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The World
Significantly fewer U.S. workers than a year ago are worried about a series of possible job setbacks, though more remain worried today than in 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic. This includes concerns about being laid off (18%), having work hours cut (20%), or having pay (23%) or benefits (27%) reduced. (Gallup)
Jobless benefits filings last week fell and reached a fresh pandemic low, extending a downward trend as employers hold onto workers despite the Delta variant of Covid-19. Initial unemployment claims moved lower in the week ended Sept. 4 to 310,000 from a slightly upwardly revised 345,000 the prior week. (Wall Street Journal)
The wealthiest 1% of Americans are responsible for more than $160bn of lost tax revenue each year, according to a new report from the US treasury. Natasha Sarin, deputy assistant secretary for economic policy, said: “A well-functioning tax system requires that everyone pays the taxes they owe.” According to the treasury report, the wealthiest 1% of US taxpayers are responsible for an estimated $163bn in unpaid tax each year, amounting to 28% of the “tax gap.” Sarin said that tax gap – “the difference between taxes that are owed and collected” – amounted to “around $600bn annually and will mean approximately $7tn of lost tax revenue over the next decade.” (The Guardian, U.S. Treasury Report)
Britain is on course to lose its status as one of Germany's top 10 trading partners this year for the first time since 1950, as Brexit-related trade barriers drive firms in Europe's largest economy to look for business elsewhere. In the first six months of this year, German imports of British goods sank nearly 11% year-on-year to 16.1 billion euros. (Reuters)
France has accused Britain of “financial blackmail” over the migrant crisis as a diplomatic rift between the countries deepens and the UK threatens to send migrant boats back to France. (The Times)
Afghanistan's Kabul Airport is about 90% ready for operations but its re-opening is planned gradually, a Qatari official said, speaking on the tarmac on Thursday. Meanwhile, 200 Americans and other foreigners in Afghanistan are set to depart on charter flights from Kabul after the new Taliban government agreed to their evacuation. (Reuters)
China is ramping up its South China Sea drills, testing its ability to take islands. The PLA exercises in contested waters coincide with rising tension with the U.S. military and its insistence on freedom-of-navigation operations in the region. China has conducted 20 naval exercises involving elements of island capture in the first half of 2021, far exceeding 13 such exercises last year. (South China Morning Post)
President Biden is expected to sign an order today requiring all federal employees to be vaccinated, without any option for regular coronavirus testing to opt out of the mandate, according to a person familiar with the plans. (Washington Post)
Royal Dutch Shell is weighing whether to mandate vaccines for employees and fire those who refuse to comply, according to an internal memo sent to the oil supermajor’s executive committee. The document, dated September 1, outlined a case for “selective vaccine mandates” initially at offshore and other remote locations where staff live and work and where other criteria were met. Employees in other parts of the business could be subject to mandatory vaccination “over time,” the memo said. (Financial Times)
United Airlines will give staff who have declined to be vaccinated against Covid-19 an extra five weeks to get inoculated as the company’s Sept. 27 deadline approaches. (Wall Street Journal)
Japan will relax some Covid restrictions, unveiling plans to allow restaurants to serve alcohol and permit vaccinated people to travel from this autumn. Prime Minister Suga said the country plans to finish inoculating all citizens who wish to receive shots by October or November. (Nikkei Asian Review)
Scientists are using artificial intelligence to design antiviral pills that could treat Covid-19 and stop potential pandemics in their tracks, a drive that has enabled an Oxford start-up to secure funding for its drug development program from the Gates Foundation. Exscientia is looking for treatments that could tackle Sars-Cov-2, other coronaviruses, influenza and Nipah, a virus that can be passed from animals to humans and in many cases causes respiratory infection. (Financial Times)
Moderna is developing a single-dose, combo vaccine for Coronavirus, flu. (Jerusalem Post)
The world’s largest plant designed to suck carbon dioxide out of the air and turn it into rock has started running. The plant, named Orca after the Icelandic word “orka” meaning “energy”, consists of four units, each made up of two metal boxes that look like shipping containers. (The Guardian)
Americans increasingly say the events of Sept. 11, 2001, had a more negative than positive impact on the country, and predictions for the pandemic’s long-term impact are even more downbeat. More than 8 in 10 Americans say those events changed the country in a lasting way. 46% say the events of 9/11 changed the country for the worse, while 33% say they changed the country for the better. That represents a shift from 10 years ago when Americans were roughly divided on this question, and it marks an even larger swing from the first anniversary of the attacks in 2002. Back then, 55% said the country had changed for the better. (Washington Post-ABC News poll)
Economy
