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Amazon third quarter earnings missed analyst expectations. Library picture: Jesuspereira/Shutterstock.com 

Shipping costs hurt Amazon earnings

Sales at Amazon rose 24% to $70bn in the three months to 30 September, but operating income declined from $3.7bn the same period last year to $3.2bn. This was partly due to Amazon expanding its one-day delivery service in many areas. CEO Jeff Bezos said: “It’s a big investment, and it’s the right long-term decision for customers.” The e-commerce giant said holiday sales would be softer than previously expected. Amazon shares were down as much as 9% in after-hours trading. Sources: BBC, CNBC, Financial Times, Marketwatch, Reuters and the Seattle Times.

“Headwinds” hit Twitter shares

Shares in the social media firm Twitter dropped 20% after it posted lower third quarter earnings, citing problems with its advertising technology. Sources: BBC, CNBC, Financial Times and Marketwatch.

ECB interest rates unchanged

The European Central Bank kept its benchmark rate at 0% and outlined details of its new bond buying plan. The outgoing ECB president Mario Draghi warned of “weakness” in the eurozone economy. Sources: CNBC, Deutsche Welle and the Guardian.

Shape cannot be trademarked

Rubik’s Cube lost its European trademark following a decision by the EU General Court, in Kirchberg, on Thursday. Sources: Bloomberg, Fox News and Sky News.

Pence on China: US companies leave “conscience at the door”

In a speech ahead of the next round of US-China trade talks, the American vice president Mike Pence criticised the NBA and Nike for kowtowing to Beijing over the Hong Kong democracy protests. Sources: CNBC, Financial Times, NPR and New York Times.

Johnson wants pre-Christmas poll

The British prime minister Boris Johnson wants a general election on 12 December, which would let MPs debate the new Brexit deal until 6 November. Johnson needs the EU to grant an extension to the current 31 October deadline and for two-thirds of parliament to agree to the poll. Sources: BBC, Deutsche Welle, Financial Times, the Guardian and Sky News.

UK lorry victims from China

The 39 people found dead in a refrigerated truck east of London were confirmed as Chinese nationals. Sources: Deutsche Welle, the Guardian and the Telegraph.

Franco’s remains removed from mausoleum

The remains of the Spanish dictator Francisco Franco were exhumed from a monument to Spanish Civil War dead and reburied in a Madrid cemetery. Sources: BBC, El País (in English) and Politico.

California fire evacuations

About 40,000 people have been evacuated from the northern edge of Los Angeles and around 2,000 residents from the wine country north of San Francisco as new wildfires broke out. Electric utilities have again shut off power as a preventative measure. Sources: BBC, the Guardian, Los Angeles Times and San Francisco Chronicle.

Agenda

Saturday 26 October, 5pm: Romanian wine tasting in Contern. Monday 28 October-Wednesday 30 October: Prisma Halloween Rugby Camp for U8 and U16 players. Thursday 7-Friday November, 10am-6:30pm: International fair for prospective university students at Luxexpo (free). Thursday 7 November, 5:30pm: Head of Luxembourg financial regulator CSSF Claude Marx, UK ambassador John Marshall and others provide a Brexit briefing to members of the British and Irish chambers of commerce. Friday 15 November, 7pm: Amcham’s annual Thanksgiving dinner. Tuesday 19 November: Digital construction conference Bimlux 2019.

Here are 7 science & technology stories you may have missed

Space: A new French radio telescope aims to scan inside alien planets, per Science magazine. Cybersecurity: It took a security researcher 10 minutes to hack the Vatican’s new “Click to pray” app, per The RegisterCybersecurity: Malware is now being delivered via WAV audio files, per ZDnetCybersecurity: Bored Panda detailed a clever new scam in the US to obtain bank customers’ credit card details. Cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin transactions are not as secret as many think and police are using blockchain analysis to track down criminals, per MIT Technology ReviewPrivacy case: An appeals court ruled that a $35bn lawsuit alleging Facebook used the facial recognition data of users in the US state of Illinois without permission can proceed (Facebook said users could “control” use of their data), per TechcrunchMobility: A German startup may be the first to launch a flying electric car, per Observer.com.

Making menswear “daring”

Clare Waight Keller, the head designer at Givency, is reshaping men’s fashion, according to GQ.

Today’s breakfast briefing was written by Aaron Grunwald