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The World
The two major winter storms that have plunged most of the U.S. into an Arctic chill have killed at least 58 people since Sunday, according to data compiled by The Washington Post. More than half of them — 32 — lived in Texas, where persistent power outages have exposed residents to bitter temperatures. Meanwhile, Vistra Corp., one of the largest power generators in Texas, said it warned state agencies days before cascading blackouts plunged millions into darkness that internal forecasts showed electricity demand was expected to exceed supply. Despite the warning, “the coordination and planning by authorities across the broader energy sector were seemingly disproportionate to the severity of the situation,” Vistra said in an emailed statement. (Washington Post, Bloomberg)
Texas’ freeze led to release of tons of air pollutants as refineries shut: The largest U.S. oil refiners released tons of air pollutants into the skies over Texas this past week, according to figures provided to the state, as refineries and petrochemical plants in the region scrambled to shut production during frigid weather. (Reuters)
Texas officials block electricity providers from sending bills, disconnecting utilities for nonpayment. (Texas Tribune)
How it happened: The crisis could be traced to that other defining Texas trait: independence, both from big government and from the rest of the country. The dominance of the energy industry and the “Republic of Texas” ethos became a devastating liability when energy stopped flowing to millions of Texans who shivered and struggled through a snowstorm that paralyzed much of the state.
Part of the responsibility for the near-collapse of the state’s electrical grid can be traced to the decision in 1999 to embark on the nation’s most extensive experiment in electrical deregulation, handing control of the state’s entire electricity delivery system to a market-based patchwork of private generators, transmission companies and energy retailers. The energy industry wanted it. The people wanted it. Both parties supported it. “Competition in the electric industry will benefit Texans by reducing monthly rates and offering consumers more choices about the power they use,” George W. Bush, then the governor, said as he signed the top-to-bottom deregulation legislation. (New York Times)
10 U.S. corporations slashed donations to candidates seeking federal office by more than 90% in January, after pledging to cut off giving to the Republicans who supported former President Trump’s attempt to overturn his election defeat. None of the PACs of 10 major companies reviewed by Reuters, including Microsoft, Walmart, AT&T and Comcast, donated to any of the 147 congressional Republicans who voted to support Trump’s claims just hours after his supporters launched a deadly assault on the U.S. Capitol. (Reuters)
Boeing said that all 128 of its 777 jetliners powered by a particular Pratt & Whitney engine model should be grounded worldwide until the FAA determines the best way to inspect the engines. The aerospace giant issued its recommendation hours after the head of the F.A.A. said he was requiring “immediate or stepped-up inspections” of planes equipped with the Pratt & Whitney PW4000 family of engines, which are used only on 777s. United, which is the only American carrier affected by the F.A.A. order, said it would temporarily ground the two dozen 777s powered by that Pratt & Whitney model that it had been flying. (New York Times)
Businesses shut in Myanmar in a general strike called to oppose the military coup and thousands of protesters gathered despite a threat from authorities that confrontation could cost lives. Meanwhile, Facebook said it had deleted a page belonging to the Myanmar military’s propaganda agency under its standards prohibiting the incitement of violence. (Reuters, The Guardian)
Britain could restrict imports of European mineral water and several food products under retaliatory measures being considered by ministers over Brussels’ refusal to end its blockade on British shellfish. (The Telegraph)
Kim Jong Un is angry, and he's lashing out. North Korea’s last economic plan failed “tremendously,” he complained. And his inner circle lacked an “innovative viewpoint and clear tactics” in drawing up a new one, Kim told the ruling Workers’ Party last month, yelling and finger-pointing at frightened-looking delegates. North Korea is suffering its worst slump in more than two decades, experts say. It’s a combination of international sanctions and especially a self-imposed blockade on international trade in attempts to keep the coronavirus pandemic out. (Washington Post)
Iran will begin to offer United Nations inspectors "less access" to its nuclear program as part of its pressure campaign on the West, though investigators will still be able to monitor Tehran's work, the U.N. atomic watchdog's chief said. Rafael Grossi's comments came after an emergency trip to Iran in which he said the International Atomic Energy Agency reached a "technical understanding" with Tehran to continue to allow monitoring of its nuclear program for up to three months. (Associated Press)
