International
Headlines
Why onions and pigs can give economists a headache
IN FEBRUARY 2017 Verizon, an American mobile-phone carrier, started offering mobile-phone connections that put no limits on data. “Unlimited adventures, unlimited laughter, unlimited connections,” promised an advert. They might have added “unlimited woe for central bankers”. The category of inflation in which mobile-phone plans feature subsequently...
Economists’ models of inflation are letting them down
ONE OF THE economic models named after William Phillips is physical. The Phillips hydraulic computer uses flows of water to simulate flows of money in the economy; its success helped earn Phillips a job at the London School of Economics in 1950. Today economists can bring the full power of modern computing to their calculations. But they still...
Inflation is losing its meaning as an economic indicator
INFLATION USED to be the scourge of the world economy and the bane of American presidents. In 1971 amid an overheating economy Richard Nixon took to television to announce a freeze on “all prices and wages throughout the United States”. A board of bureaucrats ruled on what this meant for everything from golf club memberships to commodity futures....
Most, but not all, emerging markets have overcome high inflation
THIS YEAR marked a quarter of a century since Brazil beat hyperinflation with a conjuring trick. The old currency, the cruzeiro, had been debased, suffering annual price rises reaching 2,500%. Following the advice of a small group of economists, the government required firms to list prices and wages in “units of real value”, a new unit of account...
How to make economic policy fit for a world of low inflation
THE HISTORY of monetary policy is one of intermittent revolution. In the whole of the 19th century, constrained by the gold standard, America’s prices rose only 12%. After the second world war countries pegged their currencies to the dollar, which was in turn redeemable for gold. That system broke down in 1971 when it was abandoned by America. Its...
Finance
G.M. Workers Begin to Size Up the Deal Their Union Is Selling
The tentative contract hammered out by the United Automobile Workers and General Motors won’t please all of the union’s members, but it is sure to get strong support at the Detroit-Hamtramck assembly plant.The factory, which employs 700 U.A.W. members, is scheduled to close in January. But under the contract, G.M. has promised to spend $3 billion...
Johnson & Johnson Recalls Baby Powder Over Asbestos Worry
Johnson & Johnson, which has spent years insisting that its baby powder is safe, recalled 33,000 bottles of the product on Friday after the Food and Drug Administration discovered evidence of asbestos, a known carcinogen, in one of the bottles.The recall, the first time Johnson & Johnson has pulled baby powder from store shelves over asbestos...
Read the Boeing Pilot Messages From 2016: ‘The Plane Is Trimming Itself Like Craxy’
A top Boeing pilot working on the 737 Max said in messages from 2016 that a new automated system known as MCAS was making the plane difficult to control in flight simulators. The messages suggest that Boeing officials working on the development of the best-selling jet knew of potential issues with the automated system years before the plane was involved...
Johnson & Johnson Recalls Asbestos-Tainted Baby Powder
Johnson & Johnson is recalling a shipment of baby powder after the Food and Drug Administration discovered evidence of asbestos in one of the bottles, the company said on Friday, a move that undercuts its defense in a growing number of claims that its talc-based products were contaminated with the potent carcinogen.The regulator found trace levels...
Boeing Pilot Complained of ‘Egregious’ Issue With 737 Max in 2016
A Boeing pilot working on the 737 Max said in messages from 2016 that a new automated system was making the plane difficult to control in flight simulators, more than two years before it was grounded following two deadly crashes.The pilot, Mark Forkner, complained that the system, known as MCAS, was causing him trouble. “It’s running rampant in...
Legal
Bipartisan Banking Committee Senators Introduce Anti-Money Laundering Reform Bill
On September 26, 2019, a bipartisan group of eight Senators introduced the Illicit Cash Act[1], which, among other proposed reforms, would require certain companies to disclose beneficial ownership information to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) at incorporation and within 90 days of any change in beneficial ownership. Led by Sen. Mark...
Australia Plans to Join U.S. and U.K. in the CLOUD Act
Following its agreement with the United Kingdom, the United States announces formal negotiations are underway with Australia about joining the CLOUD Act. Although also a bi-lateral negotiation, the U.S. talks with Australia strike a more practical tone than those with the U.K. As described in our prior post, under the CLOUD Act, governments can accelerate...
