 2021 thanks to stringent cost-cutting measures and a strong balance sheet.Uber recorded an adjusted loss in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortizationof $837 million (636 million pounds) in the second quarter.Ride-hailing trips, in the past responsible for nearly two-thirds of Uber's revenue, increased 5 percentage points from their low i
  
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• T-Mobile's subscriber boost challenges AT&T for spot as second-largest U.S. carrier

  06-08-2020 22:07 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  T-Mobile got a boost as more people used its services to stay connected and work remotely during coronavirus lockdowns, sending shares up 5.4% to $114.02 in extended trading.The company said it has overtaken AT&T across postpaid, in which customers pay a recurring monthly bill, and prepaid phones - customers paying for service in advance.T-Mobile reported 98.3 million customers in those categories, while AT&T had nearly 93 million postpaid and prepaid subscribers in its second quarter.
  
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• T-Mobile beats second-quarter phone estimates, shares jump

  06-08-2020 22:07 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Its net income, however, dropped sharply due to costs associated with its merger with Sprint Corp, previously the fourth-largest phone provider, which closed in April.T-Mobile said it has overtaken rival AT&Tas the second-largest wireless provider in the United States across postpaid, in which customers pay a recurring monthly bill, and prepaid phones - customers paying for service in advance.T-Mobile reported 98.3 million customers in those categories, while AT&T had nearly 93 million p
  
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• AbbVie agrees to pay $24 million to resolve Humira California lawsuit

  06-08-2020 21:46 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  The Insurance Commissioner of California said the company also agreed to disclose that AbbVie, and not a medical provider, paid the registered nurses who are employed as so-called AbbVie Ambassadors to interact with patients about Humira.Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara said AbbVie has paid $24 million to California and the whistleblower, a registered nurse who brought the case to the department's attention in October 2016.
  
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• Travelex falls into administration, with loss of 1,300 jobs

  06-08-2020 20:53 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Travelex falls into administration, with loss of 1,300 jobs. PwC says foreign exchange firm was ‘acutely impacted’ by Covid and recent cyber-attack
  
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• Travelex falls into administration, shedding 1,300 jobs

  06-08-2020 20:53 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Travelex falls into administration, shedding 1,300 jobs. PwC says foreign exchange firm was ‘acutely impacted’ by Covid and recent cyber attack
  
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• Travelex cuts 1,300 jobs after striking rescue deal

  06-08-2020 20:52 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Troubled foreign exchange provider Travelex has struck a rescue deal to stay afloat, but with the loss of more than 1,300 UK jobs. Administrators PwC said that a pre-pack administration sale of certain Travelex entities in the UK had been reached, saving 1,800 jobs across the country. Travelex provides forex services for customers of HSBC and Barclays and the banking arms of Tesco and Sainsbury's through its automated order placement service. Parts of the firm that deal with supermarkets, large
  
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• Social distancing in the skies becomes a perk in post-Covid travel

  06-08-2020 20:47 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Social distancing in the skies becomes a perk in post-Covid travelAir passengers looking for that one-metre buffer between seats must be ready to pay for the luxury* Coronavirus – latest updates* See all our coronavirus coverage
  
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• BoE signals long route to recovery

  06-08-2020 20:41
  Central bank predicts short-term bounceback before slow return to pre-pandemic levels
  
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• UK-Japan trade talks make progress, both sides want deal by end-2020 - UK trade minister

  06-08-2020 20:35 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Britain and Japan made progress towards a comprehensive free trade deal and are committed to getting a deal in place by the end of this year, trade minister Liz Truss said on Thursday.Japanese foreign minister Motegi Toshimitsu is in London this week meeting senior ministers as the two countries try to tie up a deal before Britain leaves the European Union and no longer benefits from an existing EU-Japan deal.
  
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• UK-Japan trade talks make progress, both sides want deal by end-2020 - UK minister

  06-08-2020 20:35 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Britain and Japan made progress towards a comprehensive free trade deal and are both committed to getting a deal in place by the end of 2020, trade minister Liz Truss said in a statement following talks in London."We’ve made further progress towards a comprehensive deal with a like-minded democracy and long-standing ally, and we share a commitment to getting a deal in place by the end of 2020," Truss said in a statement on Thursday.
  
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• Travelex strikes rescue deal but 1,300 UK jobs go

  06-08-2020 20:17 via bbc.co.uk
  
  A cyber-attack followed by the Covid-19 crisis "acutely" hit the firm, administrators said.
  