China calls for reset in Sino-U.S. relations: Senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi said the U.S. and China could work together on issues like climate change and the coronavirus pandemic if they repaired their damaged bilateral relationship. (Reuters)
The coronavirus pandemic death toll in the U.S. nears 500,000, about a year after the first fatality. No other country has counted so many deaths in the pandemic. More Americans have perished from Covid-19 than on the battlefields of World War I, World War II and the Vietnam War combined. The milestone comes at a hopeful moment: New virus cases are down sharply, deaths are slowing and vaccines are steadily being administered. But there is concern about emerging variants of the virus, and it may be months before the pandemic is contained, while Dr. Anthony Fauci expects Americans could still need to wear face masks in 2022. (Washington Post, New York Times)
Economy
Sales of previously owned homes rose in January, as the market stayed hot during the usually slower winter period and a shortage of homes for sale kept pushing home prices higher. Existing-home sales rose 0.6% in January from December to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.69 million. The January sales marked a 23.7% increase from a year earlier. Meanwhile, mortgage rates for US homebuyers had their biggest jump in more than a year last week. (Wall Street Journal, Financial Times)
HSBC is accelerating its “pivot to Asia”, moving top executives from London to Hong Kong, scrapping its US retail banking operation and planning further expansion in Singapore. The moves, some of which are expected to be raised during a strategic update this week, come as tensions rise between the west and China that have left the Hong Kong-founded, UK-headquartered bank in a precarious position. (Financial Times)
For Bloomberg’s new ESG scores, ideas from across industries: To develop Bloomberg’s first ESG scores, Lenora Suki seeks ideas from across industries and outside her usual areas of expertise. (MIT Sloan)
Leadership from Delta’s Ed Bastian: Building staff loyalty to survive a crisis. The airline chief focused on protecting the company’s workforce and liquidity in the face of aviation’s worst downturn. (Financial Times)
Technology
Restaurant-software provider Toast is preparing for an IPO that could value the restaurant-software provider at around $20 billion. Toast tapped Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase to underwrite a possible listing later this year, these people said. It could also consider other options including a sale or combination with a blank-check company. (Wall Street Journal)
Uber drivers must be treated as workers rather than self-employed, the UK's Supreme Court ruled. The decision could mean thousands of Uber drivers are entitled to minimum wage and holiday pay. The ruling could leave the ride-hailing app facing a hefty compensation bill, and have wider consequences for the gig economy. (BBC News)
The Race to Fix Virtual Meetings: Sick of boring grids of heads? A new crop of start-ups aims to bring some serendipity and spark to remote meetings. Gather.town is one of several virtual-meeting start-ups that have emerged as a result of the pandemic, spurred by consumer demand from those stuck at home and fueled by venture capitalists eager to capture a slice of the videoconferencing market currently dominated by the likes of Zoom and Google Meet. Some, including Gather.town and competitors like Kumospace and Pluto, are incorporating spatial dynamics — users move around and interact with one another on virtual maps — and are primarily used for office happy hours or hanging out with friends. Others, like Hopin and Run the World, whose origins predate the pandemic, are focusing on corporate and academic conferences. Avichal Garg, an investor at Electric Capital, a venture-capital firm, argues that remote work currently trades serendipity for efficiency — and that happy accidents are crucial for innovation. “Creative problem solving requires looking at problems differently,” he says, “and having serendipitous interactions with other people allows you to see problems and discover solutions in new ways.” (New York Times)
Smart Links
How Elon Musk became the world’s most powerful influencer. (Marker)
The first black hole ever discovered is more massive than we thought. (MIT Technology Review)
How the federal government could help kill the highways it built. (City Lab)
Feeling the strain: stress and anxiety weigh on world’s workers. (Financial Times)
The hazards of second-guessing. (Chicago Booth Review)
Billionaires see VR as a way to avoid radical social change. (Wired)
The world’s 15 most complex subway maps. (City Lab)