彭博商业周刊-2021-05-24

World-dominatingcompanies32

EarninterestonyourBitcoin?27

AT&T+Discovery=Drama!17

May24,2021

It’saspecialedition!

Moreonpage5

THEHOW-TOISSUE

InvestonRobinhood

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Business

By2024,it’sestimatedtherewillbe4.2millionjobopeningsintheSalesforceecosystem.1WecollaboratedwithSalesforcetocreatePathfinder,aworkforce-developmentprogramthathelpsindividualsfromunderrepresentedgroupsintechnologytotrainforandfindSalesforce-relatedcareeropportunitiesatDeloitteandacrosstheSalesforceecosystem.

Family

AmidCOVID-19,GoodGrief’swork—helpingkids,familiesandcommunitiesthroughadversity—isbothvitalandchallenging.DeloittehasteamedupwithGoodGrieftocreatevirtualexperiencesforitsteamanddrivenvolunteeringeffortstosupportGoodGrief’sstrategies,events,facilitatorsandfamilies.

Society

Despiteeffortstogainparityintech,womencurrentlyholdjust29%ofSTEMjobsin

theUnitedStates.2Tosparkgirls’passionforSTEM,DeloittecollaboratedwithTheEllaProjecttocreatetheinventiveEllatheEngineercomicbookseriesandexpandedintovirtualprogramsforat-homelearningduringthepandemic.

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achampiongamer59Becomearestaurantregular60Goeverywhereontwowheels60Startasoccerteam61Upgradeyourcondiments62Makesmarter

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May24,2021

Whyisourlogodifferentforthisissue?Tocomplementourfirst-everweeklongevent,TheBloombergBusinessweek!Forhighlightsfromtheprogram,pleasevisit/2021howto.

5

CONTENTS BloombergBusinessweek May24,2021

INBRIEF

9

Commoditieskeepclimbing○Bitcoin’sonawildride

OPINION

10

It’spasttimetoscraptheprotectionistJonesAct

AGENDA

10

Apost-BrexitEUmeeting○JacobZumagoestotrial

REMARKS

12

China’sBeltandRoad—andnowJab—diplomacy

1

BUSINESS

15

Companiesscrambletokeepshelvesstocked

17

AT&TandDiscoveryteamuptochallengeNetflix

2

TECHNOLOGY

21

ThewomantakingEAandgamingintothefuture

6

23

Vaccinedisinformationgoesglobalonsocialmedia

3

FINANCE

27

Therising,riskyworldofBitcoinshadowbanking

29

For-profitcollegegetsaprivateequitycurriculum

4

ECONOMICS

32

Sizinguptheglobe’s50mostvaluablecompanies

35

Thehighcostof“CovidZero”containmentstrategies

5

POLITICS

36

TheSupremeCourtcouldoverturnRoev.Wade

38

UnderBiden,workers’rightsareathingagain

39

Dowereallyhavetogobacktothedoctor’soffice?

HowtoContactBloombergBusinessweek

EDITORIAL212617-8120○ADSALES212617-2900,731LexingtonAve.NewYork,NY10022○EMAILbwreader@

FAX212617-9065○SUBSCRIPTIONCUSTOMERSERVICEURL/service○REPRINTS/PERMISSIONS800290-5460x100oremailbusinessweekreprints@○LetterstotheEditorcanbesentbyemail,fax,orregularmail.Theyshouldincludethesender’saddress,phonenumber(s),andemailaddressifavailable.Connectionswiththesubjectofthelettershouldbedisclosed.Wereservetherighttoeditforsense,style,andspace○FollowusonsocialmediaFACEBOOK/bloombergbusinessweek/TWITTER@BWINSTAGRAM@businessweek

COVERTRAIL

Howthecover

getsmade

①

“Thisweekthere’sthisvirtualevent,soIwasthinking,whatiftheaudiencevotedonthecover?!”

“You’rescaringme.”

“Nonsense.Youartfolks

alwayshavesomanygoodideas—lettheworldsamplemoreofyourgenius.”

“Look,Iloveourreaders.Butdemocracyistheenemyofart.”

“IsthatJohnLennon?”

“Notevenclose.… Fine.

Butlet’smakeitanartvs.editshowdown.Thatmeansedithastomakeacoverforonce.”