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• Microsoft targets buying all of TikTok including UK business, reports claim

  06-08-2020 20:16 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Microsoft is seeking to expand its negotiations over the viral video app TikTok to include its European and Indian operations, according to reports, setting itself up for a clash with the app's Chinese owners. The American software giant appears to be at odds with TikTok's parent company, ByteDance, over whether the American software giant should be allowed to buy the Chinese-owned app’s operations in Europe and India as well as the United States. Microsoft is now pushing to acquire all of
  
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• A flawed plan to solve England’s housing shortage

  06-08-2020 19:49
  Better foundations are needed for a new Bath, Belgravia and Bournville 
  
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• 'Unethical': Australians trying to fly home claim airlines cancelling economy tickets to sell more first-class seats

  06-08-2020 19:30 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  'Unethical': Australians trying to fly home claim airlines cancelling economy tickets to sell more first-class seatsSome customers being told their flight has been cancelled when the airline is still flying as scheduled and tickets for same flight available in business and first class
  
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• Airbus shareholders in U.S. file fraud lawsuit over disclosures, corruption probes

  06-08-2020 19:29 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  The proposed class action was filed by shareholder Andrew Kornecki in the federal court in Newark, New Jersey, and seeks unspecified damages for Airbus' alleged violations of U.S. securities laws.Chief Executive Officer Guillaume Faury and his predecessor, Tom Enders, as well as Chief Financial Officer Dominik Asam and his predecessor, Harald Wilhelm, were also named as defendants.Spokesmen for Airbus did not immediately respond to requests for comment on behalf of all defendants.
  
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• Libel trial featuring former British MI6 agent is mistakenly beamed around the world

  06-08-2020 19:13 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  A libel trial involving a former British spy was mistakenly live streamed around the world to people in the United States, Cyprus and Russia, it has emerged. Christopher Steele, who set up an intelligence consultancy after leaving MI6, is being sued by a Russian businessman over part of his 2016 dossier which lifted the lid on alleged links between Donald Trump and Moscow. But part of the trial, which took place at the High Court in London, ended up being broadcast around the world on the Zoom p
  
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• Academic wrongly suspended for alleged grade tampering set to be awarded damages, tribunal rules

  06-08-2020 19:07 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  A former Durham University academic is expected to be awarded substantial damages after an employment tribunal ruled she was wrongly suspended for alleged grade tampering. Dr Sue Stothard set test questions for pupils in her role as director at Duham's Centre for Evaluation and Monitoring (CEM), a body which runs exams for England's 163 grammar schools. But in September 2018, the education expert was falsely accused of “colluding” with grammar schools in Buckinghamshire to “ske
  
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• Market report: Share sale rumours weigh on Meggitt

  06-08-2020 18:59 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Shares in Meggitt fell on Thursday after Bloomberg reported the engineer was considering selling up to $600m (£455m) of new stock to help it brace for a potential second virus wave. Sources said that the company, which specialises in components and sub-systems for the aerospace, defence and selected energy markets, was working with advisers to review equity and debt funding options. One measure under consideration is a share sale equal to as much as 20pc of the company’s issued capit
  
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• Graphic: More signs point to U.S. economic recovery losing momentum

  06-08-2020 18:56 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Weekly data that Reuters follows from sources ranging from the New York Federal Reserve to mobility tracking and small business payroll service providers shows that after big upticks in May and June, activity growth stalled in July as COVID-19 spread rapidly in key areas of the country across the South and Southwest.The Kronos data showed that shift growth peaked at 8.7% in May, then slowed to 5.9% in June and to just 1% in July."We've now settled into a clear plateau in shift work growth," Dave
  
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• Apple releases MacOS Big Sur public beta, letting users try overhauled operating system

  06-08-2020 18:54 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Apple has released a public beta of its new MacOS operating system for computers.The update is named Big Sur and numbered MacOS 11, marking the first major numerical revision since it released MacOS X almost 20 years ago.
  
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• JD Wetherspoon: A third of head office jobs 'at risk'

  06-08-2020 18:44 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Chief executive John Hutson says 110 to 130 staff are at risk of redundancy at its Watford base.
  
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• Airbus adds more deliveries, breaks three-month order drought

  06-08-2020 18:37 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Airbus delivered 49 aircraft in July, up from 36 in June as it continues to recover from a slump in deliveries during this year's coronavirus lockdowns, the company said on Thursday.The aircraft were all narrow-body jets, highlighting a dearth of demand for the industry's biggest models, which last month prompted Airbus to trim A350 production for a second time.The month's deliveries included 47 A320neo-family jets.
  
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• Italy threatens to ban Ryanair in coronavirus compliance dispute

  06-08-2020 18:32 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Italy's air transport regulator has written to Ryanair over what it says were repeated violations of measures to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus and said it could suspend the budget carrier from flying to Italy.The warning from ENAC, the national civil aviation authority, came after airlines resumed flights to many holiday destinations in countries balancing the need to attract tourists with fears of a resurgence in coronavirus cases.Ryanair said in a statement that ENAC's assertions w
  
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• IMF says exploring ways to aid Lebanon, calls for movement on reforms

  06-08-2020 18:23 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Thursday it was exploring all possible ways to support the Lebanese people following the powerful port warehouse explosion that rocked Beirut, while urging authorities to move on reforms.Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, in a statement, also urged the international community and friends of Lebanon "to step up to help the country"."The IMF is exploring all possible ways to support the people of Lebanon," she said.
  
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• Worries over extended post-virus economic recovery weigh down FTSE

  06-08-2020 18:21 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  London’s top flight closed 77.78 points lower at 6,026.794 points at the end of trading on Thursday.
  
