US recovers bitcoins paid in Colonial ransomware attack
The US justice department said it seized bitcoins worth $2.3m that were part of the $4.4m ransom paid by Colonial Pipeline last month. An outfit called Darkside took the company--which is a major supplier of diesel, petrol and jet fuel--offline for several days, causing fuel shortages on the US east coast. Sources: BBC, Bloomberg, FT, NPR and Washington Post.
Arcelormittal seeking EU OK for its bid on Liberty Steel plants in France
Arcelormittal has asked the European Commission for permission to buy the French assets of Liberty Steel, Sanjeev Gupta’s troubled firm. The bid includes a plant in Hayange, about 30km south of Bettembourg. Sources: Bloomberg, CityAM, Metal Miner and Seeking Alpha.
Lux financial sector in good shape
Claude Marx, head of the Luxembourg financial regulator CSSF, told parliament that Luxembourg’s financial sector weathered the pandemic well, but banking profitability was a longer-term concern. Sources: Delano and Paperjam.
Will G7 tax plan cover Amazon?
Commentators are divided on whether or not the draft G7 corporate taxation plan will force Amazon to pay higher taxes. Sources told Bloomberg and the FT that the rules will be designed with Amazon in mind, while The Guardian and Independent cited a report claiming the e-commerce giant will slip through loopholes.
Bezos to take short space ride
Amazon and Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos will be onboard the maiden crewed flight of the New Shepard spaceship when it launches on 20 July. Sources: Bloomberg, FT, The Guardian and Spacenews.
Apple employees push back on back-to-office plan
About 80 Apple staffers sent CEO Tim Cook a letter asking him to reconsider a plan to have employees return to their desks at least three days a week starting in September. Sources: BBC, CityAM, Independent and The Verge.
Google fined in France
The French competition agency levied a €220m penalty on Google, for abusing its dominant position in the online advertising market. Google said it was in the process of making changes to its systems. Sources: Bloomberg, FT, Politico and RTE.
Meluxina inaugurated
The €30.4m supercomputer Meluxina, part of a European high performance computing network, officially started calculating its petaflops on Monday. Sources: Delano and Paperjam.
Compliance association refreshes board
The Association of Luxemburg Compliance Officers has voted in a new board, to be headed by three co-chairs. Sources: Delano and Paperjam.
Flex says chip shortage to last until 2023
One of the world’s largest contract electronics manufactures, Flex, said the current global semiconductor supply problems would continue for at least the next two years. Sources: FT, Motley Fool and 9to5Mac.
UK & US airlines want transatlantic travel corridor reopened
The bosses of several American and British carriers called for air travel between the UK and US to restart. Sources: BBC, CityAM, FT and Flight Global.
EY says Ireland attracted most FDI per capita in Europe last year
Ireland, per RTE, and Scotland, per the Herald, fared well in a report on foreign direct investment in Europe put out by the consultancy EY.
Biogen’s controversial Alzheimer’s drug gets OK
The US Food and Drug Administration approved aducanumab, the first new drug to treat Alzheimer’s disease in 20 years. Scientists remain split of its effectiveness. Sources: Bloomberg, FT, The Guardian and NPR.
Artin, migrant toddler found drowned, identified
Authorities identified the body of a 15-month-old child who was found in southwestern Norway earlier this year. His Iranian-Kurdish family was apparently trying to cross the English Channel to reach the UK when their vessel sank. Sources: BBC, Euronews, The Guardian and Reuters.
Ukraine’s Euro football kit annoys Russia
Russian officials have criticised the jersey to be worn by Ukrainian players during the European Football Championship, as it features a map of Ukraine that includes Crimea, the region annexed by Russia in 2014. Sources: BBC, DW, The Guardian and Politico.
MH17 judges begin to examine evidence
Dutch judges started hearing evidence on Monday in the case against four suspects accused of helping shoot down flight MH17 over Ukraine in 2014. The four are being tried in absentia. Only one defended has appointed a lawyer and he has denied any involvement in the missile attack. Sources: AFP, AP, DW and France 24.
Peru presidential election down to the wire
Pedro Castillo, the left-wing candidate in Peru’s final round of presidential elections, has a 0.15% lead over the right-wing candidate, Keiko Fujimori, with 94% of the ballots counted. Sources: BBC, France 24, The Guardian and NPR.
Latest Luxembourg covid-19 update
Out of 295 PCR tests conducted on 6 June, 3 Luxembourg residents were positive. That is a rate of 0.47 new cases per 100,000 inhabitants (compared to 0.00 on 30 May). The effective reproduction rate was 0.89, below the target threshold of 1.00 (compared to 0.82). There were 16 covid-19 patients in hospital (compared to 27), including 2 in intensive care (compared to 8). No one died due to the coronavirus on Sunday; the national total remained 818. A cumulative 389,502 vaccine jabs have been administered, including 151,777 people who have received all required doses. Source: health ministry. More: Delano.
Best time for exercise
For most people, early morning is the best time for a workout, although--depending on your sleep cycle--afternoons and evenings are not bad either, per GQ.
Today’s breakfast briefing was written by Aaron Grunwald