“Fantastic!Howhard

coulditbe?”

②

“OK,edit’sfirstcover.Whatdoyouthink?”

“It’sOK,Iguess.”

“Where’syours?”

“Ithoughttheaudience

wasdeciding.”

“Wow.OK.Playingitclosetothevest.Let’sseewhattheythink.”

[Votescomein]

“Here’sashocker:Notevenonevoteforedit.Waytogo,art.”

“Let’sdothis

everyweek!”

Cover:PhotographbyBethSaccaforBloombergBusinessweek;stylist:AlieshaHatalovsky;hair:SeanBennett;makeup:StephanieZhang

TECHNOLOGY:PHOTOGRAPHBYJESSICACHOUFORBLOOMBERGBUSINESSWEEK.COVERTRAIL:ILLUSTRATIONBYOSCARBOLTONGREEN

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INBRIEF

Globalcoronaviruscasespassed164million,anddeathstopped

3.4m

BloombergBusinessweek

AT&TwillspinoffitsmediaoperationsandmergethemwithDiscovery’sassetstoformanewcompany.Thecombinedentity,whichthedealvaluesatabout

ByBenediktKammel

○DonaldTrumpfacesanothercriminal

Meanwhile,morethan1.5billionvaccinedoseshavebeengiven.ThevirushasflaredupagaininpartsofAsia:AnewoutbreakhasforcedSingaporetoreturntolockdown-likeconditions.

FightingbetweenIsraelandHamashasnowkilledatleast224Palestiniansand12Israelis.OnMay19,PrimeMinisterBenjaminNetanyahurebuffedPresidentJoeBiden’sdemandthathewinddowntheconflict,sayingairstrikesonGaza(above)wouldcontinue.

$130b

couldoffersomeseriouscompetitiontostreaminggiantsAmazon,Disney+,andNetflix.17

investigation.

OnMay18,NewYorkAttorneyGeneralLetitiaJamessaidhercivilinvestigationoftheTrumpOrganizationhasmorphedintoacriminalprobe,makingherthesecondstateofficialwhomightbringchargesagainsttheformerpresident.

Fidelityplanstoofferteenagersaspecialbrokerageaccount.

Commoditypricesareonatearaseconomiesemergefromthedepthsofthepandemic.

Coppersurgedtoahighthis

month,surpassing

9

MATA’AFA:COURTESYFAST

Thefundmanagerwillprovideinvestingandsavingsaccountsanddebitcardsto13-to17-year-oldswhoseparentsareclients.Therearenoaccountfeesorcommissions.

$10katon

Forthefirsttimeintwomonths,crudeoiljumpedabove

$70perbbl

Ironorehasalsohitahigh,reachingmorethan

$200aton

LooserpatrolshavemadethecityofCeuta,aSpanishenclaveonthecoastofMorocco,amagnetforAfricanstryingtoreachtheEU.OnMay18morethan5,000people—arecord—swamaroundborderfencesorwalkedthedistanceatlowtide.

GAZA:MAHMOUDKHATTAB/QUDSNETNEWS/ZUMAPRESS.CEUTA:MOHAMEDSIALI/EFE/ZUMAPRESS.

“Youneverknowhowlowislowwhenamarketgetsveryemotional.”

ArkInvestmentManagementfounderCathieWood,talkingaboutBitcoinatTheBloombergBusinessweek,aweeklongvirtualgathering,onMay19.Bitcoindroppedasmuchas31%onMay19,thenrallied33%,endingthedaynear$40,000.Woodexpectsthecryptocurrency,whichpeakedat$63,000inApril,toreach$500,000.

FiameNaomiMata’afaissettobecomeSamoa’sfirstfemaleprimeministerafterthePacificisland’ssupremecourtbrokeapoliticaldeadlockfollowingApril’scontestedelection.ShesucceedsTuilaepaSaileleMalielegaoi,whoheldthepostfor22years.

TheEU’smemberstatesagreedonMay19toallowquarantine-freetravelthissummerforvaccinatedvisitorsfromcountriesdeemedsafe.

BLOOMBERGOPINION

May24,2021

Don’tJustWaivetheProtectionistJonesAct.ScrapItforGood

Anotherdomesticenergycrisis,anotherwaiveroftheU.S.’sJonesAct.

