Construction Management Software Market: COVID-19 Focused Report|Featuring Autodesk Inc., Buildertrend Solutions Inc. among others|Technavio

Reuters
Analysis-Amazon's Washington critics set to pounce on MGM deal
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Amazon's move to buy the MGM movie and TV studio will provide fuel for the Seattle company's critics in the nation's capitol who complain it is already too big and powerful, but experts said the deal poses few classic antitrust concerns. A little more than an hour after the deal was announced, Republican Senator Josh Hawley blasted Amazon.com as a "monopoly platform" on Twitter, adding, "This sale should not go through," and that the company shouldn't be allowed to buy anything. And Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar, who chairs the Senate's antitrust panel, called for "a thorough investigation to ensure that this deal won't risk harming competition."
5h ago
Reuters
Nikkei to reach 30-year high on economic reopenings - Reuters poll
Japanese shares are expected to recover and reach a 30-year peak by the end of year as an acceleration of vaccinations after initial delays helps the economy to reopen, according to respondents in a Reuters poll. The median estimate in the May. 10-25 poll of 21 analysts and fund managers forecast the benchmark Nikkei index would gain just over 9% from Monday's close of 28,364.61 to reach 31,000 by the end of December. It is higher than a forecast of 30,750 in the previous poll in February.
5h ago
Reuters
Lawsuit claims Apple monopolizes heart-rate technology for Apple Watch
A Silicon Valley company has filed an antitrust lawsuit accusing Apple Inc of cornering the market for heart-rate monitoring technology for the Apple Watch, and endangering wearers' health. In a complaint filed late on Tuesday night, AliveCor Inc said Apple shut out rivals by changing the heart-rate algorithm on its watch's operating system, making rival technology incompatible. AliveCor sells KardiaBand, an Apple Watch wristband capable of recording an electrocardiogram, and SmartRhythm, an app that alerts users to irregular heartbeats.
6h ago
Reuters
US STOCKS-Wall St rises as Fed officials soothe inflation worries
Wall Street's main indexes rose marginally on Wednesday after remarks from the Federal Reserve helped ease worries about higher inflation, while a recent dip in bond yields supported heavyweight tech-related stocks for a third straight session. Apple Inc, Amazon.com Inc and Alphabet Inc added between 0.2% and 0.5%, as the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note stood at more than two-week lows of 1.557%. Higher yields pressure valuations for tech and other growth stocks, whose future cash flows are discounted at higher rates.
10h ago
Reuters
Gamestop, AMC short sellers lost $754 million after Tuesday's rally - Ortex
Investors shorting meme stocks GameStop and AMC Entertainment are estimated to have lost $754 million on Tuesday alone as the shares rallied, data from financial analytics firm Ortex shows. Shares in GameStop, which was at the heart of the so-called "stonks" retail trading mania earlier this year, rose 8% to nearly $225 in U.S. premarket trading on Wednesday, a day after rising 18%. Shares in cinema operator AMC soared 39%.
11h ago
Bloomberg
In Desperate Move, Venezuela Tries to Make Fuel in Oil Upgraders
(Bloomberg) -- In the latest desperate attempt to deal with fuel shortages that have crippled Venezuela’s economy, government leaders are trying to repurpose two massive oil upgraders to make a main ingredient for gasoline instead.With U.S. sanctions preventing the country from importing naphtha, a petroleum product its refineries use as feedstock, state-owned Petroleos de Venezuela will seek to make its own at upgraders designed to process heavy crude into lighter oil for the international market, according to documents seen by Bloomberg and people with knowledge of the plan, who asked not to be named because the information isn’t public. The plants are the Petropiar partnership with Chevron Corp. and the Petrocedeno venture with Total SE and Equinor ASA.Venezuela’s acute fuel shortage has forced businesses and factories to shut, while drivers line up for hours or even days to fill up. The conversion of the Hugo Chavez-era crude upgraders marks another dramatic departure from a time when the OPEC-founding nation was a top oil exporter, now reduced to one of the poorest nations in the Western Hemisphere under the U.S.-sanctioned Nicolas Maduro regime.The work at the Petropiar and Petrocedeno plants, which strip away sulfur and other impurities from the sludgy heavy crude from the Orinoco Belt, started in April, the people said.It’s unclear how PDVSA can pull the overhaul off without the help of foreign partners or international contractors, which can no longer do business with the battered, cash-strapped state oil producer. The company has struggled to even perform basic maintenance at its plants, which lack replacement parts it hasn’t been able to import.PDVSA, Chevron and Total didn’t immediately reply to requests for comment. A representative from Equinor deferred any questions to PDVSA. Refineries typically make their own heavy naphtha as a stage in the processing of crude into gasoline. PDVSA units have long lost that ability because of broken equipment. The country’s upgraders are in better shape because they were operated with the help of foreign partners until recently. Plus, the processing of heavy oil into so-called synthetic crude at the plants already involved some naphtha production.To convert the upgraders into feedstock suppliers for refineries, which will involve installing new equipment and pipelines, PDVSA is hiring local contractors, the people said. The overhaul will not prevent the plants from also being used for their original purpose of making synthetic crude.The plants will initially feed PDVSA’s Cardon and Puerto La Cruz refineries with 30,000 barrels a day of heavy naphtha, the documents show. A plan to lay pipelines that will allow supplies to reach 112,000 barrels a day are still being discussed with contractors, the people said.It’s not the first time the upgraders have been repurposed since U.S. sanctions have practically shut off Venezuela from the international crude market.PDVSA’s four upgraders were converted into simpler blending plants in mid-2019. The shift meant halting the production of the Petrozuata and Zuata Sweet light-oil blends to focus on Merey 16 heavy oil, mostly sold on the Asian market.More stories like this are available on bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.
