The fatal crash in August 2019 that killed British teenager, Harry Dunn, involving US citizen, Anne Sacoolas, has escalated to a row about diplomatic immunity, after Sacoolas flew back to the US in a US Air Force plane.
The major international trading hub faces a harsh recession following the announcement of an extradition bill to China and the ongoing China-US trade war. Increasingly violent protests over a 5-month period have caused chaos, hindering business and discouraging tourists. The economy has shrunk by 3.2% during the three months to September, compared to the previous quarter. Whilst the bill has since been halted by city leader Carrie Lam, many protesters claim this move is “too little, too late”.
Since early June there have been protests in Hong Kong in response to a proposed bill which would allow extradition to China for crimes such as murder and rape. Extradition is the act of sending an individual back to the country or state in which a crime was committed. This is especially controversial due to the “special status” of Hong Kong which is a result of the “One Country, Two Systems” framework; a framework which gives Hong Kong an element of autonomy from China. Whilst the bill has now been formally withdrawn, it is unlikely to quell the anger of the protesters.
In March, US Democratic Presidential hopeful, Senator Elizabeth Warren, proposed her two-pronged plan to break up Big Tech companies: unwind pre-existing mergers deemed anticompetitive, and spin out (separate into a new independent corporation) services of large platforms that are designated as “Platform Utilities”; services with over US $25bn in revenue.
As protests in Hong Kong seem to be escalating, and Chinese troops line up on the border, a dilemma arises for the rich of Mainland China, many of whom have their money in Hong Kong.
Saudi Aramco is proposing to offer a $75 billion annual dividend between 2020 and 2024 to entice investors as part of a wider strategy to secure a $2 trillion valuation for their Initial Public Offering (IPO).
The world’s largest law firm will partner with American outfits Bingham Greenebaum and Cohen & Grigsby, to create a national firm comprised of nearly 1,100 lawyers, capable of serving clients across 33 US markets.
US law firm, Alston & Bird, launches its first London office.
The French finance minister, Bruno Le Maire, said France will block the development of Facebook’s Libra cryptocurrency in Europe until the concerns over the risk to consumers and the government’s monetary sovereignty were addressed.
The London Stock Exchange has rejected Hong Kong’s £38 billion takeover bid.