Wall Street keeps embarrassing itself every time Trump talks about China - Business Insider

It's quite possible that this is Trump's "Got you again, Wall Street" face. Who can really say?AP Photo

• Every time President Donald Trump says he has a trade deal with China the stock market rallies.
• And then it turns out the deal is vapor.
• Meanwhile, US-China relations continue to deteriorate in the background, making anyone bullish on a deal look even more absurd.
• Stop it, Wall Street — you're embarrassing yourself. And we hate to see it.

People, people, people. Why does this keep happening?

On Thursday, President Donald Trump announced that he had a trade deal with China, and stocks soared. All was well in the universe of Wall Street. The administration gave itself a pat on the back.

A few hours later, though, everyone figured out that this "phase-one deal" sounded a lot like the trade war detente the US and China came to last December. In this latest "mini-deal," just like the agreement from nine months ago, both parties agreed that China would buy some agricultural goods here and there, and in exchange the US tariffs would not increase for the time being.

(There are more details, we have to assume, but they are difficult to grasp since the agreement wasn't written down or anything this time.)

Of course, this deal leaves untouched the deep structural disagreements between the US and China — issues that include major changes to China's business practices and law enforcement — unresolved. These are the issues at the core of the Trump administration's justification to launch the trade war.

And lo, in the days that followed the announcement of this "phase-one deal," the cracks started to show:

The S&P 500, to its credit, is flat for the month — phase-one deal or no. But it seems every time the president makes one of these pronouncements, the market gets excited, only to be let down again.

Let me tell you a story about the president. From 1986 to 1988, Trump reportedly made millions by betting in the stock market. His strategy was to leak to Wall Street that he was going to take over a company, like a real corporate raider. Then he'd quietly sell his shares before everyone figured out that he was bluffing.

It all ended because after two years Wall Street figured out that Trump's bark was much worse than his bite.

How long is it going to take this time?

President Pump-and-Dump

Meanwhile, as Trump pumps his trade deal and Wall Street foolishly gets their hopes up, the rest of US-Chinese diplomatic relations are in meltdown mode.

So while Trump may say the trade war with China is on the road to resolution, in the rest of the relationship chaos reigns.

And according to Sam Bresnick and Paul Haenle at Foreign Policy, there are some in China who like it that way.

To them, a Donald Trump who is willing to allow democracy to waver in Hong Kong (and the rest of Asia), who is not trusting of his allies, who is easily fooled, is a president who could create the kind of opening that would allow China to gain ground on a swiftly tilting planet. One Chinese thinker called it the "greatest strategic opportunity since the end of the Cold War."

From their piece, which is very much worth reading:

During numerous off-the-record discussions with Chinese government officials and scholars, we are finding that an increasing number are hoping for Trump's reelection next year. At a time when China's political influence and military capabilities are growing, they argue that in spite of his anti-China bluster, Trump has afforded Beijing the space to expand its influence across Asia and, more importantly, comprehensively weakened Washington's global leadership. From a zero-sum standpoint, many Chinese have concluded that Trump's policies are strategically very good for China in the long run.

On top of all these complications is the simple matter of trust. Last month, Beijing hosted a China Development Forum Special Session attended by politicians and technocrats the world over. The message out of that, according to Susan Thornton, a former assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, was that the Chinese don't think Trump is acting in good faith.

"They think Trump wants to have the China fight going into November elections," she said during a phone call with Business Insider. "They think he doesn't want to make a deal."

Thornton told us that the US and Chinese sides are having trouble understanding each other. Chinese diplomats tend to be subtle in their dealings; the US president is not a subtle man.

"Trump is presiding over the bleeding of US credibility," Thornton said. "There's no way the Chinese believe in the US ... and after seeing Trump's antics on the world stage how anyone is going to do a deal with us ever again?"

If we're stuck in phase one

Now, you may be thinking to yourself: At least the trade war isn't getting worse. If we're stuck in phase one, we're stuck in phase one.

Problem is, phase one is already causing chaos in the global economy. Up until September, the US consumer was the undisputed champion holding things together in a world of negative interest rates, slumping trade and manufacturing data, and declining business investment.

But last month, US retail sales started to sag. And now the Federal Reserve's Beige Book — a quarterly survey of businesses around the US released last week — is replete with complaints about how the trade war is constraining sales and raising input prices.