InresponsetotheransomwareattackontheColonialPipeline,whichdeliversabout45%ofthefuelfortheEasternSeaboard,PresidentJoeBiden’sadministrationsaiditwouldallowtwoexemptionsfromthe101-year-oldact,whichrestrictswaterbornecommercebetweenU.S.portstoshipsthatarebuilt,crewed,andownedbyAmericans.CitgoPetroleumCorp.andValeroEnergyCorp.nowhavepermis-siontouseforeignvesselstotransportoilproductsbetweentheGulfCoastandtheEastCoast.

Hurricanesforcedpreviouspresidentstosuspendthelawtoensuredeliveriesoffood,fuel,andothergoods.Thistime,Bidenshouldfacerealityandburytheactunderthewaves.

Aswithmostprotectionistmeasures,theJonesActharmstheverypeopleitpurportstohelp.BecauseoceangoingJonesAct-compliantshipsaremoreexpensive,andtherearen’t

10

thatmanyofthem,thelawleadstohigherpricesforgoods,

morecongestedroadwaysandpipelines,andadditionalpollu-

tionfromgreaterrelianceoncarbon-intensivetransportation.

Itsmarket-bendingdistortionscouldscarcelybeexagger-

ated.Asadirectresultofthelaw,refineriesonbothcoasts

canfinditcheapertoimportforeignoilthantousedomes-

ticsources.RefineriesontheGulfCoastchoosetosendtheir

productstoLatinAmericainsteadoftheEastCoast.TheU.S.

isanaturalgaspowerhouse,butithasnoJonesAct-compliant

liquefiednaturalgascarriers,whichwouldcosttwotothree

timesasmuchasequivalentshipsfromSouthKorea.So

PuertoRicoandHawaiisourcetheirLNGfromoverseas,

NortheastportslooktoTrinidadandTobago,andU.S.natu-

ralgasgoesabroad.

TheactisevenunderminingtheBidenadministration’s

vauntedgreenenergyplans.Offshorewindprojectsneed

JonesAct-compliantturbine-installationvessels.Rightnow,

shipstoChinaforrepairs,whichischeaperevenwiththe50%tarifftheypaytheU.S.governmentfortheprivilege.

TheJonesActsurvivesbecauseitsupportsthenarrowinterestsofahandfulofshippingcompaniesandmaritimeunions,whichpumpoutareliablestreamofcampaigncashtotheCongressionalShipbuildingCaucus.NevermindthecoststoallAmericans—especiallythoseinAlaska,Hawaii,andPuertoRicowhodependheavilyonmaritimecommerce.

Therearebetterwaystobuildupcoastalcommerceandthemaritimeindustry,frominvestinginneglectedportinfra-structureandpublicshipyardstochangingthetaxtreat-mentofU.S.-flaggedships.YettheBidenadministrationseemscommittedtopreservingtheJonesAct,whatevertheconsequences.Here’saquestionfortheWhiteHousetoponder:Ifthislawissosuccessfulandsovital,whydoesitsooftenneedtobewaivedincasesofemergency?<BW>

Formorecommentary,goto/opinion

AGENDA

Let’sMeetAgain

EUleadersconveneinpersoninBrusselsonMay24-25.Amongthetopicsontheiragenda:Reducingcarbonemissionsatleast55%by2030from1990’slevelsandnavigatingthetensepost-BrexitrelationshipwiththeU.K.

theU.S.hasone—underconstruction,thatis,anddueto

launchin2023atacostof$500million.Hittingtheadminis-

tration’sgoalof30gigawattsofoffshorewindenergyproduc-

tionby2030willrequiremorevessels,whichthelawwillonly

makemoreexpensive.

ItwouldbeonethingiftheJonesActmetitsstatedgoal

ofsustainingarobustmerchantfleet.Butthenumberof

JonesAct-eligibleU.S.vesselsin2019was99,vs.193in2000.

From1960to2014,evenasU.S.outputmorethanquadrupled,

thetonnageofdomesticcontiguouscoastalshippingdropped

by44%.TheU.S.’sfewremainingcommercialshipyardsare

expensiveandsuperannuated:Indeed,somecompaniesthat

shamelesslydefendtheirJonesActmonopoliessendtheir

TheBankofNewZealandannouncesitsinterestratedecisiononMay26.Thebankhassignaledit’sinnorushtohaltmonetarystimulusastheeconomicoutlookremainsuncertain.