U.S. and U.K. Ease Data Collection Across Borders
Saying it will accelerate complex investigations, the United States and the United Kingdom proposed an historic data exchange agreement. In future, each government will be able to obtain electronic data directly from technology companies in the other country. The governments also say this first of its kind agreement will protect privacy and enhance...
United Arab Emirates Issues New AML Law in Context of FATF Evaluation
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF), an intergovernmental organization founded 30 years ago to develop and uphold policies to combat money laundering and terrorist financing, is conducting a peer review (or “mutual evaluation”) of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) this year. FATF last assessed the UAE in 2008, and found the country’s systems and...
Legality of Maximizing Billing Codes
A post on our Triage blog discusses a decision about the legality of changing medical billing codes in order to maximize revenue from the government. Can that be done consistent with the False Claims Act? See the discussion here.… Continue Reading The post Legality of Maximizing Billing Codes appeared first on The Anticorruption Blog. Read...
Deals
Seequent continues investment in innovative geoscience technology for world’s major resource challenges Minalytix partnership and minority shareholding demonstrates Seequent’s commitment to advancing solutions to help customers solve challenges within mining and applied geosciences
Minalytix partnership and minority shareholding demonstrates Seequent’s commitment to advancing solutions to help customers solve challenges within mining and applied geosciences Seequent, a world leader in the development of geoscience analysis, modelling and collaborative technologies, continues its investment in geoscience technology and innovation...
Qualitest announces investment from Bridgepoint for Majority Stake
World’s largest independent software testing and quality assurance company will use investment to accelerate global acquisition strategy and product development Qualitest, the world’s largest pure-play outsourced software testing and quality assurance specialist, announced today that Bridgepoint, an international private equity group, has...
Accountants reveal how AI will change deal-making - forever
The ability to predict and shape the long term success of global takeovers is often seen as the “holy grail” for CEOs, investors and their advisors. A new report from chartered accountancy body ICAEW and Drooms, a leading data solutions company, reveals that some key decision making may soon be taken away from humans and guided instead by the application...
US dominates global M&A securing nine out of ten of the largest 1H19 deals
Mergermarket publishes its Q2 2019 global report London, United Kingdom 2nd July 2019: Mergermarket, the leading provider of M&A data and intelligence, has published its Q2 2019 report in which all but one of the ten largest deals targeted US-based companies, six of which were the result of domestic consolidation. Amid heightened geopolitical...
Uber to acquire Careem to expand the greater Middle East regional opportunity together
Careem to become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Uber, operating as an independent company under the Careem brand and led by Careem foundersOpportunity for both companies to rapidly expand and capitalise on the region’s underpenetrated mobility opportunity and growing digital economy Transaction would be largest-ever technology industry transaction...
Acq Lite
At World’s Biggest Dog Show, Pups That Give New life to Disabled Owners
EDITOR’S NOTE: This news is courtesy of iCopyright, so GNN has no control over the ads. Please remember we do not endorse the advertisements. The post At World’s Biggest Dog Show, Pups That Give New life to Disabled Owners appeared first on Good News Network. Read More
Stranger Sets Off Incredible Chain of Good Deeds That Saved 6 Lives
Six lives were saved at a hospital this week, and it is all thanks to one woman's decision to “be selfless for a day”. The post Stranger Sets Off Incredible Chain of Good Deeds That Saved 6 Lives appeared first on Good News Network. Read More
10 Things I Wish I Would Have Told My Kids
Mindfulness is the ability to pay attention to your current experience—both the internal and external—without judgment. Practicing mindfulness allows us to make wiser choices and pursue healthier and more beneficial avenues in life. Had I learned them earlier in life, I would have taught my kids the valuable life lessons that I’ve gleaned from...
DIY or Die: How an Industrious Outback Nurse Diagnosed His Own Heart Attack and Stayed Alive
The nurse was stationed at his medical outpost 100 miles away from the nearest hospital when he realized that he was about to have a heart attack. The post DIY or Die: How an Industrious Outback Nurse Diagnosed His Own Heart Attack and Stayed Alive appeared first on Good News Network. Read More
Daily Dose of Cute: Dachshund Shows Off Skills by Maneuvering Maze of Plastic Water Bottles
If you’re mourning the end of the Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang, you might like these games of skill involving a long-haired Dachshund. Takao showed off his thinking abilities earlier this week when he successfully maneuvered a maze of plastic water bottles that was erected by his owner. In the videos posted to his Instagram page, the...