Know someone who would like this newsletter? Forward it to them.
The World
The U.S. Department of Justice will undertake a sweeping investigation into whether the Minneapolis Police Department engages in a "pattern and practice" of illegal conduct, including whether officers used excessive force during protests. U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said he's watched closely as communities in Minneapolis have reeled from the trauma of police violence. The investigation will seek to establish whether the state's largest police department is engaging in practices that promote or allow systemic wrongdoing. (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
Georgia religious leaders — representing more than 1,000 churches in the state — called for a boycott of Home Depot over the company’s refusal to speak out against a new law restricting voting access in the state. (The Guardian)
He warned ominously of “red lines” in Russia’s security that, if crossed, would bring a powerful “asymmetric” response. He reminded Western leaders once again of the fearsomeness of his country’s modernized nuclear arsenal. And he boasted of Russia’s moral superiority over the West. Yet even as President Vladimir V. Putin lashed out at foreign enemies real or perceived in a state-of-the-nation speech, tens of thousands of Russians defied a heavy police presence to pour into the streets to challenge his rule. In Moscow, some gathered across the street from the Kremlin to chant, “Go Away!” It was a snapshot of Russia in the third decade of Putin’s rule: a leader facing an increasingly angry and desperate opposition but firmly in power with his country’s vast resources and huge security apparatus at his disposal. (New York Times)
President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine addressed his nation, warning citizens of the possibility of war. “Does Ukraine want war? No. Is it ready for it? Yes,” Zelensky said. “Our principle is simple: Ukraine does not start a war first, but Ukraine always stands to the last man.” (New York Times)
Russia arrests over 1,400 at rallies for hunger-striking Navalny. (Reuters)
Escalating tensions with the U.S. will not stop Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin from joining Joe Biden to address rising global temperatures today, when leaders from 40 countries that emit 80% of global greenhouse gas emissions convene for a virtual climate summit. Biden is expected to pledge to reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 50% by 2030 relative to 2005 levels, according to people familiar with the administration’s thinking. That marks a significant acceleration of the Obama administration’s pledge to cut emissions by 26-28% by 2025. (Nikkei Asian Review, Financial Times)
The EU and U.S. reportedly pressuring China to make its climate targets more aggressive, bringing the peak emissions target date forward. China’s ambitions include hitting peak emissions and increasing non-fossil fuel energy share to around 25% by 2030. (South China Morning Post)
Singapore, Hong Kong call off air travel bubble announcement. Meanwhile, Australia says it cancelled state deals on China’s Belt and Road over ‘national interest’. (Reuters, Reuters-2)
A missile launched from Syria was fired into southern Israel, setting off air raid sirens near the country’s top-secret nuclear reactor, the Israeli military said. In response, it said it attacked the missile launcher and air-defense systems in neighboring Syria. The incident, marking the most serious violence between Israel and Syria in years, pointed to likely Iranian involvement. (Associated Press)
President Biden is poised to formally declare that the massacres of Armenians in the early 20th century constituted genocide, a rare step that would further inflame ties with Turkey. Biden is expected to describe as genocide the deportation, starvation and massacres of Armenians at the hands of the Ottoman Turks beginning in 1915. (Wall Street Journal)
Daily U.S. coronavirus vaccinations have slowed significantly for the first time since February, a sign that demand is slipping even though every American adult is now eligible for the shots. About 3 million Americans are getting vaccinated daily, an 11 percent decrease in the seven-day average of daily shots administered over the past week. The unprecedented drop is rivaled only by a brief falloff that occurred in February, when winter storms forced the closure of vaccination sites and delayed shipments nationwide. (Washington Post)
India recorded 312,731 new infections in a 24-hour period — the highest daily case count in a single country since the virus surfaced. (New York Times)
Desperate Indians are turning to online crowdsourcing for help: With little state resources, citizen-led online initiatives are helping people find everything from oxygen to ICU beds. (Rest of World)
Economy