Then there's what's going on in China, the world's second-largest economy. Last quarter, GDP growth slowed to its lowest rate in three decades, 6%. Trade, manufacturing, industrial production — all declining. The one bright spot is infrastructure investment, which is supported by the government and widely considered a playground for dangerous shadow banking.

The world needs a real US-China trade deal if economic growth is going to return to the planet, not the fake deals the Trump administration keeps serving up. Wall Street — the so-called masters of the universe and the underlings who serve them — should be smart enough to know a real deal when they see one. But no. So far they've bought just about every pump the president has sold them. We hate to see it.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-trade-war-tariffs-china-fools-wall-street-stock-market-2019-10

2019-10-20 12:06:17Z
CAIiENyRcUnWVL6dpCcZvlfCOtMqLggEKiUIACIbd3d3LmJ1c2luZXNzaW5zaWRlci5jb20vc2FpKgQICjAMMIzw5wE

7 Changes to Social Security in 2020 - The Motley Fool

There's little question that Social Security is our nation's most valuable social resource. Of the nearly 64 million beneficiaries netting a monthly payout, over a third are being lifted out of poverty, with more than 15 million of these folks being retired workers.

Big changes are headed Social Security's way in 2020

However, Social Security is also a dynamic program. Each and every October the Social Security Administration releases its "Fact Sheet" that provides updates on everything from what beneficiaries will be paid in the upcoming year to what it takes to qualify for a benefit.

The following is a roundup of the seven biggest changes to Social Security in 2020.

Image source: Getty Images.

1. Beneficiaries are getting a modest "raise"

Without question, the most anticipated event every year is the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) announcement during the second week of October. COLA is a measurement of the inflation that Social Security beneficiaries have faced, and represents the "raise" that they'll receive in the upcoming year. Of course, it's not really a raise in the truest sense of the word given that COLA is merely designed to keep pace with, not outpace, inflation.

Since 1975, Social Security's inflationary tether has been the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W). To determine COLA, the average CPI-W reading from the third-quarter of the current year (July through September) is compared with the average CPI-W reading from the third quarter of the previous year. If the current year is higher than the previous year, then beneficiaries will receive a raise that's commensurate with the percentage increase, and rounded to the nearest tenth of a percent.

In 2020, beneficiaries will be receiving a 1.6% COLA, which is more or less par for the course with the average "raise" received over the past decade. This increase in monthly payout equates to about $24 for the average retired worker and nearly $20 for the average disabled worker.

Image source: Getty Images.

2. Social Security's full retirement age increases, once more

For only the 10th time since Social Security was signed into law in 1935, the program's full retirement age is set to increase. The full retirement age (also known as "normal retirement age" by the Social Security Administration) refers to the age at which a retired worker can collect 100% of their monthly benefit, as determined by their birth year.

In 2020, the full retirement age will increase by two months to 66 years and eight months for persons born in 1958. This means these individuals will have to wait until they are at least 66 years and eight months old if they want 100% of their retired worker monthly benefit. If they begin taking their payout at any point between age 62, the first age of eligibility for retired worker benefits, and 66 years and seven months, they'll face a permanent reduction to their monthly payout.

Further, the full retirement age will increase by two months in 2021 and again in 2022, ultimately peaking in 2022 at age 67 for anyone born in 1960 or later.

Image source: Getty Images.

3. The wealthy can net a higher maximum monthly payout

One of the more interesting quirks about Social Security retired worker benefits is that they're capped at a certain level. In 2019, for instance, no retired worker at full retirement age could take home more than $2,861 a month. This cap on monthly benefits exists because a cap is also in place on the amount of earned income that the payroll tax can impact .(I'll have more to say on this in the following point.)

In order to hit Social Security's maximum monthly benefit, a worker would need to have hit or surpassed the aforementioned maximum taxable earnings cap for 35 years, given that the Social Security Administration (SSA) takes your 35 highest-earning, inflation-adjusted years into account when calculating your retired worker benefit.

In 2020, well-to-do retirees could net quite a bit more each month. According to the SSA, the maximum monthly benefit at full retirement age will increase by $150 a month to $3,011. That's an extra $1,800 a year for lifetime upper-income earners during retirement.

Image source: Getty Images.

