Bloomberg Businessweek - USA (2021-02-08)

ILLUSTRATION BY CRISTINA SPANÒ. CAPITOL: KEVIN DIETSCH/GETTY IMAGES.

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INBRIEF

○ Myanmar’s military

staged a coup on Feb. 1 and

detained Aung San Suu Kyi,

who led the elected

government. The move

threatens to upend the

country’s democratic

transition and prompted

a warningfromPresident

BidenthattheU Scould

reinstat

sanction

liftedby

Preside

Obama

in 2016.

○ Coronaviruscases

globallyhavesurpassed

104m

andmorethan2.2million

peoplehavedied.Butthe

vaccineeffortis picking

up,withalmost 105 million

dosesgiven.Johnson&

Johnsonunveileda vaccine

withtwoadvantagesover

thecompetition:It only

needstobegivenonceand

canbestoredin a normal

refrigerator.

○A Moscowcourt

sentencedRussian

oppositionleader

AlexeyNavalny

tomorethan

2½yearsin prisonin

connectionwitha 2014

fraudconviction,as

PresidentVladimirPutin

seekstocrushresurgent

protestsagainsthisrule.

○JackMa’s

AntGroupwill

transformitself

intoa financial

holdingcompany.

○ Exxon Mobil posted

its first loss in at least

40 years on Feb. 2

following a

$19.3b

writedown of its U.S.

naturalgas and other

assets.The company

reported its lowest

uction in more than

decades.

○“We cannot

move on without

accountability. We

cannot heal without

accountability.”

RepresentativeAlexandriaOcasio-Cortez,DemocratofNewYork,onInstagramon

Feb.1 discussingtheCapitolinvasion,duringwhichshefearedforherlife.

U.S. senators begin Donald Trump’s second impeachment

trial on Feb. 9. Democrats accuse the former president of

inciting the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. It’s unlikely

enough Republicans will take their side to convict him.

TheEx-PresidentonTrial

 Oil giant Shell

gives an update on

its energy-transition

strategy on Feb. 11. With

fossil fuels falling out

of favor, the industry is

turning increasingly to

renewable sources.

 The Bank of Russia

publishes its interest-

rate decision on Feb. 12,

with Governor Elvira

Nabiullina hosting a

news conference.

Economists see rates

holding steady at 4.25%.

 Feeling boxed in at

home? Auction house

Bonhams sells historic

travel and exploration

memorabilia, from

antique globes to

colonial-era photos, in

London on Feb. 10.

 Federal Reserve

Chair Jerome Powell

shares his outlook at

the Economic Club of

New York on Feb. 10.

Economists want to hear

about the future of the

Fed’s asset purchases.

 SoftBank reports

fiscal third-quarter

earnings on Feb. 8;

founder Masayoshi

Son will run through the

numbers. The fund has

recovered, after startup

investments paid off.

 General Motors

reports earnings on

Feb. 10. GM’s embrace

of bigger SUVs such

as the Chevrolet Tahoe

and GMC Sierra pickups

has attracted buyers.

Bloomberg Businessweek By Benedikt Kammel

○ Brian Sicknick, the U.S. Capitol Police

officer killed in the Jan. 6 riot, lies in

honor in the Rotunda on Feb. 3.

 AGENDA

People familiar with the plan hashed

out with Chinese regulators say it will

help Ma avoid an outright breakup

of the business. Ant has come under

intense scrutiny from China’s financial

watchdog, resulting in the abrupt

withdrawal of its November IPO.

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