In recognition of CD&R's remarkably active year, the firm is honored to be nominated in five categories of the 2021 PEI Awards, including Firm of the Year EMEA and Deal of the Year EMEA (Morrisons)
Voting is open and can be found here until 11:59pm PST on Wednesday 12 January 2022, with the results announcement in March.
The World
The U.S. and Russia emerged from seven hours of urgent negotiations staking out seemingly irreconcilable positions on the future of the NATO alliance and the deployment of troops and weapons in Eastern Europe, keeping tensions high amid fears of a Russian invasion of Ukraine. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei A. Ryabkov insisted after the meeting that it was “absolutely mandatory” that Ukraine “never, never, ever” become a NATO member. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman reiterated that the U.S. could never make such a pledge because “we will not allow anyone to slam closed NATO’s open door policy,” and she said that the U.S. and its allies would not stand by if Russia sought to change international borders “by force.’' The impasse left the fate of Ukraine — which was not invited to the bilateral talks — in a state of uncertainty, with Russia’s military intentions far from resolved. (New York Times)
Russian president Putin vowed that a Moscow-led security bloc would protect its allies from “color revolutions” in its neighborhood after sending troops to quell unrest in Kazakhstan last week. Putin’s remarks underscored Moscow’s willingness to back its allies in former Soviet states against street protests, which the Russian leader blamed on external meddling. (Financial Times)
North Korea fired what may be a ballistic missile, the Japanese coast guard said, the second apparent missile launch in less than a week after the reclusive state's leader urged the military to make more military advances. (Nikkei Asia Review)
China named a top internal security forces officer who helped lead Beijing’s crackdown in Xinjiang as the new chief of its army garrison in Hong Kong, the latest hard-line appointment by Beijing in the financial center. Major General Peng Jingtang, a deputy chief of staff of China’s People’s Armed Police, will head the People’s Liberation Army garrison in Hong Kong. He was previously chief of staff for the armed police in the far western region of Xinjiang, site of a yearslong crackdown on predominantly Muslim and Turkic-speaking Uyghurs and other minorities. (Wall Street Journal)
U.S. hospitalization breaks record as Omicron surges: As of Sunday, 142,388 patients with the coronavirus were hospitalized nationwide, surpassing last winter’s peak. (New York Times)
Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said an omicron vaccine will be ready in March, and the company is already manufacturing doses. (CNBC)
UK PM Boris Johnson has piled pressure on his scientific advisers to cut the recommended Covid isolation period to five days. (The Times)
U.S. issues 'Do Not Travel' warning for Canada. (Reuters)
USC, University of Arizona require surgical or higher-grade masks. (Higher Ed Dive)
Europe recorded its hottest summer yet in 2021: The Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) added that 2021 was the latest in a string of seven of the hottest on record and the fifth-warmest overall globally. In 2021 the annual average temperature was 1.1-1.2 degree Celsius (2-2.16 F) above preindustrial levels measured from 1850 and 1900 — when scientists first began accurately recording temperatures. (Deutsche Welle)
The year 2021 ranked as the fourth-warmest year on record in the U.S., with December 2021 being the warmest December ever recorded, according to analysis from the National Centers for Environmental Information. (Reuters)
Within three decades, the San Joaquin Valley’s annual average temperature could increase by 4 degrees, worsening water quality and health hazards in the impoverished communities of California’s agricultural heartland, according to a new regional climate change report. Those hit hardest by the increasing heat will be poor farming communities lacking the necessary resources to adapt. (Los Angeles Times)
The enormous cost of natural disasters in 2021. (Statista)
U.S. greenhouse gas emissions rose by 6.2% from 2020 levels last year as the use of coal-fired electricity jumped 17% and drivers returned to the roads after the first year of the pandemic. (Reuters)
The number of baby boomers who are retiring exceeds the expected number of older Americans set to naturally retire, according to a new report from the St. Louis Federal Reserve. About 7% more people retired in the month of October 2021 compared with January 2020, around 3.3 million. Women between 65 and 74 who were either married or widowed were the most likely to retire during the pandemic—11 times more likely to do so than their male peers in age. (Fortune)
Economy
JP Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon sees the best economic growth in decades, and more than 4 Fed rate hikes this year: “The consumer balance sheet has never been in better shape; they’re spending 25% more today than pre-Covid. Their debt-service ratio is better than it’s been since we’ve been keeping records for 50 years… It’s possible that inflation is worse than they think and they raise rates more than people think. I personally would be surprised if it’s just four increases.” (CNBC)