4. Well-to-do workers will have to open their wallets a bit wider in 2020

Conversely, upper-income working Americans are going to have to open their wallets a bit more next year.

You see, the payroll tax on earned income -- that's wages and salary, but not investment income – generated more than 88% of the $1 trillion in revenue collected by the program in 2018. This year, all earned income between $0.01 and $132,900 is subject to Social Security's 12.4% payroll tax. Next year, the earnings cap will rise by $4,800 to $137,700. The earnings tax cap rises in-step with the National Average Wage Index each year.

Depending on whether well-to-do workers are self-employed or employed by someone else (the self-employed are responsible for the entire 12.4% payroll tax, whereas employees split their tax liability with their employer), they'll owe up to $595.20 or $297.60 extra, respectively, in 2020.

Image source: Getty Images.

5. Disability income thresholds make a leap

Although Social Security was first and foremost designed as a financial foundation for retired workers, it today provides a monthly benefit to 8.4 million disabled workers and roughly 1.6 million spouses and children of disabled workers.

Every year, the SSA updates the monthly earning thresholds by which payments would cease for these individuals. In 2019, for instance, a non-blind Social Security disability beneficiary could earn up to $1,220 a month without having their monthly benefit from the program stopped. For blind Social Security Disability Income (SSDI) recipients, this threshold was $2,040.

As we look at the calendar change into 2020, the SSA update shows that non-blind SSDI recipients can now earn $40 more a month ($1,260 per month) without benefits ceasing, while blind SSDI beneficiaries can take home $70 more extra a month ($2,110 per month) before benefits would be stopped.

Image source: Getty Images.

6. Withholding thresholds for early filers motor higher

It's no secret that early filers face a number of disadvantages, with the biggest being a permanent reduction to their monthly payout from the program. But the retirement earnings test can also be a major thorn in the side of early filers that continue to work and generate income.

The retirement earnings test allows the SSA to withhold some or all of your benefits if you've begun taking your payout prior to your full retirement age, are still working, and you surpass set income thresholds. In 2020, you're allowed to earn $18,240 ($1,520 a month) without any withholding if you won't hit your full retirement age. This is up $50 a month from 2019. But if you surpass $18,240, the SSA can withhold $1 in benefits for every $2 in earned income above this threshold.

Meanwhile, if you will reach your full retirement age in 2020, you're allowed to earn $48,600 ($4,050 a month) before any withholding would kick in. That's up $140 a month from 2019. Plus, withholding here is only $1 in benefits for every $3 in earned income above the threshold.

Take note that the retirement earnings test no longer applies when you hit your full retirement age (no matter when you began taking your payout), and that any withheld benefits are returned in the form of a higher monthly payout after hitting your full retirement age.

Image source: Getty Images.

7. You'll have to work a bit harder to qualify for a Social Security benefit

Last, but not least, understand that Social Security isn't simply given to you because you were born in the United States. In order to qualify for a retired worker benefit, you'll have to earn it through years of work.

To guarantee yourself a Social Security retired worker benefit, as well as potential disability and/or survivor's insurance protections, you'll want to have earned 40 lifetime work credits, of which a maximum of four can be earned per year. These credits are earned based on your income in a given year. In 2019, for example, $1,360 in earned income equated to one lifetime work credit, with a full year's worth of credits working out to $5,440 in earned income (4 X $1,360). Thus, the SSA sets a very reasonable bar for workers to qualify for a benefit.

Next year, it'll be incrementally tougher to earn these credits. Qualifying for a work credit will require $1,410 in earned income, or $5,640 for the year to max out your credits.

In just 2.5 months these big changes are set to take effect, so make sure you're in the know.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://www.fool.com/retirement/2019/10/20/7-changes-to-social-security-in-2020.aspx

2019-10-20 10:06:00Z
52780413440847

Qantas test flight completes record 19-hour non-stop flight from New York to Sydney - CNN

With 49 people on board, the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner flight completed the 10,066-mile journey from New York to Sydney in 19 hours and 16 minutes.

Qantas Group Chief executive Alan Joyce said: "This is a really significant first for aviation. Hopefully, it's a preview of a regular service that will speed up how people travel from one side of the globe to the other."

Research into the health and well-being of those on board were conducted during the flight with tests ranging from monitoring pilot brain waves, melatonin levels and alertness to exercise classes for passengers.

