News

October 1, 2021 LONDON (Reuters) -The chair of Britain’s antivirals taskforce declined to comment directly about talks over Merck & Co Inc’s experimental oral COVID-19 drug molnupiravir, but hinted at Britain’s interest in buying the potential breakthrough pill. Taskforce chair Eddie Gray was speaking to reporters after interim clinical trial results published on Thursday showed […]

October 1, 2021 By John O’Donnell and Rupam Jain FRANKFURT/MUMBAI (Reuters) – The Afghan central bank ran down most of its U.S. dollar cash reserves in the weeks before the Taliban took control of the country, according to an assessment prepared for Afghanistan’s international donors, exacerbating the current economic crisis. The confidential, two-page brief, written […]

October 1, 2021 ISTANBUL (Reuters) – The Turkish Red Crescent is sending aid to Afghanistan to feed internally displaced people in need amid turmoil following the Taliban’s takeover, the organisation’s head said on Friday. Half a million people have been displaced in Afghanistan in recent months, according to U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi, […]

October 1, 2021 WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Transportation Department said Friday that 3,700 employees had been temporarily furloughed after Congress failed to reauthorize surface transportation programs before a deadline that expired early Friday. A department spokesperson said the agency is “taking every step we can to mitigate the impacts of this temporary lapse in […]

October 1, 2021 MADRID (Reuters) -Spain’s competition watchdog has fined eight companies including Siemens, Nokia and ACS a combined 127.3 million euros ($148 million) for allegedly rigging public contracts relating to rail-signalling systems. Between 2002 and 2017 the companies acted as a cartel to illegally share out contracts valued at 4.1 billion euros awarded by […]

October 1, 2021 By Hanna Rantala LONDON (Reuters) – A two-part version of Banksy’s “Girl With Balloon” painting is seen fetching up to $4.75 million when it goes under the hammer for the first time at a Christie’s auction in London later this month. The rare edition, one of 25 created by the elusive British […]

October 1, 2021 By Sarah N. Lynch and Jan Wolfe (Reuters) -President Joe Biden’s administration on Friday urged a judge to block a near-total ban on abortion imposed by Texas – the strictest such law in the nation – in a key battle in the ferocious legal war over abortion access in the United States. […]

October 1, 2021 By Jonathan Stempel NEW YORK (Reuters) – A judge dismissed Pfizer Inc’s challenge to a U.S. anti-kickback law that the drugmaker said prevents it from helping Medicare patients afford two drugs that treat a sometimes fatal heart condition, but which cost $225,000 a year. In a Thursday night decision, U.S. District Judge […]

October 1, 2021 QUITO/GUAYAQUIL, Ecuador (Reuters) – The death toll from Ecuador’s worst-ever prison riot rose to 118, authorities said, while police reinforcements maintained a presence on Friday at the Penitenciaria del Litoral detention center in the southern city of Guayaquil. The clashes on Tuesday, part of a rivalry between gangs fighting to control the […]

Blue Origin CEO Bob Smith wasted no time responding to allegations of a hostile work environment, sending an internal letter to employees Thursday encouraging staff to speak to him directly or via an in-house anonymous hotline with their concerns. Of course, it’s standard practice for companies like Blue Origin to prefer handling complaints internally rather […]

Former Vice President Al Gore has invested $600 million of equity into UK energy startup Octopus Energy Group via his Generation Investment Management vehicle, taking a stake of approximately 13% in the business. The investment means Octopus has attained a valuation of around $4.6 billion. Octopus has made a name for itself in energy circles […]

All good things must come to an end, and this proverb totally applies to our early-bird price on passes to TC Sessions: SaaS 2021. Today’s the final day you can save $100 on the price of admission, folks. Join the global SaaS community to connect, inspire, network and learn how to build a stronger startup […]

Nine months after announcing a $5 million seed round, Toronto auto repair software company AutoLeap is back with $18 million in Series A funding, this time led by Bain Capital Ventures. Joining Bain in the round is existing investor Threshold Ventures, which led the seed round, to give the company $23 million in total funding. […]

The market today has a lot of activation energy, even as the pandemic continues to play out. We’re seeing ample capital, a focus on distributed investing, more first-check investors than ever before, and, fittingly, a parade of new startups. That said, momentum has a way of overwhelming even the most ambitious. For founders at the […]

October 1, 2021 WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. construction spending was unexpectedly flat in August as an increase in public sector projects was offset by weakness in the private sector. The Commerce Department said on Friday that the unchanged reading in construction spending followed a 0.3% gain in July. Construction spending increased 8.9% on a year-on-year […]

October 1, 2021 WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Global technology firm Foxconn and startup Lordstown Motors Corp said Friday they plan to pursue a U.S. Energy Department loan from a program to help pay for the costs of retooling a factory to build electric trucks. Foxconn agreed in principle to buy a Lordstown Motors Corp assembly plant […]

October 1, 2021 (Reuters) -General Motors Co on Friday reported a drop in U.S. auto sales for the first time in four quarters, hit by worsening semiconductor chip shortages and low inventories. Chip shortages and supply chain disruptions have crimped production at automakers worldwide, forcing them to cut production and in some cases, to produce […]

October 1, 2021 By Rod Nickel WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) -Canadian fashion designer Peter Nygard has consented to extradition to the United States, where he faces charges of sex trafficking and racketeering, lawyers for the prosecution and defence said at a hearing on Friday. Separately, the Toronto Police Service issued a statement saying it had an […]

October 1, 2021 (Reuters) – Premier League players who are fully vaccinated will be allowed to travel to countries on the UK’s red list during the international break and will be allowed to train or play when they quarantine on return, the BBC reported on Friday. Many clubs refused to release players to ‘red list’ […]

September 30, 2021 By Tina Bellon PALMER, Texas (Reuters) – Self-driving startup Aurora says it has discovered a path to turn costly self-driving vehicles into a profitable business, showcasing its technology to investors this week ahead of a public listing it hopes will provide some $2 billion in additional funding. The move comes as several […]