The EU slashed its growth forecasts for the euro zone Thursday, saying global trade tensions are set to weigh on the region and limit economic expansion.
The warning from the EU's executive arm, the European Commission, comes at time when the European Central Bank (ECB) has started a new round of stimulus to prop up fragile growth.
"The fact that growth is no longer expected to rebound meaningfully in the next two years is a major shift compared to previous forecasts and is based on the assessment that many features of the global slowdown will be persistent," the European Commission said Thursday in its Autumn Economic Forecasts report.
"Most importantly, the surge in trade tensions and record-high uncertainty about trade policies is likely to have inflicted lasting damage to world trade," the Commission added.
Uncertainties surrounding trade include: The future relationship between the U.K. and the EU as both need to establish new trading rules post-Brexit; new consumer preferences in the car industry and volatility in U.S.-China trade.
As a result, the Commission slashed its economic forecasts for the euro zone in 2019 and 2020. The 19-member region is now set to grow at a pace of 1.1% this year and 1.2% in 2020. In its previous forecasts, out in May, the European Commission had estimated a 1.2% growth rate for the euro zone in 2019 and 1.5% for 2020.
Arkansas-based Simmons Prepared Foods, Inc. recalled the items produced from October 21 through November 4 this year. They are 2,071,397 pounds of poultry products, including ready to cook chicken whole legs, boneless skinless chicken, halal chicken leg quarters and chicken tenderloins, the US Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service said Wednesday.
The products subject to recall have an establishment number "P-1949," "P- 486" or "P-5837" inside the USDA mark of inspection, and were shipped to Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Georgia, Minnesota, Oklahoma and Pennsylvania.
Those who've purchased the products are urged to throw them away or return them to the store.
Google's parent company Alphabet is investigating how executives handled sexual harassment and misconduct charges.
It follows shareholder lawsuits filed earlier this year over the way Google allegedly dealt with misconduct claims.
The firm's board has formed a "special committee" to consider shareholder claims over past workplace misconduct.
Alphabet is also working with a law firm on the probe, which it launched earlier this year.
The way Google handled the incidents prompted demonstrations by staff and led to thousands walking out of their offices in co-ordinated protests in late 2018.
At that time, Google boss Sundar Pichai apologised for the way it had acted in the past over allegations of inappropriate behaviour and promised improvements.
"In early 2019, Alphabet's board of directors formed a special litigation committee to consider claims made by shareholders in various lawsuits relating to past workplace conduct," a spokesperson for the company said.
In January, it emerged that Alphabet was facing legal action over the way it allegedly handled sexual misconduct claims against two senior managers.
Two lawsuits have been filed by long-term shareholders which accuse the company's board of being involved in attempts to cover up the claims.
Both legal claims want Alphabet to do a better job of uncovering and responding to misconduct.
The legal action is believed to have been prompted by the way that Google handled misconduct allegations made against former Android boss Andy Rubin and former search head Amit Singhal.
Both men are believed to have received large payoffs after being investigated over the claims. Neither now works for Google.
The first of BC Ferries’ new battery electric hybrid vessels won’t be in service until early next year, but the company has already ordered more.
The ferry corporation says it has signed a $200 million contract extension with Damen Shipyards Group of the Netherlands which will see it build an additional four Island Class vessels.
Most of B.C.’s recent ferry acquisitions have been built overseas in recent years, including three C-Class vessels built in Germany for more than $500 million.
Premier John Horgan said last year that he hoped new ferries would be built in B.C., and B.C. shipbuilders shared their dismay at the news the new batch would not be produced locally.
“Those are great, good mortgage paying family raising jobs,” said Phil Venoit, business manager with the ship building union IBEW Local 230.
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The ferry corporation said it put the contract out to a competitive tender in 2018, but received no local bids.
“Eighteen shipyards responded. We issued the proposal to Canadian yards and international yards, and no Canadian yards bid,” he said.
But George Macpherson, Shipyard General Workers Federation president said the province needs to try harder.
“Claire Trevena, the transpiration minister, has a mandate to ensure that the bidding process is fair for the industry and its clearly not happening.”
‘Green’ fleet
BC Ferries is touting the new class of ferries as a significant environmental upgrade.
It says when charging technology improves, the boats will be able to operate on 100 per cent electric power. For the interim, they are powered by a hybrid system that uses low-sulfur diesel fuel and reduces emissions.
Other green features include LED lighting and heat recovery systems.
John Horgan says government is aiming to build new ferries in British Columbia
BC Ferries says the new vessels will also significantly cut down on underwater noise, due to a new twin propeller design and machinery which has been isolated to reduce vibrations.
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Limiting underwater noise has become a key priority for B.C.’s marine traffic, amid growing concern about the endangered southern resident killer whale population.
The vessels can carry 47 vehicles and between 300 and 450 passengers and crew, depending on configuration.
The first two Island Class vessels, which were ordered in 2017, have completed sea trials and will be ready for delivery by January 2020, according to BC Ferries.
They will be tasked to the Powell River – Texada Island route and the Port McNeill – Alert Bay – Sointula Island route by mid-2020, the company said.
The newly-ordered ferries will be ready by 2022, and will be deployed in pairs to routes currently served by a single, larger vessel.
BC Ferries says using the smaller vessels in pairs on the Nanaimo Harbour – Gabriola route and the Campbell River – Quadra Island route will increase frequency of service and reduce congestion.
The company says the new vessels will be serviced in Victoria via an agreement between Damen Shipyards and Point Hope Shipyards for technical and warranty support.
Before 2010 olympics, three C class vessels built in Germany worth $500 M.
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Capt. Jamie Marshall
“Fully electric capable, they’ll be initially operated as hybrid vessels, so diesel electric until the shore infrastructure matures to go fully electric.”