Joyce added: "We know ultra long haul flights pose some extra challenges but that's been true every time technology has allowed us to fly further. The research we're doing should give us better strategies for improving comfort and wellbeing along the way."

The next test flight will take place in November, from London to Sydney, while there will be another New York to Sydney flight before the end of the year.

Qantas has said it hopes to operate direct flights from three cities on Australia's east coast -- Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane -- and New York and London by 2022 or 2023.

Captain Sean Golding said: "Overall, we're really happy with how the flight went and it's great have some of the data we need to help assess turning this into a regular service."

The Qantas Boeing 787 Dreamliner plane arrives at Sydney International Airport after flying direct from New York on Sunday, October 20, 2019.

David Gray /Getty Images for Qantas/GETTY IMAGES

How will the passengers be monitored?

Researchers from Sydney University's Charles Perkins Centre, Monash University and the Alertness Safety and Productivity Cooperative Research Centre -- a scientific program backed by the Australian government -- will examine the impact of the long flight on those on board.

Passengers in the main cabin wore monitoring devices, and experts from the Charles Perkins Centre will study how their "health, wellbeing and body clock" was impacted by a set of variables that include lighting, food and drink, movement, sleep patterns and inflight entertainment.

Those on board were advised to keep a daily log in the lead-up to the flight and for two weeks afterwards, to show how they feel and how they've coped with jet lag.

Pilots and cabin crew will also keep sleep diaries. Cameras were mounted in the cockpit to record pilot alertness.

"People seem to be wildly different when it comes to the experience of jetlag -- and we need more research on what contributes to jetlag and travel fatigue, so we can try and reduce the impact of long-haul flights," Professor Stephen Simpson, academic director of the University of Sydney's Charles Perkins Centre, told CNN Travel.

"We have a long way to go in terms of understanding how the wide variety of influences -- including nutrition, hydration, exercise, sleep and light -- might work together for maximum benefit."

Monash University scientists will focus on the flight crew, recording their melatonin levels before, during and after the flights, as well as studying brain wave data from electroencephalogram devices worn by the pilots.

This information will then be shared with the Civil Aviation Safety Authority "to help inform regulatory requirements associated with ultra-long-haul flights," Qantas said in a statement.

Francesca Street and Emily Dixon contributed to this report.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/qantas-new-york-sydney-flight-record-scli-intl/index.html

2019-10-20 08:46:30Z
52780411998036

Unlikely alliance fighting pipeline in Texas Hill Country - Yahoo Finance

Heath Frantzen walk on his property near the site of a proposed new natural gas pipeline that would run through his ranch in the Texas Hill Country, where more than 600 white-tailed and trophy axis deer graze on a 260-acres his family has owned for three generations, near Fredericksburg, Texas Friday, Aug. 2, 2019. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

FREDERICKSBURG, Texas (AP) — One of the longest proposed new natural gas pipelines in the U.S. is set to run through Heath Frantzen's property in the Texas Hill Country, where more than 600 white-tailed and trophy axis deer graze on a hunting ranch his family has owned for three generations.

Fearing financial ruin and conservation risks, Frantzen and dozens of other landowners in central Texas have banded together with environmental groups and conservative-leaning city governments in opposing the route of pipeline giant Kinder Morgan's 430-mile (690-kilometer), $2 billion natural gas expressway.

"We know a lot more today about the aquifers, we know a lot more today about the endangered species, we know a lot more today about the sensitivity of the environment," Frantzen said. "And putting a pipeline project through an area such as this, especially when you can compare it to some of the other places where they could put it even less expensively and with much greater ease — this is an idiotic idea."

But Kinder Morgan has defended its proposal, stating it's looking to ease a pipeline shortage and help drillers transport gas trapped in West Texas' thriving Permian Basin to refineries on the Gulf Coast.

Now, the company is exercising eminent domain as a nasty legal battle over the path of the pipeline threatens to jeopardize future projects passing through central Texas. Opponents of the route are also challenging state regulators at the Texas Railroad Commission who gave Kinder Morgan the green light while accepting millions of dollars from the oil and gas industry.

Unlike the Dakota Access Pipeline project that sparked massive protests in 2016 and 2017 over fears it would hurt the environment and sacred Native American sites, opposition to the Texas pipeline has largely played out of public view.