SouthAfrica’sformerpresident,JacobZuma,issettofacetrialstartingMay26forcorruptionandmoneylaundering.Heintendstoenterapleaofnotguilty.

FordwillbriefinvestorsandanalystsonMay26.TheautomakerisexpectedtoprovideupdatesonitsEVstrategyaspartoftheFord+plan.

FinanceministersandcentralbankgovernorsfromtheG-7willgathervirtuallyonMay28

topreparefortheirin-personsummitafewweekslater,whichtheU.K.willhostinCornwall.

Atits74thassembly,beingheldvirtuallyfromMay24toJune1,theWHOwilldiscusswaysoutoftheyearlongpandemicandhowtopreventthenextone.

TheCEOsofBank

ofAmerica,Citigroup,GoldmanSachs,JPMorgan,MorganStanley,andWellsFargowilltestifybeforetheU.S.SenateBankingCommitteeonMay26.

ILLUSTRATIONBYEMMAERICKSON

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REMARKS

●Syria ●EquatorialGuinea

China’s

●Sudan

12 ●Laos Vaccine

Diplomacy

●Nepal

 ●China,nowthatoneofitsCovid-19

 shotswasclearedbytheWHO,hasa

 newsoft-powerlever 

 ●ByIainMarlowandJamesPaton 

●Cambodia

●Comoros

●Dominica

GETTYIMAGES(7).REDUX(1)

REMARKS BloombergBusinessweek May24,2021

TheCovid-19pandemichasbeenadevastatingpublic-health

amongthoseChinatargeted.OnApril27,thesamedayChinese

catastrophetheworldover.ForChina,it’salsoprovidedan

ForeignMinisterWangYiorganizedavirtualmeetingwithhis

unprecedentedgeopoliticalopportunity.Afteritgottheout-

counterpartsinAfghanistan,Bangladesh,Nepal,Pakistan,and

breakundercontrol,andwithworldleadersdistractedbytheir

SriLanka,MinisterofNationalDefenseWeiFenghewasin

owncountries’healthstruggles,itwasabletousethechaosof

Bangladesh,pledgingtoenhancemilitarycooperation.Within

thepandemictostepuppoliticalcrackdownsinHongKong

days,officialstheregaveemergencyapprovaltotheSinopharm

andXinjiang.Othernationscriedfoul,butChinapersisted.

vaccine.Lessthantwoweekslater,China’sambassadorto

Perhapsmostimportant,earlyexportsofitsrapidlydeveloped

Bangladeshsurprisedhishostswithanunexpectedwarning:

vaccineshaveprovidedBeijingwithapotentdiplomaticcall-

AnyfuturecooperationwithAustralia,India,Japan,andthe

ingcardinAfrica,Asia,LatinAmerica,andtheMiddleEast.

U.S.wouldinevitablydamagethenation’stieswithChina.

Andastheglobaldeathtollmounts,Chineseofficialsgetto

“Bangladesh,whichwasreliantonIndiandoses,isnow

bragabouttheirvirus-fightingsuccessaroundtheworldeven

beingsubjectedtopressurefromChinaoveritsstrategic

astheygaingreateraccessandinfluenceinfar-flungcapitals.

foreignpartnershipsinthemidstofbilateralnegotiations

“TheU.S.responsetotheepidemicisnothingshortofa

foralargesaleofurgentlyneededvaccines,”saysNicholas

messandtotalfailure,”ChineseForeignMinistryspokesman

Thomas,anassociateprofessorattheCityUniversityofHong

ZhaoLijian,oneoftheoriginalwolfwarriordiplomats,named

Kongandeditorofseveralbooksonglobalhealthandforeign

fortheirconfrontationalstance,saidlastmonth.“Incontrast,

policy.“Itwouldbefoolishtoconcludethattheaidandsup-

Chinasecuredmajorstrategicoutcomesinfightingthevirus.”

plyofvaccinesthatChinaisnowgivingtoAsiaandtheworld

AboutChina,atleast,he’snotwrong.Sofarthecountry

willnottranslateintoalong-termdiplomaticadvantage.”