6h ago
Reuters
Iran bans cryptocurrency mining for 4 months amid power cuts
Iran has banned the energy-intensive mining of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin for nearly 4 months, President Hassan Rouhani said on Wednesday, as the country faces major power blackouts in many cities. "The ban on the mining of cryptocurrencies is effective immediately until September 22 ... Some 85% of the current mining in Iran is unlicensed," Rouhani said in a televised speech at a cabinet meeting. Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are created through a process known as mining, where powerful computers compete with each other to solve complex mathematical problems.
14h ago
MarketWatch
I’m 49, my wife is 34, we have 4 kids and $2.3 million saved. I earn $300K a year but ‘lose a lot of sleep worrying about tomorrow’ — when can I retire?
The good news: Retirement at 58 may very well be within your reach, financial advisers said. One of the highest-priority tasks you will face if you retire at 58 (or any time before Medicare is available at 65 years old) is health insurance. There are a few options to be covered, including saving now for whatever cost it will be in the open market later on; taking on a part-time job with health benefits so that you can take advantage of the healthcare, earn a little extra income but still have more freedom than a full-time job requires; or have your wife take on a job that provides the family health insurance (if she isn’t already).
14h ago
CoinDesk
Ripple Waiting for SEC Suit Resolution Before Going Public, Says CEO
"The likelihood that Ripple is a public company is very high at some point," Brad Garlinghouse said at Consensus 2021.
7h ago
FX Empire
E-mini S&P 500 Index (ES) Futures Technical Analysis – Trader Reaction to 4177.50 Set Tone into Close
The direction of the June E-mini S&P 500 Index into the close will be determined by trader reaction to 4177.50.
8h ago
Reuters
Indian government exceeded powers with encryption-breaking rule - WhatsApp filing
India's government exceeded its legal powers by enacting rules that companies such as WhatsApp say will force them to break end-to-end message encryption, the messaging app owned by Facebook argued in a court filing seen by Reuters. WhatsApp has filed a lawsuit in a Delhi court against the government to quash a provision of a new regulation that mandates companies to divulge the "first originator of information", arguing in favour of protecting privacy. In a statement on Wednesday, WhatsApp said it would engage with the Indian government to find "practical solutions" and protect users, but its court filing shows it has taken a firmer stance against Prime Minister Narendra Modi's administration.
10h ago
Reuters
U.S. SEC considering new rules to tackle SPACS, crypto tokens
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is considering new rules to protect investors amid a surge in the use of special purpose acquisition companies (SPACS) as capital-raising vehicles, its new chair will tell lawmakers. SPACs are listed shell companies that raise cash to acquire and take public a private company, allowing targets to sidestep the stricter regulatory checks of an initial public offering. Gary Gensler, in prepared testimony to the financial services and general government subcommittee of the U.S. House Appropriations panel on Wednesday, said that overseeing SPACS has also placed demands on the resources at the watchdog, which has seen a 4% decline in its staff overall since 2016.
6h ago
CoinDesk
DBS Bank CEO: We Have Twice as Many Engineers as Bankers
Banks and financial regulators should facilitate the tokenization of the financial system, DBS CEO Piyush Gupta said during Consensus 2021.
