Wednesday Briefing: Reddit tumult comes under U.S. scrutiny

Wednesday, February 03, 2021

by Linda Noakes

Good morning, .

Here’s what you need to know.

The U.S. Democrats are going it alone on Joe Biden's aid package, Jeff Bezos bows out and Rihanna comes to the aid of India's farmers.

Plus, the race for a vaccine against variants and another COVID headache for the Olympics. Read the latest pandemic news here.

Today’s biggest stories

A GameStop logo is seen in front of Reddit logo

Reversing course on the Reddit rollercoaster

Optimism about stimulus has boosted global stocks as the retail trading frenzy comes under scrutiny.

U.S. Democrats are using a ploy Republicans used when they controlled Congress in 2017 to go it alone on President Joe Biden's COVID-19 aid package.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has called a meeting of top officials that could result in tougher markets regulation for hedge funds, small investors and stockbrokers.

GameStop shares more than halved in value yesterday. "Our darkest hour," read one post on Reddit forum WallStreetBets.

Medical workers wearing red ribbons pose during a protest against the coup that ousted elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi, at Yangon General Hospital

World News

Doctors in Myanmar have stopped work to protest against the coup that ousted elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi, as a civil disobedience campaign builds

Alexei Navalny declared Vladimir Putin ‘the underwear poisoner’ as he was jailed by a Russian court. The Kremin critic was poisoned with a nerve agent last October, which he says state security agents put in his underpants.

Protesting Indian farmers are winning global attention, with climate activist Greta Thunberg and pop superstar Rihanna weighing in on their behalf.

A Chinese plan to boost 'masculinity' with physical education classes has sparked a debate over diversity in a country that has a traditional bias for sons.

Business

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is handing the reins to cloud boss Andy Jassy, who says the key to long-term success is "reinventing".

Sony is struggling to build enough PlayStation 5 consoles amid a global shortage of semiconductors.

China’s Alibaba beat revenue estimates on a pandemic-driven jump in e-commerce, but its shares dropped amid regulatory heat for founder Jack Ma’s business empire.

A surprise chat between Elon Musk and Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev on new audio-based social network Clubhouse has helped propel the app to the top of the startup charts.

Breakingviews: Corona Capital

Banco Santander’s New World-focused strategy pays off, and a Scandinavian video games tycoon is playing the game better than his peers. Read concise views on the pandemic's financial fallout from Breakingviews columnists.

Quote of the day

"The last year of our father's life was nothing short of remarkable. He was rejuvenated and experienced things he'd only ever dreamed of."

UK's record-breaking fundraiser Captain Tom Moore dies aged 100

Video of the day

SpaceX moon rocket explodes after test launch

And finally…

Japan's animators in pencil peril over production halt

Japan’s animators are losing one of the tools of their trade after Mitsubishi Pencil said this week it would scale back a long-running line of colored pencils.

More from Reuters

COVID-19 tracker Reuters Investigates The Great Reboot

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