New Mexico has become the first US state to sue the German automaker, Volkswagen, for breaching the Clean Air Act with huge levels of emissions as well as for trade malpractices. The allegation is the company sold as many as 4000-10000 faulty models whose nitrogen-oxide emissions exceeded the limits by 40%, which could cost VW almost $20 billion in fines.
Legal & Regulatory
Fed Keeps Benchmark Rates In Place, Hints For Further Hike In March
The policy making committee of the Federal Reserve Bank has announced keeping key interest rates unchanged on Wednesday. The inflation rate exists below predictions and job growth remains satisfactory. But ahead of global economic turmoil and considering strong Dollar outlook, Fed has decided to let the tightened monetary policy to go further. However, it hints for hiking interest rates during its next meeting scheduled to be held in March.
Wynn Macau Cautions Casino Contractor For Compensation Up to $200 Million Over Construction Delay
Wynn Palace, an under construction casino, is widely expected to attract Chinese consumers and thus transform Macau to a popular tourist region. The casino project has been expected to be completed by June 25 followed by a revision on deadline. But work progress seems to be slow and the contractor for the $4.1 billion project is probably going the miss the extended time frame further. Steve Wynn, founder of Wynn Macau Ltd. has sent a letter to the construction company cautioning to count compensation up to $200 million if it fails to meet the revised deadline.
Lead Contamination Ohio Water: EPA Smells Falsified Report, Suggests Criminal Investigation
Presence of lead beyond acceptable has plagued Ohio and as the aftermaths, the schools of this remain closed for the straight 3rd day. Before Ohio, Michigan has reported tumbled with the same issue. But after conduction of investigation, the Ohio EPA strongly believes that the operator in water treatment plant of Sebring village has presented falsified test reports. The agency has sought legal assistance from the US EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division.
FSIS Compels Whole Foods To Recall 73,898 Pounds Of Frozen Pizzas Due To Mislabeling
Food and Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) under the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has recalled mislabeled uncured pork pepperoni. Referring it as a Class II hazardous situation, FSIS advices Whole Foods customers to return the purchased products or just throw them away. But the recalling has taken place as consequences of changed ingredients from supplier’s behalf.
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The program aims to provide limited internet access to users, but the concept has raised concerns regarding internet neutrality. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has asked Facebook to discontinue the service until they provide more information on the program as requested. Facebook has responded with a campaign, but the program's ban has not yet be lifted.
Najib Razak has been cleared of corruption case of over $681 million as the money is a 'gift' from Saudi royal family. According to the Attorney General Apandi Ali, the sum in prime minister’s personal bank account has no link to troubled state fund 1MDB.
Vijay Mallya, chairman of United Breweries Holdings Limited, approached the Delhi Court on Friday for a legal representation before a panel of State Bank of India (SBI) members, where they would argue their case against being declared as willful defaulters.
Future Land Development shares have witnessed a fall of around 14% and appear to be the lowest since September 7. Meanwhile, Moody’s has changed outlook on the business to negative from stable on Monday. Fearing further price falling, the company has arranged suspension of its shares listed in the Hong Kong and Shanghai Stock Exchange.
The advancement of the internet in South Korea has brought some advantages as well as social issues. Internet addiction has been a concern in the country, and the government is helping to solve the issue with some programs, including rehabilitation camps.
HMRC has been conducting multiyear investigation to unearth Google’s tax dodging events. Though denied earlier, a Google spokesperson has narrated a deal with the Britain’s tax authority to pay taxes of £130 million due for over a decade. The deal is significant since many countries around the globe are conducting scrutiny to ascertain dodged tax amounts of Google and other multinationals. Investigations in accordance with OECD guidelines may also help France to establish its claim for $1 billion as unpaid taxes.
cloudControl, German owning entity of dotCloud, has filed for bankruptcy this week. To facilitate operation for the European brand, it has decided to shut down the operation of dotCloud. The PaaS has sent mails to its users regretting its failure to continue service and expresses gratitude for keeping trust on the brand. The startup that has once independently backed Silicon Valley’s prominent startup, Y Combinator, is going to end its path on February 29.
The timeframe to this plan is still unknown, but the central bank claims that the process has been going on since 2014. China has stated some benefits for having a digital currency in their financial system, including transparency, digital track-recording, as well as reducing transaction costs. Bitcoin, a global digital currency, gained popularity in China in 2013 but has also brought some controversies about the risks.
In an Oracle court proceedings against Google, it was revealed that the search engine company could be paying Apple at least $1 billion in revenue-shares. The payment was made to keep Google's search bar on Apple devices. A source named the sharing percentage for Apple to be 34 percent, but it's yet to be officially confirmed nor denied.