Kinder Morgan's pipeline project comes as an unprecedented boom in oil and natural gas production in the Permian Basin has catapulted the nation to the forefront of the global shale market. Last year, the U.S. surpassed Russia and Saudi Arabia to become the world's largest crude oil producer, according to an assessment by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Natural gas is a byproduct of oil drilling, and without the proper infrastructure to move it from the Permian Basin, companies end up burning off excess through a process known as flaring, Kinder Morgan spokesman Allen Fore said.

"That's the purpose of this project, to capture that natural gas and ship it to market," Fore said.

If completed, the pipeline will deliver up to 2 billion cubic feet (56.6 million cubic meters) of natural gas — enough to fuel 31,500 homes for one day —as it passes through 16 Texas counties.

Texas already has the most expansive pipeline network in the country with more than 460,000 miles (740,250 kilometers) of channels zigzagging through it.

But the project is at the center of a fight that has grounded an unlikely alliance assembled across the state's central region, where momentum has grown in calling for the company to reroute the pipeline and in urging for further industry regulation in oil-friendly Texas. Those strange bedfellows have held townhalls, formed grassroots community campaigns, and lodged lawsuits against Kinder Morgan.

Opponents of the route have pointed to the potential contamination of the region's porous Edwards Aquifer, the impact it would have on an environmentally sensitive area, and the lack of public engagement and oversight in the routing process.

Kinder Morgan has repeatedly stated the pipeline won't pose any safety threat.

There is also concern that Kinder Morgan's success would set a precedent for other companies interested in building conduits through Hill Country, said Chuck Lesniak, who serves on an advisory committee for the U.S. Department of Transportation's Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.

"I do know that the industry is paying attention to this project, and the legal issues, because from a legal standpoint, if this goes south on Kinder Morgan, it has enormous impacts on other pipeline projects proposed for Texas," Lesniak said.

A judge has ruled in favor of the Houston-based company in one legal challenge attempting to block the project on grounds that the Texas Railroad Commission doesn't provide enough state oversight or regulation; that decision is being appealed.

Fore said the company has made 150 routing adjustments and is not considering changing the pipeline's set path. The company has started preliminary work, including marking the construction space and leveling the land, but no pipeline has been laid in the ground.

Clashes between rural landowners and companies seeking to seize property are not uncommon in Texas, where an estimated 95% of the land is privately owned. Although landowners are compensated for pipeline operators' use of easements, they often argue the money provided isn't enough.

Unlike the Texas Public Utility Commission rules that electric, telephone and water utilities must follow, oil and gas companies do not need to seek the approval of the Texas Railroad Commission or affected municipalities for their proposed route. They also have no formal public process to hear from affected landowners.

The commission has said it does not approve of whether a pipeline is necessary.

"We approve of whether they have met certain requirements and given us information that we need so we know this is a pipeline ... about to be constructed so we can go out and inspect and put it on our inspection schedule," said Railroad Commission spokeswoman Ramona Nye.

Texas' lack of oversight on the pipeline industry allows companies to make unilateral determinations about the best route, said Luke Ellis, an attorney representing roughly 40 landowners, including Frantzen, in their disputes with Kinder Morgan.

For Frantzen, it could be the end to his way of life at his 260-acre (105-hectare) ranch. He called it a sentimental moment when he picked up an array of deer antler sheds littering his ranch one day this summer.

"No one has fought (Kinder Morgan) harder and no one has fought them longer than we have in the Hill Country," he said.

___

Follow Clarice Silber on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ClariceSilber

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/unlikely-alliance-fighting-pipeline-texas-142535401.html

2019-10-19 14:31:00Z
CBMiV2h0dHBzOi8vZmluYW5jZS55YWhvby5jb20vbmV3cy91bmxpa2VseS1hbGxpYW5jZS1maWdodGluZy1waXBlbGluZS10ZXhhcy0xNDI1MzU0MDEuaHRtbNIBX2h0dHBzOi8vZmluYW5jZS55YWhvby5jb20vYW1waHRtbC9uZXdzL3VubGlrZWx5LWFsbGlhbmNlLWZpZ2h0aW5nLXBpcGVsaW5lLXRleGFzLTE0MjUzNTQwMS5odG1s

Coca-Cola that's good to the last drop? Soft drink-maker infuses signature brand with java - Fox Business

Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett and Vice Chair Charlie Munger tell FBN’s Liz Claman that Coca-Cola shouldn’t venture into the marijuana business.