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• Animal Crossing boosts Nintendo sales

  06-08-2020 18:12 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The Japanese firm sold roughly 10 times as many copies of the game in the quarter as any of its other titles.
  
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• Quicken Loans parent's shares jump on debut after IPO size slashed

  06-08-2020 18:05 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Rocket shares were trading up at $20.84 after they opened flat at $18.00 a share, the same as its IPO price.Rocket's relatively lukewarm flotation comes at a time when U.S. capital markets are in the middle of a stellar recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic put several debuts on hold earlier this year.The IPO pricing and deal size suggests Rocket struggled to convince investors its mortgage platform business deserved the kind of valuation that is usually handed out to Silicon Valley tech unicorns
  
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• Quicken Loans parent shares jump after New York debut

  06-08-2020 18:05 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Rocket shares were trading up at $19.75 shortly after they opened flat at $18 a share, the same as its IPO price.The company sold 100 million shares in the IPO to raise $1.8 billion, which valued the company at around $36 billion.At its IPO price of $18, it is now the third-largest U.S. listing of 2020, excluding blank-check companies.
  
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• Bank of England boss Bailey backs end of furlough scheme

  06-08-2020 18:02 via bbc.co.uk
  
  UK economy is still set for worst performance in 100 years according to the UK's central bank.
  
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• Restaurant Brands to close hundreds more outlets to weather pandemic

  06-08-2020 18:01 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Sales at Burger King and Tim Hortons have been hammered in recent months due to coronavirus-led restrictions on indoor dining and a drop in demand for on-the-go breakfast and coffee, with the company reporting an over 25% fall in overall second-quarter revenue.Canada-focused Tim Hortons has been especially hard hit due to the country's slower pace of reopening, said Chief Executive Officer Jose Cil.Restaurant Brands expects to end 2020 with roughly the same number of outlets as last year - a lit
  
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• Top 50 YouTubers earn an average of £172m a year, study finds

  06-08-2020 17:58 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Salvadoran gamer Fernanfloo is the highest-earning YouTuber, raking in $205.8m (£158.6m) per year, according to a study.
  
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• Fashion giant H&M suspends employees over use of racial slur

  06-08-2020 17:56 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Fashion giant H&M said on Thursday it has suspended a number of employees over the use of a racial slur relating to the name of a hat to be sold at stores of its & Other Stories brand.CNN Business, which first reported the incident, said that the slur, in an internal H&M document, related to a hat that appeared on a list of items and accessories to be sold in the autumn/winter collection."We are deeply sorry to have discovered that one of our brands, & Other Stories, used a racis
  
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• U.S. weekly jobless claims fall, labour market struggling as COVID-19 epidemic spreads

  06-08-2020 17:54 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  The number of Americans seeking jobless benefits fell last week, but a staggering 31.3 million people were receiving unemployment checks in mid-July, suggesting the labour market was stalling as the country battles a resurgence in new COVID-19 cases that is threatening a budding economic recovery.Other data on Thursday showed a 54% surge in job cuts announced by employers in July."Repeated shutdowns for virus containment remain a threat to the labour market, which is already weak," said Rubeela
  
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• Microsoft expands TikTok takeover ambitions to entire global business - FT

  06-08-2020 17:45 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Microsoft has said it is seeking to buy the assets of TikTok in North America, Australia and New Zealand.It has not disclosed how much it is willing to pay, though sources previously told Reuters that ByteDance executives value all of TikTok at more than $50 billion.One person close to ByteDance in India said there was a "deal in the works" with Microsoft for TikTok India but it fell through, according to the FT report.
  
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• Microsoft aiming to buy TikTok's entire global business - FT

  06-08-2020 17:45 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  Microsoft had said it was seeking to buy the assets of TikTok in North America, Australia and New Zealand.It had not disclosed how much it was willing to pay, though sources previously told Reuters that ByteDance executives value all of TikTok at more than $50 billion.Microsoft declined to comment on the report.
  
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• HSBC promotes Asia Pacific prime finance trading boss -sources

  06-08-2020 17:42 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  HSBC has promoted Christophe Oleron to the role of Global Head of Trading for index arbitrage, Delta One and stock borrowing & lending, two sources said on Thursday.Oleron, who formerly served as head of prime finance trading for the Asia Pacific region, was one of a number of senior Hong Kong-based employees rumoured to be quitting HSBC last month, following news that global equities boss Hossein Zaimi was leaving the bank, a third source said.Oleron will remain in Hong Kong and report to L
  
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• China's Great Wall Motor to use sensors from Austria's AMS from 2022

  06-08-2020 17:35 via uk.finance.yahoo.com
  
  AMS said on Thursday its sensors will be used in vehicles built by China's Great Wall Motor Co Ltdfrom 2022 onwards, an important step for the Austrian company toward its goal of diversifying into the auto industry.Great Wall Motor, China's top pickup truck maker, plans to bolster growth with electric vehicles.AMS said technology developed in cooperation with Germany's Ibeo Automotive Systems, a specialist for optical sensors that use lasers to produce three-dimensional pictures of a car's envir
  
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