Ghosn accused of financial crimes
The automotive executive Carlos Ghosn has been arrested in Tokyo on financial misconduct charges, reported the Financial Times and Guardian. He allegedly underreported his income and misused company assets. Ghosn is chairman and CEO of Renault and chairman of Nissan and Mitsubishi. Shares in all three carmakers fell, reported the BBC and Reuters. Nissan and Mitsubishi said he would be sacked; Renault’s board has not yet met over the matter. Several media outlets said Ghosn could not be reached for comment.
Bitcoin, tech shares down
The price of bitcoin fell below $5,000 for the first time in 18 months, reported CNBC, Marketwatch and the Telegraph. Bitcoin has lost 22% of its value over the past week; it had been trading at more than $20,000 last December. Analysts pointed to the split of a rival cryptocurrency, bitcoin cash, as creating uncertainty in the digital currency market. US technology stocks, including Amazon, Apple and Facebook, also fell.
First Facebook journalist support scheme
Facebook will fund a £4.5m training programme for local journalists in the UK, reported the Guardian, Reuters and Telegraph. Facebook will donate the funds to the National Council for the Training of Journalists, which will support 80 “community journalists” for two years. Separately, Johnston Press, which publishes newspapers including the I, Scotsman and Yorkshire Post, entered administration and sold itself to creditors, according to Bloomberg, the Independent, and ITV.
Eurozone budget to start in 2021: proposal
The French and German finance ministers agreed to create a common eurozone budget, reported Euractiv, the Financial Times and Politico. It could be in place by 2021. Euro area finance ministers will discuss the plan in December.
Berlin bans Khashoggi suspects
Germany has banned 18 Saudi nationals thought to be involved in the killing of Jamal Khashoggi from entering the Schengen zone, reported DW, the Financial Times and Politico.
Hyperloop tunnels raise questions
Tunnels have started being dug in a poorer area of Los Angeles as part of Elon Musk’s project to create a “hyperloop” super fast transport network, according to the Atlantic. This has led to accusations of the company and local officials taking shortcuts.
Bad AI song lyrics
Researchers at Google created an automated lyric generation machine, according to MIT Technology Review. It didn’t work out all that well. For example, the machine wrote: “I’m your big and brave and handsome romeo / you know my secret secret / you have my second estate / you suit your high origin / you have my cursed youth / you have my life”.