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WhatsApp updates terms as moves to monetize app

Facebook aims to monetise WhatsApp by allowing businesses to contact their clients via the platform, even sell them products directly using the service as they already do in India.”Privacy policy and terms updates are common in the industry and we’re providing users with ample notice to review the changes, which go into effect on February 8th,” a Facebook spokesperson said.
Federal and state regulators in US have accused Facebook of using its acquisitions of WhatsApp and Instagram to squelch competition and filed antitrust lawsuits last month that aim to force the company to divest them.

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A year after first death in China, Coronavirus source still a puzzle and may remain one forever

Establishing the source is vital for extinguishing future outbreaks early, leading virologists say, providing clues that can guide policy decisions on whether to cull animal populations, quarantine affected persons, or limit wildlife hunting and other human-animal interactions.

“If we can identify why they (viruses) keep emerging, we can reduce those underlying drivers,” said Peter Daszak, president of EcoHealth Alliance, a global NGO focused on infectious disease prevention.

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European hunt for assets for Chinese assets in insurance, healthcare and automobile sector

“These are the major growth areas with massive amounts of investments. EU companies are pretty keen to get a piece of the action,” said Alan Wang, Partner at law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.
“The EU-China Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI) will certainly facilitate the FDI, including M&A, by EU investors into China,” said Cherrie Shi, a senior counsel at law firm FenXun Partners, Baker McKenzie’s Joint Operation partner.
Total M&A value of EU companies into China amounted to $71 billion for the past three decades, much lower than the $117 billion recorded over the same period from American companies, data from Refinitiv showed.

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Blast at Chinese recycler shows battery supply-chain risks

The explosion is likely to renew scrutiny of safety risks in battery use and recycling, a still developing industry in which metals are recovered for reuse from spent packs. Lithium-ion batteries — used in toothbrushes to electric cars and as energy storage for utilities — are a key tool in curbing global emissions, but have occasionally caused fires that are difficult to douse.

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EU may ask too high a price for financial services trade, BoE warns

Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey said on Wednesday.European daily share trading worth 6 billion euros ($7.36 billion) left the City of London for the continent this week in the first tangible sign of Brexit’s impact on Britain’s 130 billion-pound ($176 billion) finance industry.

The EU has asked Britain about its intentions to diverge from the bloc’s rules, which could make it harder for Brussels to grant equivalence-based direct access for the City of London.

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Boeing to pay $2.5 billion to settle U.S. criminal probe into 737 MAX crashes

The crashes “exposed fraudulent and deceptive conduct by employees of one of the world’s leading commercial airplane manufacturers,” acting Assistant Attorney General David Burns said in a statement accompanying the agreement.

“Boeing’s employees chose the path of profit over candor by concealing material information from the FAA concerning the operation of its 737 MAX airplane and engaging in an effort to cover up their deception,” Burns said, referring to the Federal Aviation Administration.

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U.S. taxpayers to pay Capitol siege tab as government shuns insurance

Taxpayers will pay for damages because federal agencies rarely carry insurance, industry and policy sources said. “Taxpayers will be on the hook for repairs to the Capitol,” said Stephen Ellis, president of Taxpayers for Common Sense, a U.S. budget watchdog group.

In terms of repair and cleanup expenses, the federal government has long considered insurance not worth the expense.

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