Coca-Cola Plus Coffee and its zero-sugar alternative are part of a growing diversification of beverages that have helped the company boost sales.

Continue Reading Below

The infusion of Brazilian coffee beans into the signature soft drink is available in over 25 international markets after successful trial runs dating back to 2017.

"Internationally, a scaled launch of Coca-Cola Plus Coffee in more than 20 markets with a diligent consumer focus, consistent messaging and an integrated execution plan has driven strong performance," the Atlanta-based company said. International success hasn't led Coca-Cola to commit to bringing the product to the United States, however, according to a company spokeswoman.

The market for carbonated soft drinks declined 1.6 percent annually from 2012 to 2017, according to a bevindustry.com report, and brands have responded with a variety of strategies.  As consumers drink less sugary sodas and look for healthier alternatives, beverage companies have had no choice but to adjust their product lineups.

But Coca-Cola topped Wall Street's sales expectations in Friday's third-quarter earnings report, bumping its stock 2 percent higher on the back of a changing product development strategy. Revenue grew 8 percent for the Atlanta-based beverage giant.

Stocks in this Article

KOCOCA-COLA COMPANY

$54.78

+0.99 (+1.84%)

"Our performance gives us confidence that our strategies are taking hold with our consumers, customers and system," CEO James Quincey said in a  statement. "We are positioning the company to create a better shared future for all of our stakeholders."

Coke's move toward smaller cans, lower caloric intake without sacrificing taste and low-sugar offerings, such as sparkling water beverages, have helped boost earnings, according to the company.

MORE ON FOXBUSINESS.COM ...

The largest contributor to retail value growth was the flagship U.S. market, driven by continued double-digit volume gains in Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, in addition to strong growth in smaller packages, led by double-digit growth in 7.5-ounce mini cans.

Photo: Coca-Cola

Coca Cola Plus Coffee is the company's second attempt at blending the two drinks together under its flagship brand name. The predecessor, Coca Cola Blāk, launched internationally in 2006, but failed to catch on and was discontinued two years later.

Global coffee consumption is growing at 5.5 percent a year, according to Mordor Intelligence. And after Starbucks and Kraft-Heinz, which owns the Maxwell House brand among others, Mordor ranked Coca-Cola as the third-largest global player in the coffee market.

The Coke Plus Coffee product family packs slightly more caffeine than a regular can of Coke, but still clocks in under what a traditional cup of coffee contains. A typical 8-ounce cup of coffee has 95 to 165 milligrams of caffeine. and a typical 8-ounce serving of cola has 24 to 46 milligrams, according to the Mayo Clinic.

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

In a further expansion of its coffee enterprise, Coca-Cola closed its $5.1 billion acquisition of England-based Costa Coffee, which was announced last August, earlier this year. Costa joins Coca-Cola's extensive family of non-soda brands, including Dasani, Odwalla and Honest Tea, that target the ever-growing base of health-conscious consumers.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ON FOX BUSINESS

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://www.foxbusiness.com/lifestyle/coca-cola-beats-quarterly-revenue-mark-as-coffee-product-grows

2019-10-19 11:52:59Z
52780413116287

Chick-fil-A's First U.K. Restaurant Told to 'Cluck Off', Will Close After Protests Over LGBT Rights - Newsweek

The U.K.'s first and only Chick-fil-A restaurant will close it was announced Friday—just eight days after it opened in Reading, south England.

LGBT+ groups expressed concerns about Chick-fil-A's views on LGBT+ rights and the company's donations to perceived anti-LGBT+ organizations.

The Oracle shopping mall said it would not renew Chick-fil-A's six-month lease, telling the BBC it's the "right thing to do."

"We always look to introduce new concepts for our customers, however, we have decided on this occasion that the right thing to do is to only allow Chick-fil-A to trade with us for the initial six-month pilot period, and not to extend the lease any further," an Oracle spokesperson told the BBC.

LGBT+ rights groups in Reading, including the organizers of Reading Pride, have been critical of the new Chick-fil-A branch in recent weeks. A planned protest on Saturday will go ahead.

"The chain's ethos and moral stance towards #LGBTQ people goes completely against our values, and that of the UK," Reading Pride tweeted earlier this week.