Photo: Seabus between Downtown Vancouver and North Vancouver
On Tuesday, Nov. 6, TransLink confirmed that another 14 SeaBus sailings would be cancelled on Nov.7 as a result of the transit strike issued by Unifor, the union representing bus operators and transit maintenance workers.
With this in mind, the transit authority hasn’t been able to comment on which bus routes will be affected. So far, it says that none of them have been.
Ben Murphy, Senior Media Relations Officer, TransLink, told Vancouver Is Awesome in an email that the SeaBus isn’t permitted to sail without a minimum number of crew on board as required by Transport Canada.
“SeaBus is subject to strict minimum staffing requirements set out by Transport Canada,” writes Murphy.
“Every SeaBus is required to have 4 crew on the vessel, 2 shore-based engineers, and 2 attendants at each terminal.”
Since there is a shortage of skilled workers who can operate the SeaBus, the transit authority knows in advance of how many sailings will be cancelled. If someone is sick or on vacation, it relies on ‘flexible shifts who can cover absences.’
“Given there are limited relief staff, overtime can be necessary when employees are sick or on vacation,” states Murphy.
“Coast Mountain Bus Company also acknowledges that there is a shortage of skilled workers within the organization, which is why the current wage offer for skilled workers is more than 3 per cent each year. This is well in excess of other public sector settlements in British Columbia of 2 per cent.”
Murphy says that all SeaBus crew and staff fall under Unifor 2200, which represents 1000 skilled trades and support workers employed by Coast Mountain Bus Company (CMBC) in Metro Vancouver. As such, SeaBus crew are included in the strike on overtime maintenance work. And, since the SeaBus relies on overtime work to operate some of its sailings, it is unable to meet the demand.
In contrast, Unifor Local 111, the group that represents over 3,700 transit operators employed by CMBC, has issued a uniform ban, but not an overtime ban. As a result, it is much more difficult for the transit authority to know when the buses will be affected.
“Any bus service disruptions due to the union’s maintenance overtime ban will be harder to anticipate than SeaBus cancellations. If there are any specific service adjustments or cancellations, we will update customers through regular communication channels, including our website, transit alerts, and social media,” writes Murphy.
Gavin McGarrigle, Unifor Western Regional Director, says that, without progress on core issues, nearly 5,000 members will escalate job action in the coming weeks.
The Port Coquitlam transit centre is one of the smallest in Metro Vancouver, with only six bays to service buses, half of which are currently occupied by ongoing upgrades to articulating buses that will be used in the rapid transit line between Coquitlam Central Station and Maple Ridge that is to open in January. To make matters worse, part of the bus company’s fleet that entered into service in 2006 is undergoing an overhaul and half of those service Port Coquitlam.
“You look at all of that combined, we’ll probably be reaching our capacity over the next few days,” said Michael McDaniel, Coast Mountain’s president and general manager.
Disruptions will likely begin with a bus or two down and some trips cancelled, added McDaniel. But if the OT ban continues, McDaniel said it will become increasingly difficult to keep buses on the road.
TransLink has been scaling back sailings on the busy Waterfront to Lonsdale Quay connector since Friday, Nov. 1, when Coast Mountain Bus Company (CMBC) operators and maintenance workers represented by Unifor began job action.
The initial phase of the strike action began on Nov. 1 at 8 a.m., with operators not wearing their CMBC uniforms and maintenance workers not doing overtime.
California's attorney general disclosed an ongoing probe into Facebook's privacy practices Wednesday, as it sued the company over its repeated refusal to turn over documents and answer questions.
California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said his probe has been going on for more than a year. He said he was disclosing it now because his office was making a public court filing to force the company to comply with subpoenas and requests for information.
"Facebook is not just continuing to drag its feet in response to the Attorney General's investigation, it is failing to comply," the lawsuit said.
The lawsuit was filed in state Superior Court in San Francisco.
The California probe, one of many legal and regulatory inquiries into Facebook, began as a response to the Cambridge Analytica scandal and grew into an investigation into whether Facebook misrepresented its privacy practices, deceived users and broke California law.
Cambridge Analytica, a data mining firm, gathered details on as many as 87 million Facebook users without their permission. The Federal Trade Commission fined Facebook $5 billion this summer for privacy violations in an investigation that also grew out of that scandal. California officials say questions have been raised about what Facebook knew and why it didn't prevent third parties such as Cambridge Analytica from misusing user data.
The court filing said Facebook hasn't given answers on 19 of the attorney general's questions and hasn't given any new documents in response to six document requests. The filing also said Facebook has refused to search the emails of top executives Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg, as the state requested.
Becerra's office said it requested additional information after Facebook took a year to respond to an initial subpoena.
Investigators sought communications among executives on developers' access to user data, the relationship between ad spending and access to data and the introduction of new privacy features and privacy-related news stories. Officials also sought information on the effects of privacy settings on third-party access to data and Facebook's enforcement of policies.
Facebook, which has its headquarters in Menlo Park, California, didn't respond to requests for comment.
California hadn't joined a separate probe involving attorneys general from New York and other states. The New York probe is looking into Facebook's dominance and any resulting anticompetitive conduct. California is also a holdout in a separate probe into Google's market dominance.
The District of Columbia and Massachusetts have also gone after Facebook on privacy. The Massachusetts attorney general's office is set to argue in a state court Thursday why Facebook should be compelled to stop resisting and turn over documents for its investigation.
Facebook's various legal troubles have yet to make a significant financial dent on the company. Even the FTC's $5 billion fine, the largest ever for a tech company, came to just under one-tenth of Facebook's revenue last year. The penalty was criticized by consumer advocates and a number of public officials as being too lenient.
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