Hedge funds are elbowing their way into Silicon Valley at an unprecedented rate with a record-smashing $153bn worth of investments in private companies in the first six months of 2021. A report from Goldman Sachs has found that hedge funds have done 770 deals so far this year, already beating the record number set in the whole of 2020, when 753 deals reached a total of $96bn. Just under three-quarters of this year’s agreements were “venture” bets on companies in their infancy. (Financial Times)
Janet Yellen warned the U.S. Treasury risks running out of cash next month unless Congress increases its borrowing limit, as Joe Biden’s administration grows increasingly worried about a possible debt default. In a letter to congressional leaders, the Treasury secretary said she could not offer “a specific estimate” of when it would run out of cash, but the “most likely outcome” was that its coffers would be “exhausted” during October. (Financial Times)
The European Central Bank will dial back its emergency bond purchases a notch over the coming quarter, taking a token step towards unwinding the emergency aid that propped up the bloc's economy during the pandemic. (Reuters)
Cathie Wood, the chief executive of Ark Invest and one of the world’s most closely watched investors, said her fund had significantly reduced its exposure to China, leaving only a portfolio of companies that were identifiably “currying favour” with Beijing. Ark’s sharp strategy shift was because the environment in China was “quite different” from the one that many global asset managers had poured funds into late last year. (Financial Times)
Last week, SEC Chair Gary Gensler said cryptocurrency trading platforms could not last long outside the US regulatory framework. This week, it became clear that the SEC meant business. The SEC is investigating Coinbase over a lending program the company plans to market and has indicated it would sue the company over the offering. Coinbase’s lending platform would allow customers holding a stablecoin called USD Coin to earn interest by lending it to other traders. (Financial Times, Wall Street Journal)
El Salvador’s pioneering adoption of bitcoin as legal tender hit snags within hours of the launch after the government had to take its app for storing the volatile digital asset temporarily offline and the global price slumped. President Nayib Bukele said on Twitter that the digital wallet app called “Chivo” — Salvadoran slang for cool — would stop working while server capacity was increased. (Financial Times)
Goldman Sachs named Kevin Sneader to help run its operations in Asia, months after he was voted out as the leader of consulting firm McKinsey & Co. Sneader will serve as co-president of the Asia business, excluding Japan, alongside Todd Leland, Goldman said Wednesday. He will also join the firm’s management committee and will relocate to Hong Kong for the job. (Wall Street Journal)
The return to work isn’t happening as expected this fall. The same is true for work travel. Business travel has remained stymied by the pandemic, even as people take to the skies in droves for vacations. Hopes for a rebound in business travel this fall have deflated with the spread of the Delta variant of Covid-19. And companies are trimming travel budgets for 2022, with this message for employees: Do you really need to go, or can the trip be a Zoom? (Wall Street Journal)
Several major U.S. airlines downgraded their financial forecasts, pointing to a slowdown in bookings as the spread of the Delta variant. (Wall Street Journal)
Technology
Google announced a series of updates across Workspace, its collection of cloud computing, productivity, and collaboration tools, software, and products formerly known as G Suite. Among the highlights are enhanced search, Meet calling, and live-translated captions in Meet, as well as new all-in-one video conferencing devices for Meet from Logitech and Avocor. (VentureBeat)
China is said to suspend approval for new online games, heating up Beijing’s campaign against gaming addiction. The decision to freeze new video game licenses is in line with Beijing’s decision to reduce gaming addiction in minors. It is unclear how long this suspension of game approvals will last, but no new titles were licensed in August. (South China Morning Post)
Microsoft President Brad Smith called on Washington and Beijing to improve their relationship and address issues around technology exchanges. (Nikkei Asian Review)
Apple announced a “California Streaming” virtual event on September 14 at 10 a.m. PT, where new iPhones and Apple Watches are expected. As with WWDC and last year's fall events, this new event will be held digitally with no members of the media invited to attend in person. Apple will likely provide pre-taped segments for each new product that's announced. New MacBook Pro models and new iPads are also on the horizon, but Apple is expected to hold multiple fall events this year so we're not likely to see everything come out in September. (MacRumors)
7 years later, only 6% of people with iPhones in the U.S. use Apple Pay in store when they can: Survey. (Pymnts.com)
Smart Links
KPMG aims for a third of its staff to be working class. (The Times)
Climate, wealth gap in focus as Norway go to polls. (Reuters)
Men fall behind in college enrollment; women still play catch-up at work. (The Upshot)
Tom Brady, Gisele Bündchen to star in crypto exchange campaign. (Wall Street Journal)
Amazon brings its cashierless tech to two Whole Foods stores. (CNBC)
Bill Gates vehicle buys $2.2bn stake in Four Seasons from Saudi royal. (Financial Times)
Transportation noise linked to increased risk of dementia. (The Guardian)