Reading Pride said its concerns about Chick-fil-A's position on LGBT+ views included comments made by the company's CEO Dan Cathy in 2012 opposing same-sex marriage.

In an interview with the Biblical Recorder, Cathy said: "We are very much supportive of the family—the biblical definition of the family unit. We are a family-owned business, a family-led business, and we are married to our first wives. We give God thanks for that ... We want to do anything we possibly can to strengthen families."

In a radio interview the same year, Cathy said that by redefining marriage, "I think we are inviting God's judgment on our nation."

In March, the website ThinkProgress reported that, in 2017, the Chick-fil-A Foundation gave just over $1.6 million to the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, which requires employees to adhere to a "sexual purity" clause that forbids "homosexual acts."

Reading Pride organizers said Friday they felt it was "reasonable" to allow Chick-fil-A to see out its six-month lease at the Oracle shopping center, which would allow "re-settlement and and notice for employees that have moved from other jobs."

The U.K. Pride Network, a group that brings together organizers of Pride events around the U.K., tweeted Friday: "Cluck off @ChickfilA you are not welcome!" It also said it would show solidarity with Reading Pride organizers at a protest planned at the Chick-fil-A restaurant on Saturday.

Reading Pride organizers said that Saturday's protest will go ahead as planned—despite the store closing—"to advise where their money should go" as they believe Chick-fil-A will be "profiting from unsuspecting patrons" over the six-month tenure of its lease.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://www.newsweek.com/chick-fil-first-uk-restaurant-close-cluck-off-lgbt-pride-1466423

2019-10-19 09:16:43Z
52780411923348

Exclusive: Huawei in early talks with U.S. firms to license 5G platform - Huawei executive - Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Blacklisted Chinese telecoms equipment giant Huawei is in early-stage talks with some U.S. telecoms companies about licensing its 5G network technology to them, a Huawei executive told Reuters on Friday.

FILE PHOTO: A Huawei company logo is pictured at the Shenzhen International Airport in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, China July 22, 2019. REUTERS/Aly Song/File Photo

Vincent Pang, senior vice president and board director at the company said some firms had expressed interest in both a long-term deal or a one-off transfer, declining to name or quantify the companies.

“There are some companies talking to us, but it would take a long journey to really finalize everything,” Pang explained on a visit to Washington this week. “They have shown interest,” he added, saying conversations are only a couple of weeks old and not at a detailed level yet.

The U.S. government, fearing Huawei equipment could be used to spy on customers, has led a campaign to convince allies to bar it from their 5G networks. Huawei has repeatedly denied the claim.

Currently there are no U.S. 5G providers and European rivals Ericsson (ERICb.ST) and Nokia (NOKIA.HE) are generally more expensive.

In May, Huawei, the world’s largest telecoms equipment provider, was placed on a U.S. blacklist over national security concerns, banning it from buying American-made parts without a special license.

Washington also has brought criminal charges against the company, alleging bank fraud, violations of U.S. sanctions against Iran, and theft of trade secrets, which Huawei denies.

Rules that were due out from the Commerce Department earlier this month are expected to effectively ban the company from the U.S. telecoms supply chain.

The idea of a one-off fee in exchange for access to Huawei’s 5G patents, licenses, code and know-how was first floated by CEO and founder Ren Zhengfei in interviews with the New York Times and the Economist last month. But it was not previously clear whether there was any interest from U.S. companies.

In an interview with Reuters last month, a State Department official expressed skepticism of Ren’s offer.

“It’s just not realistic that carriers would take on this equipment and then manage all of the software and hardware themselves,” the person said. “If there are software bugs that are built in to the initial software, there would be no way to necessarily tell that those are there and they could be activated at any point, even if the software code is turned over to the mobile operators,” the official added.

For his part, Pang declined to predict whether any deal might be signed. However, he warned that the research and development investment required by continuously improving the platform after a single-transfer from Huawei would be very costly for the companies.

Huawei has spent billions to develop its 5G technology since 2009.

Additional reporting by Ken Li and Karen Friefeld; Editing by Chris Sanders and Sandra Maler

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://mobile.reuters.com/article/amp/idUSKBN1WY010

2019-10-19 01:19:00Z
CAIiEN31fm4niS8mlNqlC8eeVd8qFQgEKg0IACoGCAowt6AMMLAmMJSCDg