3h ago
Bloomberg
Pipelines Balked When ‘Blinking Red’ Hack Alert Went Off in 2012
(Bloomberg) -- A decade ago, after hackers were caught infiltrating natural gas pipeline operations and an al-Qaeda video emerged calling for an “electronic jihad” on U.S. infrastructure, then-Senator Joseph Lieberman tried to sound the alarm.The system is “blinking red,” Lieberman warned his Senate colleagues during debate on the threat in 2012. “Privately owned and operated cyber infrastructure can well be, and probably some day will be, the target of an enemy attack.”Led by the Connecticut independent and one-time vice presidential candidate, lawmakers sought to require energy companies to strengthen computer security. But the effort withered under fierce lobbying by oil companies and other corporate interests that succeeded in killing the legislation. That left in place a system of voluntary guidelines that failed to stop last month’s ransomware attack on Colonial Pipeline Co., which paralyzed a major artery for fuel along the East Coast.“It’s really a lost opportunity,” said Lieberman, now senior counsel at Kasowitz Benson Torres LLP. “The attack on the Colonial Pipeline might not have happened if we passed the legislation.”Now, in response to the attack, the Department of Homeland Security is preparing to jettison the voluntary approach and impose cybersecurity requirements on pipelines, according to a person familiar with the plans who asked not to be identified before a formal announcement.That would be a defeat for oil companies and pipeline operators that for more than a decade have successfully fought off federal standards to thwart cyberattacks from legislation or regulatory agencies. Unlike power plants, U.S. pipelines are not required to follow any federal cybersecurity mandates, even though Homeland Security was given the authority to impose them when it was created in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.The Transportation Security Administration, the DHS agency in charge of protecting the nation’s pipelines, will issue a directive this week requiring pipeline companies to report cyber incidents, according to the person familiar with the plans. Additional requirements for safeguarding facilities and responding to attacks are set to be advanced in coming weeks, the Washington Post reported.“The Biden administration is taking further action to better secure our nation’s critical infrastructure,” DHS said in a statement on Tuesday. “We will release additional details in the days ahead.”Until now, the TSA had resisted using its authority to mandate cyberprotection measures.“My belief was we could get quicker and better security through working with the industry instead of regulating them because regulations set minimum security standards and industry in many cases was doing more than that,” said Jack Fox, who served as the agency’s manager of pipeline security before retiring in 2016.Lieberman’s bill would have imposed cybersecurity performance requirements on privately owned critical infrastructure -- and slap fines on companies that fell short. The rules would have been applied to more than pipelines: sectors where a hostile take-down of computer systems could lead to mass casualties, the collapse of financial markets or the disruption of energy and water supplies, were to be included.Even a watered-down version of the bill failed to overcome a Republican-led filibuster.Pipeline CompaniesFor Lieberman, the failure still stings.“We would sort of ask ourselves who is driving this aggressive opposition and the answer we were getting was the energy companies and the pipeline companies,” he said.Every major U.S. oil company -- including Exxon Mobil Corp., Chevron Corp. and ConocoPhillips -- lobbied on the legislation, alongside some refiners and at least one pipeline operator. Colonial didn’t lobby on the measure in 2012, according to disclosure forms it filed with Congress. However, groups it belonged to did, including the American Petroleum Institute, the Association of Oil Pipe Lines and the Chamber of Commerce -- a political titan that reported spending $103.9 million influencing government policies in 2012.The Chamber opposed the legislation at the time, calling it an overly broad, heavy-handed approach to regulation that threatened to create an “adversarial“ relationship between the government and private industry instead of fostering collaboration against cyberattacks. The group backed an alternative approach focused on greater sharing of threat information, a stance it continues to endorse today.“We support a public-private collaboration that strengthens our cybersecurity in all sectors, including pipelines, to benefit all Americans,” said Matthew Eggers, vice president of cybersecurity policy for the Chamber.Cybersecurity experts and government officials have cautioned for years about the consequences of a pipeline hack, including in 2019 when the Office of the Director of National Intelligence issued a report warning a cyberattack could disrupt a pipeline “for days to weeks.”Nevertheless, there was widespread business opposition to the Lieberman bill, with almost every affected industry, from financial services to communications, getting involved to warn the proposed cybersecurity mandates would insert the heavy hand of government into corporate affairs.But proponents warned that mandates were essential to ensure there were sufficient safeguards amid a barrage of ever-more sophisticated attacks on private companies running power plants, dams and other critical