1. TESLA: – -Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Inc boss Elon Musk denounced the “insane” amount of energy used to produce bitcoin on Thursday, doubling down on his sudden rejection of the cryptocurrency as a means of payment over environmental concerns.
Bitcoin fell more than 10% after Musk, one of its most famous backers, tweeted his decision to suspend its use, less than two months after Tesla began accepting it as payment for its electric cars. Other cryptocurrencies, including ethereum, also fell before regaining some ground in Asian trade.
“Cryptocurrency is a good idea on many levels and we believe it has a promising future, but this cannot come at great cost to the environment,” Musk tweeted on Wednesday.
2. APPLE: – In its ongoing case against Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL), “Fortnite” creator Epic Games is counting on this week’s testimony from its star expert witness David Evans, chairman of Global Economics Group, to make its case that Apple is an anticompetitive monopolist over app developers.
Apple has called its own experts to rebut Evans’ views on the market, but with an added personal twist: It called MIT economist Richard Schmalensee, who has authored numerous books and academic papers together with Evans, to accuse Evans of contradicting his own prior research.
Legal experts said Apple’s aim was to chip away at Evans’ credibility in the eyes of the judge who will rule on the case.
3. GOOGLE: – Italy’s competition regulator has fined Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL) 102 million euros ($123 million) for excluding an e-mobility app developed by Enel (MI:ENEI) from the U.S. tech giant’s Android system.
For more than two years, Google has not allowed Enel’s JuicePass to operate on Android Auto – a system that allows apps to be used safely in cars – unfairly curtailing its use while favouring Google Maps, the regulator said on Thursday.
“The contested behaviour can influence the development of e-mobility in a crucial phase … with possible negative spill-over effects on the growth of electric vehicles (EV),” it said.
In a statement announcing the fine for abuse of a dominant position, the regulator asked Google to make JuicePass available on Android Auto.
4. ROLLS ROYCE: – British engineering company Rolls-Royce (OTC:RYCEY) stuck to its guidance to turn free cash flow positive at some point during the second half of 2021 as vaccinations kick in and travelers return to the skies.
In the year to date, the company said its operational and financial performance had been in line with expectations, suggesting the return of some stability after a torrid 2020 for one of the last vestiges of Britain’s manufacturing industry.
Rolls’ model of charging airlines for the number of hours its engines fly meant much of its income dried up last year when travel stopped. It has cut costs, taken on debt and raised equity to survive.
It also plans to sell 2 billion pounds ($2.8 billion) worth of assets to help repair its finances, and said on Thursday that there was an “encouraging range” of parties interested in buying its Spanish unit ITP Aero, for which it hopes to get 1.5 billion euros.
5. JP MORGAN: – JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE:JPM) on Thursday set out mid-term, carbon reduction goals for clients, as banks face pressure to align their financing activities with their climate change commitments.
The U.S. bank is asking clients in the electric power and auto industries to meet carbon intensity reduction goals and for oil and gas clients to meet operational and end-use carbon intensity reduction goals by 2030.
“We are taking steps to address the emissions of the clients we finance,” Marisa Buchanan, JPMorgan’s global head of sustainability, told Reuters.