Bitcoin is off to its worst annual start since the dawn of crypto, falling below $40,000 for the first time since September — a slide that extends to more than 40% from its November high. (Bloomberg)
Bitoin ETF goes from boom to bust after a record U.S. debut. (Bloomberg)
The Omicron variant’s spread among U.S. factory workers is slowing operations and stretching staff for manufacturers, leading some to consider unconventional, and sometimes expensive, solutions to keep operating. Mounting absences among Covid-infected workers are bringing masks back to some factory floors, executives said, while manufacturers shuttle available workers to jobs and plants where they are most needed. Companies are also redoubling recruiting efforts to fortify workforces already worn thin by high turnover in a tight job market. (Wall Street Journal)
Employers left scrambling as workers call in sick: More than 5 million Americans, or 2% of the workforce, “could now be isolating,” Capital Economics economist Andrew Hunter estimated. (Axios)
Canada and Taiwan will begin talks on a foreign investment arrangement, in what Taiwan said was a milestone for trade relations as it tries to shore up its ties around the world. (South China Morning Post)
Women's golf is upping its prize money, doubling the U.S. Women's Open purse to $10 million—much closer to the men's $12.5 million in possible earnings. The funding for this year's golf champions came from ProMedica, a health care company that signed on as the women's tournament's first presenting sponsor. (Broadsheet)
Technology
Zynga deal signals M&A wave to come: Take-Two Interactive Software’s $12.7 billion proposed acquisition of mobile gaming outfit Zynga. The announced price of $9.86 a share is 64% above where Zynga was trading on Friday—but still below Zynga’s highs last February of between $11 and $12. As for other possible bargains to be had, the list is long. What about Pinterest, whose stock is trading 63% below its highs from last February? PayPal reportedly considered a deal last fall when Pinterest stock had fallen sharply, to around $50. Since then the stock has dropped further, closing today at $32.70. Pinterest is losing users in North America. What about Zoom Video, whose stock has fallen 61% from its 2021 high? (The Information)
Microsoft has been hit by defections as the tech giants battle for talent to build the metaverse. Around 100 people on the team developing Microsoft’s HoloLens augmented-reality headsets have left, mostly to Facebook parent Meta. (Wall Street Journal)
Y Combinator ups its investment in startups to $500,000 per company: In a sign of super-sized seed times, Y Combinator will now invest half a million dollars in every startup accepted into its program. The famed startup accelerator had previously invested $125,000 in exchange for 7% of a startup as part of the terms of going through its program. Now it will be adding an additional $375,000, for a total of $500,000 for each company. (Protocol)
Developers selling digital goods and services have earned more than $260 billion since Apple’s App Store launched in 2008, setting a new record for yearly earnings. The figure stood at over $200 billion a year ago. App Store customers spent more than ever before between Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve in 2021, with double-digit growth over the same year-ago period. Apple did not disclose a specific dollar amount. (MacRumors)
iPhone and Apple Watch users will be able to add their driver's license or state ID to the Wallet app in participating U.S. states later this year. Apple's website indicates the feature will be available in early 2022. Apple Music plans to launch a dedicated classical music app later this year after acquiring classical music service Primephonic last year. (MacRumors)
Apple chipmaker TSMC notched another quarterly sales record on strong demand, reporting December revenue of $5.6 billion, up 4.8% from November — a single month record. However, research shows chip delivery times slipped to 25.8 weeks in December, the longest wait time since tracking began in 2017. (CNBC, Bloomberg)
The operational stock of industrial robots has tripled over the past decade, with more than three million robots in use across various industries by the end of 2020. Asia leads the way in the shift to automated processes, with China in particular installing industrial robots at breakneck speed. In 2020, China installed 168,400 industrial robots, amounting to 44 percent of global installations. (Statista)
Smart Links
New York business owners sidestep billions in federal taxes with state’s help. (Wall Street Journal)
The I.R.S. is warning of a messy tax season. (New York Times)
U.S. Mint rolls out quarters featuring Maya Angelou. (Reuters)
China venture funding hits record US$131 billion despite crackdown, as start-ups pivot to hard tech. (South China Morning Post)
Telehealth use reached pandemic low in October. (Healthcare Dive)
Airbus retains crown over Boeing as biggest jet maker for 3rd year in row. (Financial Times)