infrastructure.al-Qaeda VideoWeeks after the bill’s introduction, the Department of Homeland Security warned hackers had spent months trying to infiltrate computer systems for a number of natural gas pipeline operators. ABC News reported the FBI had obtained an al-Qaeda video calling for “electronic jihad” against U.S. critical infrastructure. And computer security firm McAfee Corp. warned of coordinated, ongoing cyberattacks on global energy companies in 2011.The hacking episodes foreshadowed how alluring fuel delivery systems are to cyber-criminals, like the Russia-linked group that used DarkSide ransomware to hold Colonial’s computer systems hostage around May 7. The company was forced to shut down its roughly 5,500-mile-long (8,851-kilometers-long) pipeline system, which provides about 45% of the fuel used on the East Coast, spurring outages at filling stations and the payment of a $5 million ransom before service resumed five days later.It’s not clear whether mandates would have thwarted the attack, and investigations are still underway. Colonial has pledged to “review any proposal that takes lessons learned from this event that strengthens or hardens our infrastructure.”Oil and pipeline trade groups steadfastly insist now is not the time for prescriptive federal mandates.“Any discussion of regulation is premature until we have a full understanding of the details surrounding the Colonial attack,” said Suzanne Lemieux, API’s manager of operations security and emergency response. “But we are committed to continuing our robust coordination with all levels of government.”The trade association added in a statement it was generally aligned with the Chamber on the issue in 2012 and cautioned against a prescriptive one-size-fits all regulatory approach that it said would be counterproductive.John Stoody, a spokesman for the Association of Oil Pipe Lines, whose members include Colonial Pipeline, said “We want TSA to get right anything they plan to do.”“For example, an overly broad reporting requirement could overwhelm TSA with hundreds of thousands of cyberattack reports every day that would not do anyone any good,” he said.PartnershipChevron said in an emailed statement that federal regulation “should take a risk-based approach” that gives companies flexibility to defend against threats. And Exxon noted that the rapid evolution of cyber threats means “any formal and prescriptive cybersecurity requirements for the industry are often outdated upon completion.”The Transportation Security Administration has long taken a similar approach. A branch manager in the agency’s office of surface operations last year boasted it involves “very few regulations” and a “cooperative approach to industry adoption of security measure,” according to a presentation archived on the agency’s website.The TSA opted not to regulate the pipeline sector because it felt a partnership with industry was more efficient, said Fox, the retired TSA manager of pipeline security.“A regulation takes months or years to change,” Fox said in a phone interview. “With this partnership we could make a phone call and say we need you to do such and such and it would be reacted to the next day.”Republican FilibusterFox said he didn’t think the Lieberman bill would have prevented the Colonial cyberattack.“You can regulate whatever you like,” Fox said. “We have regulations on speed limits and gun control and all kinds of things so if you regulate something it does not means it’s not going to happen.”Ultimately in 2012, Lieberman and Collins watered down their bill in a desperate bid to win over Republicans to get it passed. They dropped mandates and fines in favor of a measure that would create only optional requirements.But even the pared-back bill wasn’t enough. Continued concerns about liability and privacy haunted the legislation, and the Chamber opposed the new version too. It was twice defeated by a Republican-led filibuster, ultimately falling nine votes shy of the 60 needed to cut off debate in November 2012.Amy Myers Jaffe, a Tufts University professor and author of “Energy’s Digital Future,” said the Colonial cyberattack may be the pipeline industry’s “Macondo moment.”That’s a reference to the Gulf of Mexico oil well that blew out in 2010, killing 11 workers and unleashing the worst oil spill in U.S. history.An overly cozy relationship between federal regulators and oil companies was blamed for contributing to the disaster, Jaffe said. “It’s shocking to me to think that an industry that likes to brag about its safety records would ever have lobbied against having government-run standards that are mandatory for cyber-security in vital energy infrastructure.”More stories like this are available on bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.
18h ago
Yahoo Finance
Biden tax hike will make US-based multinationals less competitive and impact equity values: Eric Cantor
Yahoo Finance Live chats with Moelis & Company vice chairman and former GOP House Majority Leader Eric Cantor about the outlook for taxes and infrastructure.
6h ago
LA Times
Kim Kardashian says she's 'not responsible' for labor disputes in lawsuit against her
A new lawsuit filed by maintenance workers and gardeners claims reality star Kim Kardashian violated labor laws at her Hidden Hills home.
1d ago
FX Empire
Gold Price Futures (GC) Technical Analysis – Testing Long-Term Retracement Zone at $1899.20 to $1951.30
The direction of the August Comex gold futures contract early Tuesday will be determined by trader reaction to the long-term 50% level at $1899.20.