hasshippedabout265millionCovidvaccinedoses,morethan

Thecountry’supperhandmaynotlast.Indiarecognizes

allothernationscombined,withcommitmentstoprovidean

China’sadvantage,butbelievesitwon’tbelong-lastingand

impressive440millionmore,accordingtoAirfinityLtd.,asci-

expectsitsownexportswillrampupinafewmonths,accord-

enceinformationandanalyticscompany.Otherleadingpow-

ingtoaforeignministryofficialinNewDelhiwhoaskednotto

ershaven’tkeptup.PresidentJoeBidenhasvowedtheU.S.

beidentified.Chinesediplomats’sometimesoverzealouspres-

willbecomean“arsenalforfightingCovid-19.”Hisadministra-

suretacticscouldalsobackfire.EvenBangladeshcomplained

tionpromisestoboostproductionofU.S.vaccinesanddonate

aboutthelocalambassador’scomments.

13

80milliondosesoverseasbytheendofJune,including20mil-

AnotherwildcardisthereliabilityofChineseshotscom-

lionauthorizedforU.S.use—thefirsttimehe’sshareddoses

paredwiththatoftheothervaccines.Theefficacyofthe

hecouldhavegiventoAmericans.Europehasdonebetter,

Sinovacvaccine,forinstance,varieswildly—from50%to90%—

exportingabout118milliondomesticallyproduceddosessofar,

instudies.GlobalsurveyshaveshownChineseshotsarethe

accordingtoAirfinity,evenamidcriticismforaslowstartto

leastfavoredinseveralplaces.EveninHongKong,only37%

itsvaccinationdriveathome.India,meanwhile,hadexported

saidthey’dtakeaSinovacjab,comparedwith56%forPfizer

almost69milliondosestonearly100countriesuntilitsuffered

Inc.’s.Westernvaccinediplomacywithmoreeffectiveshots

theworld’sworstoutbreakandhaltedfurtherdeliveries.

couldeasilypushbackgainsbyChina,accordingtoThomas,

Chinaisabouttogetanotherbigboost.Afterclearing

theHongKongacademic.TheofficialinNewDelhisaysIndia

Western-madeshots,theWorldHealthOrganizationrecently

remainsatrustedpartnerforvaccinesaroundthedeveloping

authorizedthevaccinemadebyChina’sSinopharmGroup

worldandthatChineseshotshaven’tliveduptoexpectations.

Co.AnodforonefromSinovacBiotechLtd.isexpectedsoon.

AcrossAfrica,nationshavestruggledwithvaccinehes-

ThiswillallowChineseshotstoflowtodozensofdevelop-

itancy,suggestingChina’sshotsmaylanguishinstorage

ingnationsthroughCovax,theglobalvaccineinitiative,

ratherthangeneratethepoliticalgoodwillBeijingintended.

whichhasmanagedtoshiponly68millionofthe2billion

“Althoughsomeofmyworkmateshavebeenvaccinated,Iam

dosesithopestosendoutbyyearend.“Chinaisgoingtobe

stillafraidtodoitbecauseofwhatI’vereadonsocialmedia,”

acriticallyimportantpartnerinthelongrun,”saysRichard

saysPassmoreMwanza,a29-year-oldsupervisoratacandy

Hatchett,chiefexecutiveofficeroftheCoalitionforEpidemic

makerinZimbabwe.

PreparednessInnovations,oneofthegroupsleadingCovax.

Still,China’scontributionswillbecrucialintheraceto

TheWHOauthorization,adefactoapprovalforregula-

inoculatelargepopulationsacrossthedevelopingworldbefore

torsinpoorercountries,couldhelpunleashhundredsofmil-

outbreaks—andvariants—spreadtoowidely.WithCovaxship-

lionsofdosesofChineseshots.Theimpactofthecountry’s

mentsdelayedbytheIndiaexportcollapse,Chinamightbe

contributionswillalsobemagnifiedbytheabsenceofIndia,

theonlychoiceintheneartermformanypoorercountries.

makingthis“thebesttimeforChinatopracticevaccinediplo-

“ThepandemicstartedasaChernobylmomentforChina,”says

macyandtomakemoreuseofitsfirst-moveradvantage,”

Suish