The U.S. economy will grow at its fastest annual pace in decades this year and outperform most of its major peers, with the outlook upgraded sharply, but another Covid-19 surge was the biggest risk over the next three months, a Reuters poll of over 100 economists showed. The world's largest economy was predicted to grow on average 6.2% this year, the brightest outlook since polling began for the period more than two years ago and if achieved would mark the fastest annual expansion since 1984. (Reuters)
Britain is set for its sharpest economic growth since 1988 as the easing of Covid-19 restrictions encourages consumers to start spending. City analysts have upgraded their GDP projections for 2021 amid signs that households are itching to get out and spend the “accidental” savings they have built up. (The Times)
Mario Draghi will next week unveil a €221bn recovery package for a radical restructuring of Italy’s economy as it seeks to bounce back from its deepest recession since WWII. The plan, which features big-ticket investments in high-speed rail and green energy, as well fully digitalizing the country’s public administration, will draw on the EU’s pandemic recovery fund. (Financial Times)
Leveraged buyout bids measuring in the double-digit billions, a relative rarity since the financial crisis, have been showing signs of a comeback lately. Between 2005 and 2007, private-equity firms inked 18 deals worth $10 billion or more. Since then, they have struck only 10. Now the urge to go big appears to be back, with private-equity firms sitting on a record $1.6 trillion in unspent cash and looking for ways to deploy it in a pricey market. Firms with the biggest funds also see larger buyouts as a way to separate themselves from the competition. (Wall Street Journal)
Deal flow and valuations are reaching new heights in technology startups, as a flood of cheap cash fuels efforts to find the industry’s next big winners, from software to social media. In 1Q21, U.S. startups raised $69 billion from investors—41% more than the previous record, set in 4Q18. The average valuation for startups at all stages also reached a new high, and more than tripled from last year to $1.6 billion for late-stage companies. (Wall Street Journal)
Ireland will push for a global agreement on corporate taxation which “accommodates” its current low rate and allows “healthy and fair tax competition”, the country’s finance minister Paschal Donohoe said. The remarks by Donohoe, who chairs the eurogroup of eurozone finance ministers, indicate that Ireland expects to clash with the U.S. over President Joe Biden’s ambition to introduce a global minimum corporate tax rate. (Financial Times)
Technology
Walmart is phasing out robots — the hulking automated pickup towers that were erected in more than 1,500 stores to dispense online orders. The decision reflects a growing focus on curbside pickup services that have become more popular during the pandemic and continues a broader retreat from some initiatives to use highly visible automation in stores. (Wall Street Journal)
Congress finally sunk its teeth into Apple as part of a hearing titled “Antitrust Applied: Examining Competition in App Stores.” The hearing brought in representatives from companies like Spotify, Tile, and Match Group, a dating app company, to explain how Apple’s App Store fees and walled-garden business strategy harms their companies. All three companies gave harsh testimony, accusing the iPhone-maker of anti-competitive behavior over the burdensome fees it charges some app developers on its App Store. (The Verge)
Tile said Apple holds third-party products hostage by restricting their use of Find My; Apple lawyer confirmed Tile can't disclose Find My agreement under NDA. (9to5Mac)
Apple’s AirTag relies on a feature no competitor can match: 1 billion iPhones. (CNBC)
What to know about Apple’s New iPad Pro, M1 iMac, AirTags and Apple TV: Apple announced a hodgepodge of updates to many existing product lines, and revealed a new product as well. Here’s the rundown. (Wall Street Journal)
Amazon is expanding technology to let shoppers pay by scanning their palm print to several Whole Foods stores in Seattle, aiming to push it to a broader group of patrons. The technology, called Amazon One, works by scanning a palm print and connecting it to a credit card. After that, a shopper holds their palm above a sensor to pay for groceries or books. (Washington Post)
Smart Links
Disney and Sony set massive movie deal, bringing ‘Spider-Man’ films to Disney Plus. (Variety)
Dodgers offering ‘fully vaccinated fan section’ for Saturday’s game vs. Padres. (Los Angeles Times)
Chipotle’s quesadillas bring in new customers, contribute to digital sales growth. (CNBC)
Will Fall 2021 on campus look a lot like Fall 2019? (Forbes)
Judge orders L.A. city and county to offer shelter to everyone on skid row by fall. (Los Angeles Times)