1d ago
Reuters
Activist fund Bluebell calls on Vivendi to sweeten Universal spin-off
An activist investment fund wants French media group Vivendi to sweeten the planned spinoff of Universal Music Group with an extra cash dividend that would be more advantageous to minority shareholders. Vivendi, controlled by French tycoon Vincent Bollore, is planning to cash in on its crown jewel - the world's biggest music label, which it has valued at 33 billion euros ($40.43 billion) - as streaming revenues fuel growth. In a transaction involving an Amsterdam listing, Vivendi aims to distribute 60% of Universal's capital in kind to existing shareholders, which will allow Bollore retain a strong grip on the group.
1d ago
Bloomberg
Slowly But Surely, Central Banks Are Signaling Policy Shifts
(Bloomberg) -- Sign up for the New Economy Daily newsletter, follow us @economics and subscribe to our podcast.New Zealand followed in the footsteps of Canada to flag a potential interest-rate increase next year as central banks begin to tip toe away from their emergency monetary settings.Markets seized on the tightening narrative Wednesday, jolting New Zealand bond yields and its currency higher. As vaccines roll-outs continue and economies reopen, traders have been slowly dialing up expectations on rate hikes or a slowing of asset purchases elsewhere too.New Zealand’s outlook was much more hawkish than expected and may yet signal a global shift, according to Sharon Zollner, chief economist at ANZ Bank New Zealand in Auckland.“We can’t rule out that the tail may wag the dog, influencing global market expectations of whether other central banks may also take a more hawkish turn,” she said.Financial markets have already brought forward pricing of the Federal Reserve’s first rate hike by almost a year since early February. Over the same period, market expectations from the Bank of England have switched from rate cuts by late 2022 to a rate increase, while investors have almost abandoned bets on further European Central Bank reductions to instead price in a 10 basis-point upward move by the end of 2023.With major central banks embroiled in bond buying and other easing programs which traditionally get wound down first, most rate hikes remain some way off. But talk of a taper in asset purchases is catching on.Fed Vice Chair Richard Clarida told Yahoo! Finance in an interview Tuesday that there may be a point in upcoming policy meetings where officials can discuss scaling back purchases. The BOE has slowed bond-buying and signaled that it’s on course to end that support later this year.Australia’s central bank has set July as a deadline for deciding on whether to extend purchases. Norway is on track to start a hiking cycle, and Iceland has already begun. The Bank of Canada announced last month a reduction in debt purchases as it forecast a faster economic recovery that may pave the way for rate increases next year.Turning Point“The shift in monetary policy is starting,” said Alicia Garcia Herrero, Hong Kong based chief economist for Asia Pacific at Natixis, who used to work for the ECB and International Monetary Fund.Detailing its new outlook, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand on Wednesday published forecasts for its benchmark rate -- for the first time in more than a year -- that show the rate beginning to rise in mid-2022. New Zealand’s short-dated rates, which are most responsive to the bank’s outlook, led the climb as markets baked in higher interest rates.To be sure, this shift is still conditional.RBNZ Governor Adrian Orr said the bank’s outlook is predicated on the economy recovery continuing as vaccines roll out and the pandemic is contained. In a press conference after the bank announced its new outlook, Orr stressed that the rate hike forecasts are not until the second half of 2022 and that “who knows where we’ll be by then.”The Fed’s Clarida also qualified his remarks around employment data and how inflation pressures play out, which he expects to be transitory.It’s also the case that not every central bank is signaling a policy move, not least in the euro zone, where ECB Executive Board member Fabio Panetta said on Wednesday that he hasn’t seen a shift in the economic outlook to justify a reduction in bond purchases.In emerging markets, the shift is splintering. Hungary’s central bank said this week it was ready to deliver monetary tightening, and Russia, Turkey and Brazil have already hiked. The People’s Bank of China is holding the line with relatively disciplined stimulus, while others continue to support growth as the virus continues to spread.“There is growth divergence due to a much slower vaccination process in the emerging world and renewed waves,” said Garcia-Herrero. “They will suffer from a double whammy as the Fed starts moving towards tapering.”More stories like this are available on bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.
15h ago
CoinDesk
Bank of Mauritius Plans CBDC Pilot in 2021
“CBDCs will be here to complement, and to address gaps that the traditional monetary system is not able to fulfill,” Bank of Mauritius Governor Harvesh Seegolam said.
9h ago

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Construction Management Software Market: COVID-19 Focused Report|Featuring Autodesk Inc., Buildertrend Solutions Inc. among others|Technavio

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