WHO chief calls for continued investigation
A World Health Organization report on the coronavirus pandemic found that further investigation was needed to find the cause of the outbreak. While it was “extremely unlikely” a lab leak sparked the epidemic, it could not be ruled out. “As far as WHO is concerned, all hypotheses remain on the table,” said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO’s director general. Following publication of the report, 14 countries--including Norway, South Korea, the UK and US--criticised delays in the WHO investigation and accused the Chinese government of withholding information. Beijing has not responded. Sources: BBC, CNBC, Financial Times, France 24 and The Guardian.
Germany to limit Astrazeneca jab to 60+
The German government suspended use of the Astrazeneca covid-19 vaccine for people under the age of 60 due to concerns about “rare but severe” side-effects. Sources: BBC, Financial Times, DW and Reuters.
Luxembourg starts stage 4 of vaccination campaign
The health ministry said it would begin offering the covid-19 jab to Luxembourg residents aged 65 to 69, and to those with certain underlying health conditions, including diabetes, severe hypertension and certain neuromuscular diseases. Sources: Delano, Paperjam and 100,7.
Latest Luxembourg covid-19 update
Out of 10,249 PCR tests conducted on 29 March, 182 Luxembourg residents were positive. That is a rate of 29.07 per 100,000 inhabitants (compared to 26.35 on 22 March). The reproduction rate was 1.02, above the target threshold of 1.00 (compared to 1.11). There were 137 covid-19 patients in hospital (compared to 130), including 25 in intensive care (compared to 21). Two people died due to the coronavirus on Monday, bringing the national total to 743. A cumulative 89,684 vaccine doses have been administered, including 21,071 people who have received their second dose. Sources: Delano and health ministry.
Lidl sales jump in Luxembourg
The discount supermarket chain Lidl recorded a 12% increase in turnover in the grand duchy last year. There were 15% fewer visits to stores, but sales in many categories, including fresh produce, were up sharply. Sources: Delano and Paperjam.
EU to investigate energy market competition
The European Commission started an antitrust probe into Epex Spot, Europe’s largest intraday power trading exchange. The commission wants to know if the Paris-based outfit is unfairly blocking rivals in 6 national markets, including Luxembourg. Epex Spot said it was cooperating with the inquiry. Sources: Bloomberg, Montel, Reuters and S&P Global.
US Treasury yields trend up
Yields on 10-year US Treasury bonds briefly hit its highest level since January 2020, reaching 1.773% on Tuesday morning, before closing at 1.724% (compared to 1.721% at Monday close). Sources: CNBC, Financial Times, Marketwatch and Wall Street Journal.
Amazon to build networking chip
Amazon is reportedly designing its own semiconductor chips for the networking equipment used by its cloud unit, Amazon Web Services. Sources: CNBC (video), The Information, Seeking Alpha and The Verge.
Applications open for AWS Space Accelerator
Amazon is launching AWS Space Accelerator, a four-week programme for space startups that want to use the firm’s cloud computing platform. Applications are due by 21 April and 10 companies will participate in June. Source: CNBC, Seeking Alpha, Spacenews and Techcrunch.
VW not changing its name in US
Volkswagen said it would not, after all, switch the name of its US unit to “Voltswagen of America” (supposedly to emphasise its new focus on electric vehicles). VW had accidently published an April Fool’s joke press release on its website on Monday, and at first the automaker seemed to confirm the rebranding. Sources: BBC, CNBC, DW and The Guardian.
Xiaomi to build electric cars
The Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi said it would invest $10bn to construct electric vehicles. Sources: Bloomberg, CNBC, CNN and Financial Times.
Google to give fuel-efficient directions
Google said its Maps app would (starting in the US this year before expanding internationally) make the “eco-friendly” route the default option for directions. Sources: 9to5google, ABC, Reuters and The Verge.
Netflix pledges to reduce carbon footprint
Netflix said it planned to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by the end of 2022. Among its measures: using electric batteries instead of diesel generators on its film sets and increased use of local crews. Sources: Financial Times, Independent, Variety and The Verge.
Brazil military chiefs step aside following Bolsanaro reshuffle
The heads of Brazil’s army, navy and air force resigned after Jair Bolsonaro, the Brazilian president, sacked his defence minister. Sources: AFP, BBC, The Guardian and NPR.
Nato intercepts increased number of Russian jets
Nato planes were scrambled to intercept Russian military planes 10 times in 6 hours on Monday. Moscow has not commented. Sources: BBC, Business Insider, CNN and UPI.
“Sophia Instantiation”
The non-fungible token crazy continues: a digital artwork ‘created’ by the human-ish robot Sophie sold for $688,888. Sources: CNN, New York Times and Reuters.
Academy Award ‘hubs’ in Europe
Oscars organisers will set up remote hubs in London and Paris, for Academy Award nominees who cannot travel to Los Angeles. The move will avoid reliance on Zoom. Sources: BBC, The Guardian and The Playlist.
Today’s breakfast briefing was written by Aaron Grunwald